Effects of Natural Ventilation and Saliva Standard Ejectors during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Quantitative Analysis of Aerosol Produced during Dental Procedures

Imena Rexhepi, Rocco Mangifesta, Manlio Santilli, Silvia Guri, Piero Di Carlo, Gianmaria D’Addazio, Sergio Caputi and Bruna Sinjari
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Imena Rexhepi: Unit of Prosthodontics, Dental Clinic, Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Rocco Mangifesta: Occupational Allergy, Nanomaterials and Fibers Biosafety and Immunotoxicology Group, CAST, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Manlio Santilli: Unit of Prosthodontics, Dental Clinic, Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Silvia Guri: Durres Regional Hospital, Rruga Telat Noga, 2001 Durrës, Albania
Piero Di Carlo: Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Gianmaria D’Addazio: Unit of Prosthodontics, Dental Clinic, Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Sergio Caputi: Unit of Prosthodontics, Dental Clinic, Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Bruna Sinjari: Unit of Prosthodontics, Dental Clinic, Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 14, 1-9

Abstract: The novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has renewed attention to aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs). Dental-care workers are at high risk of contamination by SARS-CoV-2. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of standard saliva ejectors and natural ventilation in reducing particulate matter (PM) concentration during different routine dental procedures in the pandemic period. The DustTrak monitor was used to measure PM1, PM2.5, PM10, and breathable (<4 microns) total dust during 14 procedures performed with and without the presence of natural ventilation in a dental unit. Moreover, measurements were performed near the practitioners or near the standard saliva ejectors during the different procedures. In the latter condition, reduced levels of PM10 were recorded (82.40 ± 9.65 ?g/m 3 vs. 50.52 ± 0.23 ?g/m 3 ). Moreover, higher levels of PM (53.95 ± 2.29 ?g/m 3 vs. 27.85 ± 0.14 ?g/m 3 ) were produced when the dental unit’s windows were open. At the same time, the total level of PM were higher during scaling than during other procedures (data suggest not to adopt natural ventilation—both window and door opened—during dental procedures). It was also demonstrated that the use of standard saliva ejectors can considerably reduce the total released amount of PM10.

Keywords: aerosols; COVID-19; dentistry; SARS-CoV-2; standard saliva ejectors; dental infection control (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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