Infection Control While Providing Treatment

The COVID-19 infection has been noted to be easier spread than other respiratory illnesses. Therefore, the ADA has issued summary guidance during the COVID-19 crisis, which can be found here. In summary, COVID-19 is different from the flu, the common cold and SARS-1 and may require different precautions than dental teams have been employing since the early 1980s. For new CDC guidance for dental practices as of August 28, 2020, click here. For updated CDC infection control recommendations as of November 4, 2020, please click here. 

Please find a summary of infection control guidelines from the ADA below:

  • Screen for dental emergencies using teledentistry or other remote modalities, minimizing the risk of transmission.
  • Fully utilize PPE , understanding that surgical masks, which do not seal around the nose and mouth, are not adequate to completely protect against aerosol-borne disease transmission
  • Take extra-oral radiographs whenever possible; intraoral techniques may induce coughing
  • Reduce aerosol production as much as possible through the use of hand instrumentation and employment of dental dam and high-speed suction.
  • N95 masks , with a positive seal around the mouth, in combination with a full face shield, should be worn when treating patients in close proximity to their respiratory system. If N95 masks are not available, surgical FDA approved masks must be worn for each patient and not reused, in conjunction with proper use of goggles, gowns and gloves.
  • Members of the dental team within six feet of the treatment should be limited to the operator and the assistant.

The ADA has developed additional resources for practices, and those can be found here.

Employees from the Center for Disease Control share the reasons why they wear a mask in this short video, "I Wear a Mask Because..." 

If your practice is suffering from the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal and state authorities have acted and made Small Business Administration loans available – which may turn into grants, depending how the funds are used. For more information, please find that here.


COVID-19 Updates and Resources: