Carrington College Instructor Offers Important Advice for Dental Hygienists in Dimensions of Dental Hygiene Magazine

Rosette Bravo-Nguyen, a full-time dental hygiene instructor at Carrington College in Sacramento, California, recently authored a piece in Dimensions of Dental Hygiene magazine regarding important safety precautions and the use of antimicrobial preprocedural mouthrinse.   “It should be of no surprise that in the midst of a global pandemic, infection control and clinician safety are top of mind,” said Nguyen. “In order to protect themselves and their patients, dental hygienists need to be equipped with a strong knowledge of disease transmission and preventive measures, such as the use of preprocedural mouth rinses.”   Contaminated aerosols create a potential path of infection for viruses (arboviruses, alphaviruses, coronaviruses, influenza type B, etc.) yet while treating patients, dental hygienists are often exposed to aerosols putting them at risk for infection.   As a result, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends clinicians avoid using aerosol-generating techniques, such as high-speed dental handpieces, air/water syringes, and ultrasonic scalers during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, several mouthrinse ingredients are bactericidal (capable of killing bacteria) and bacteriostatic (helping to prevent the reproduction and spread of bacteria) which can provide additional protection.   “While there is no evidence supporting the effectiveness of preprocedural mouthrinsing in the prevention of SARS-COV-2, the ability of some therapeutic ingredients to decrease transmission of pathogens suggests there may be efficacy in reducing the presence of the novel coronavirus in dental aerosols,” added Nguyen.   The article also provides insight on additional infection control precautions to not only protect the general public, but oral health professionals as well.   Rosette Bravo-Nguyen, RDH, BA, has been working in the dental field since 2009. She practiced as a clinical dental hygienist in private practice for several years prior to entering academia. Currently, Bravo- Nguyen is a full-time faculty member at Carrington College in Sacramento, California.   Here is a link to her full article in Dimensions of Dental Hygiene.   Learn more about the Carrington College Dental Hygiene program in Sacramento.