Dental unit water lines (DUWLs) are an integral part of dental surgery equipment. (1) They provide water via a network of small-bore tubing to the high-speed dental hand-pieces, three-way air and water syringes, and the ultrasonic scaler. (2,3) The water is used to cool the tooth surfaces, for rinsing debris from teeth, and for oral rinsing by patients. (4)
The quality of dental unit water is of considerable importance to patients and dental health care providers because they are exposed to water and aerosols generated from the dental unit during routine practice. (5,6) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)—a US federal agency—and the American Dental Association have recommended that the output water from (DUWLs) should
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(9,10,11) This contamination has been an important problem in dentistry for over 50 years.(12,13).
The origin of these microorganisms may be patients' oral back fluid into the
DUWLs, (14) the initial contamination of water entering into the unit and/or may be as a result of entering water contact with biofilm (15).
Biofilms are made up of a sessile, heterogeneous consortium of microbial cells that are irreversibly attached to a substratum or interface or to each other.(16) These microflora become embedded in a self-secreted complex exopolysaccharides (16,17)containing dead microorganisms, and inorganic materials derived from the supply water.
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It can be also isolated from 2.9 to 50% of water samples collected from (DUWLs). (25,26) This organism is resistant to a wide range of biocides and antibiotics. (25,27) It can cause pneumonia-like disease in elderly or immunocompromised individuals. (28)
In 1987, a study described an asso¬ciation between P. aeruginosa isolates recovered from oral abscesses in two cancer patients and their recent exposure to contaminated (DUWL) water during dental treatment from separate DCUs in the same dental clinic. (11)
Retraction or back-siphonage of oral fluids into DUWLs during dental instrument use can expand the range of microorganisms present both in DUWL biofilm and output water. This increases the possibil¬ity of transmission of more pathogenic human-derived microorganisms such as Staphylococcus aureus to staff and patients. (29)
In addition, some Dental units use independent water reservoir bottles to provide water to the DUWLs. These bottles are manually filled with water and can become contaminated with skin bacteria including S.
Dental hygiene is amongst many professions that come with an increased risk of injury. In fact, evidence suggests that the incidence of dental professionals acquiring musculoskeletal disorders is reaching 96%. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), these complications are a result of “repetitive motion or awkward posture for more than 2 hours at a time, unassisted frequent manual handling (eg, scaling an area using the same strokes), and unassisted forced manual handling (eg, heavy calculus removal using hand-activated instruments)”. These complications not only affect the quality of life for the
Adegoke AA, Tom M, Okoh AI, Jacob S (2010) Studies on multiple antibiotic resistant bacterial isolated from surgical site infection. Scient Res. Essays 5:3876-81.
Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is a gram-negative, rod-shaped aerobic bacterium. It is a primary cause of hospital-acquired infections. P. aeruginosa is primarily a nosocomial pathogen. It also acts as an opportunistic pathogen, which can only infect a host that is immunocompromised, due to an underlying disease or medication. Although, P. aeruginosa can cause damage to virtually any tissue in the body, it almost never affects the tissues of healthy individuals. It is a problematic pathogen in hospitals; infecting individuals with cancer, burn wound, catheters and cystic fibrosis. P. aeruginosa is most recognized for its resistance to a wide range of antibiotics. In its planktonic form, P. aeruginosa has been found to have many virulence factors. However, P. aeruginosa within biofilms have been found to have a resistance to antibiotics 1,000 times greater than that of its planktonic counterparts [4]. Infections that are caused by bacterial biofilms are very persistent and very difficult to treat.
Thesis Statement: Concerns for water fluoridation stem from the toxicity of fluoride, the dangers fluoride pose to the body, and equal declining tooth decay seen for fluoridated and non-fluoridated countries.
As I started my new journey of becoming a dental hygienist, I came into the program with no background of dental. I came into this program with an open mind and willing to embrace new concepts as well as develop new skills. During my time at the Canadian Academy of Dental Hygiene (CADH), I learned that as a dental hygienist that I am committed to promoting and helping each individual achieve their optimal oral health goals. In support of my client’s goals, I may assume any or all of the roles included in the dental hygiene scope of practice. My goal throughout this program was to help my clients achieve their optimal oral health goals through education, health promotion and providing preventive and clinical therapy.
XCPs are considered semi-critical by these same guidelines, for they do not penetrate tissue, but come in contact with mucosa (American Dental Association, 2009). Items in this category require sterilization (American Dental Association, 2009). Assuming the XCPs, are unable to be sterilized in the office’s autoclave, a high level disinfectant may be used. This leads to a grey area in disinfection. The difference between sterilization and disinfection, with this solution, is the amount of time the item is submerged (American Dental Association, 2009). The required time to sterilize using cold sterilization solutions is often around ten hours (American Dental Association, 2009). The amount of time Karen is submerging the XCPs is inadequate to achieve sterilization.
Water flossing is relatively new on the home dental cleaning scene. It involves a small machine which plugs into an electrical outlet. After filling the water reservoir tank with water, it pumps liquid through the plastic tube to a handheld curved pick. Hold the pick against each tooth gap, so the pressure of this water flushes out all food particles trapped in each space.
Healthcare is a necessity to sustain society. Dentistry is an area of healthcare that I feel extremely passionate about because access to proper dental care is limited, especially in the underserved communities. As an African American, I want to become a dentist and healthcare provider in the hopes of helping patients and adding to the diversification of the field. With a growing minority population in the United States, it has become apparent that there is a shortage of black dentists. This is problematic because underrepresented minorities are in great need of access to culturally connected dentists who understand their clinical needs as much as their lives and their challenges. I believe that when the profession includes a range of ethnicities
Infection control is a central concept to every practice of health care providers. Its main objective is to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases from both patients and health personnel (Martin et al., 2010). In dental clinic, infection control is a continuous concern for its professionals. They have to contact patients routinely and be exposed to their blood, saliva, dental plaque and pus that may contain infectious pathogens. It is important for the dental professionals to treat these fluids as if they are infectious and special precautions must be taken to handle them. In this essay, I will highlight the scope of infection control practices in dental clinics and the ways through which infectious microorganisms are transmitted in the dental clinic. Also, I will talk about some infection control guidelines implemented in dental clinics and how they meet the needs of the patients. Finally, from a personal perspective, I will mention some factors that affect the implantation of infection control guidelines and procedures.
Dental Hygienist: Have you been flossing? If not, the Dental Hygienist will know. A Dental Hygienist examines and makes sure that you have been flossing, brushing, and much more on your teeth. You really should make sure that you schedule cleanings every couple months or so. Your teeth are a big part of your health, and if you don’t take care of them, you will eventually end up with fake teeth, or the proper name would be Dentures.
In an article I read, Dr. Izabella Wentz, a doctor of pharmacy, the same bacteria that contribute to gum disease or periodontitis produce an
The infection is now destroying the bone that supports your teeth. Eliminating bacteria through good oral hygiene is not possible.
Introduction: In Canada, general dental health is not part Canada’s national system of health insurance (Medicare) (1) except for some dental surgical procedures that are performed at hospitals. Since Oral health does not come under the Health Act about ninety-five percent of the oral health care services are offered on a fee-for-service basis. Oral health care is under provincial or territorial jurisdiction like other health care services and publically financed dental care programs provide the remaining five percent of oral health care services (2). Thus, majority of Canadians receive oral health via privately owned dental clinics. Privately owned dental care gives these services providers control over dental service charges, types of available treatment for the patients and number of follow-up appointment for treatments or routine care. Service users pay for the dental expenses from their own pockets or utilize insurance coverage (1).
Biofilms can form on many surfaces, including natural aquatic systems, human teeth, medical devices like artificial heart valves and catheters, living tissues, water distribution systems, etc. Biological wastewater treatment methods can be subcategorized into dispersed growth systems and attached growth systems. Biofilms fall under the latter category (Sehar & Naz, 2016). In attached growth systems, microbes get attached to a surface to form a biofilm.
Biofilms are formed by a six step process. First is a reversible process, when an organic monolayer(made of polysaccharides or glycoproteins) absorbs to the surface, altering the chemical and physical properties of the surface. This makes the surface more conditioned and increase the chance that planktonic bacteria will attach. Secondly, also a reversible step, is when the free-floating or planktonic bacteria encounter the conditioned surface, and some attachment of the bacteria may occur. The third step is when the bacteria is left attached too long, then an irreversible attachment occurs. F...