Standard and Transmission-Based Precautions

Abstract

Dental health care personnel (DHCP) should update their infection control programs to ensure that safe injection practices and respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette measures are used routinely. In addition, with the emergence of new pathogens, re-emergence of variant organisms and more patients seeking care in ambulatory care facilities, DHCP need to be aware of additional measures to take when treating patients in their offices who are actively infected with certain organisms to protect fully other patients, their staff members and themselves.

Cross-infection and infection control in dentistry: Knowledge, attitude and practice of patients attended dental clinics in King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

“…In addition, the continuous increase in the number of patients seeking dental clinics should give alarming signs to dentists and Dental Health Care Programs (DHCPs) for better awareness of extra-precautions required while treating the dental patients. These measures are needed for protecting both patients and staff members [12].…”

Streptococcus pneumoniae carriage rate in healthy preadolescent dental patients

“…These predisposing characteristics are cor roborated by a previous Italian study made on young children 17 . In special dental healthcare settings where immune-compromised patients are generally treated, such as elderly, hospital ized patients, HIV positive subjects, oncologic patients, it is advisable to apply the so called transmission-based precautions 32 . Pneumococ cal vaccination is one of these precautions, al though polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccines do not seem totally effective in preventing in vasive pneumococcal disease and death 33 and the Infectious Disease Society of America does not recommend vaccination in any category of healthcare workers, therefore including dental healthcare workers, but recommends vacci nation for adults older than 65 years 34 .…”

Advances in infection epidemiology and control in dental healthcare settings

“…Since airborne infections are frequent in dental healthcare settings, but data are lacking, the fourth study sought to investigate S. pneumoniae carriage rate among adolescent dental patients 16 . Carriage rate is important to estimate whether pneumococci are frequently spread in the dental environment and transmission-based precautions are needed, including vaccination against pneumococci and, perhaps, influenza (most HCAP-CAP cases are consequent to the development of this disease) 17 . This paper reported a carriage rate as high as 11.6% and built a probabilistic model to individuate patients' profile allegedly associated with pneumococci carriage.…”