Biosafety Measures at the Dental Office After the Appearance of COVID-19: A Systematic Review

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to determine biosecurity measures at the dental office after the appearance of COVID-19. A search was conducted in the main databases of the scientific literature using the words “COVID-19, coronavirus, SARS-Cov2, biosecurity, disinfection and dentistry”. We analyzed biosecurity and disinfection standards at the dental office and dental health personnel to date, and their adaptation to the needs and way of working of each. As a result, according to the information collected the following procedure was identified: a telephone appointment must be made and a questionnaire should be given before dental care; at arrival to the appointment, the temperature of the patient should be taken and proper cleaning and disinfection of the waiting room should be maintained. Panoramic radiography and CBCT are the auxiliary methods of choice. Absolute isolation and atraumatic restorative therapy techniques are a good alternative to decrease fluid exposure. The removal of protective clothing and accessories must follow a specific order and washing hands before and after is essential. In conclusions the efficient biosecurity for dentists and patients in all dental care processes before, during and immediately after the appointment reduces the risk of COVID-19 infection and allows healthy dental care environments.

Legal liability facing COVID-19 in dentistry: Between malpractice and preventive recommendations

“… 7 However, in some articles, authors suggest that patient triage should be performed at reception and no telephonic pretriage is described. 8 , 9 , 10 In both cases, based on the collected information, if a patient has/had a positive history of contact and/or symptoms, treatment should be postponed, and the patient should be proclaimed to the sanitary authorities. 5 Meng et al recommend that a delay of dental treatments to up to 14 days after the exposure event should be set for asymptomatic patients who had contact with infected subjects and/or traveled to an at-risk area, thus suggesting a self-quarantine at home.…”

“…The appointments should be straggled and scheduled within a minimum of 15 min’ interval in order to allow ventilation after each session and to avoid patients crowding. 10 , 11 Therefore, only in case of pediatric and special needs patients, companion is allowed. 12 The patient and the companion are asked to wait while wearing a mask.…”

“… 26 , 27 Upon changing between patients, cleaning the hands up to the elbows using soap and water or ABHR is mandatory. 10 …”

“… 37 Dental radiographs must be taken with precautions. 7 , 10 A rubber dam is obligatory whenever it is possible. 3 , 7 , 10 It is important to consider the use of chemo-chemical caries removal, atraumatic restorative techniques, excavators, hall technique for stainless steel crowns, 8 manual instruments for scaling and polishing, 38 and red or blue contra-angle handpiece rather than the high speed handpiece.…”

Odontologia no contexto da pandemia por COVID-19: uma visão crítica/Dentistry in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: a critical view

“…Além disso, é necessário que se elabore um cronograma de atendimento para que não haja aglomerações nas salas de espera (BHANUSHALI et al, 2020;BARABARI e MOHARAMZADEH, 2020;CABRERA-TASAYCO et al, 2020;LO GIUDICE, 2020;PENG et al, 2020;REIS et al, 2020;VILLANI et al, 2020).…”