Infection Control in Dental Practice During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Alessandra Amato, Mario Caggiano, Massimo Amato, Giuseppina Moccia, Mario Capunzo and Francesco De Caro
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Alessandra Amato: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy
Mario Caggiano: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy
Massimo Amato: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy
Giuseppina Moccia: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy
Mario Capunzo: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy
Francesco De Caro: Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry, Scuola Medica Salernitana, University of Salerno, 84126 Salerno, Italy

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 13, 1-12

Abstract: COVID-19 is the disease supported by SARS-CoV-2 infection, which causes a severe form of pneumonia. Due to the pathophysiological characteristics of the COVID-19 syndrome, the particular transmissibility of SARS-CoV-2, and the high globalization of our era, the epidemic emergency from China has spread rapidly all over the world. Human-to-human transmission seems to occur mainly through close contact with symptomatic people affected by COVID-19, and the main way of contagion is via the inhalation of respiratory droplets, for example when patients talk, sneeze or cough. The ability of the virus to survive outside living organisms, in aerosol or on fomites has also been recognized. The dental practitioners are particularly exposed to a high risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection because they cannot always respect the interpersonal distance of more than a meter and are exposed to saliva, blood, and other body fluids during surgical procedures. Moreover, many dental surgeries can generate aerosol, and the risk of airborne infection is to be considered higher. The aim of this paper is to provide practical advice for dentists based on the recent literature, which may be useful in reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19 during clinical practice.

Keywords: COVID-19; dentistry; SARS-CoV-2; prevention procedures; guidelines; coronavirus infection; SARS virus; preventive dentistry; infection in dentistry; hand hygiene (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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