Is it safe to go to the dentist?

If the coronavirus is spread by breathing without a mask in close proximity to others, you might think that sitting with your mouth open for hours on end while a hygienist fiddles right next to you seems like a risky proposition. This is because unlike other health care visits, dentistry requires you to remove your mask for long periods of time. Many Americans delay or avoid dental treatment for fear of transmission.

But don’t delay your visit to the dentist just yet. Dentists and health care experts say that despite what it might seem, a visit to a dentist is actually a model of safety in the event of a pandemic.

“Going to the dentist is very safe, and it’s been really safe since dental offices reopened in May,” said Dr. Kami Hoss, DDS, who sits on the board of directors for the UCLA School of Dentistry and is the CEO of The Super Dentists in California. “Dentists are experts in infection control.”

Dr Hoss said dentists have been keenly aware of the transmission of the disease and how to avoid it for decades. “It goes back to the 1980s, when I was in dental school when we had to deal with the HIV / AIDS crisis,” Hoss said. “Since then, we have implemented numerous processes, technologies and protocols to ensure the safety of our patients, employees and physicians.”

Although it is considered a “high risk” profession, in part due to the close proximity between dentists and patients, a report published by the Journal of the American Dental Association (ADA) found that fewer 1% of 2,200 dentists surveyed last June had COVID-19[FEMININELesprofessionnelsdel’industriecroientquelefaibletauxestlerésultatdel’ajoutd’unecouchesupplémentairedeprotectionàleursnormesd’assainissementdéjàstrictes

Dr Matt Messina, an ADA spokesperson, told the Salon by phone – between patients – that it is “absolutely” safe to go to the dentist at this time. He noted that there had been no dentist-to-patient transmission that ADA was aware of and that the fact that less than 1 percent of dentists surveyed in June had contracted COVID-19 means that the industry has “a pretty amazing track record”.

“And these are the dentists who contracted COVID, and that includes from any source,” Dr Messina said of the statistic.

But of course, like almost everything else, going to the dentist right now is a little different from what it was before the pandemic. You don’t have coffee or tea in the waiting room, or probably free time to read magazines before cleaning your teeth, like you did before. Some offices have skipped the waiting room altogether, opting instead to have patients wait in their cars for a call when they’re ready to be seen. And before your appointment, you can expect to be virtually screened for possible exposure to COVID-19 and any potential symptoms – as Dr. Hoss does in California.

“We’ve put in a thorough phone screening going through all questions – if you’ve got a fever, if you’ve been dating COVID, we’re going from there,” Dr Hoss said. “We only allow healthy people inside; this screening includes patients, but it also includes our staff and doctors, every morning before they are allowed to enter the offices.

In addition to pre-appointment screening, dentists will also look a little more protected.

“Most patients will see, perhaps the addition of face drapes, more of a barrier gown arrangement type, we look a hair more surgical than we have done in the past,” said Dr. Messina. “Dental offices have used gowns, glasses, face shields, masks even before, so luckily the average patient won’t notice a big difference.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has listed comprehensive measures for the dental industry to follow. The federal agency is also advising dental offices to prioritize dental services and general care based on the personal protective equipment available and the number of COVID-19 cases in the local community. The risk of transmitting COVID-19 is often weighed against the risk of not taking care of your oral health, which the two dentists stressed at the Salon is very important.

“It is absolutely necessary to take care of your oral health, especially during a health pandemic,” said Dr Hoss. “Why? Because general health starts in your mouth, oral health impacts every aspect of our health, including pregnancy health – it’s linked to many systemic diseases, including lung health . ” This is because the coronavirus can become fatal when it infects enough cells in the lungs.

But what about the metal tools that go into your mouth during cleaning – the ones that are usually in someone’s mouth before yours? Dr Hoss said a lot more “disposable items” are used, but these “metal parts” are sterilized as before. And that’s because the coronavirus is actually quite easy to kill (hence the great public health emphasis on hand and counter washing).

“This particular virus is actually very sensitive to soap, even,” Dr. Hoss said. “For our sterilization process, there is no need to make any dramatic changes to it. So, yes, we use a lot more disposables as much as possible, but all that we can’t and we have to. use between patients, it is fully sterilized and fully cleaned and it can be used safely between patients. “