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BECKER'S DENTAL + DSO REVIEW // VOL. 2022 NO. 1
QUALITY & INFECTION CONTROL
Common dental tools can
cut COVID-19 threat in
offices, researchers find
By Ariana Portalatin
R
esearchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities
found that tools dentists commonly use to remove pa-
tients' saliva after rinsing were very successful at reduc-
ing aerosol spread, a potential COVID-19 threat, the university
said Nov. 8.
The researchers used 3D holographic imaging to examine the
effectiveness of a saliva ejector, a high-volume evacuator and
an extraoral local extractor, the last tool described by the uni-
versity as "a vacuum-esque mechanism made by an industry
collaborator of the university's Center for Filtration Research."
The tools were used during ultrasonic scaling.
They found that the high-volume evacuator and extraoral local
extractor were most effective, reducing the amount of aero-
sols by 96 and 88 percent, respectively. They also found that
combining the use of more than one device did not lead to
better outcomes.
Documented cases of COVID-19 transmission in dental offices
are near nonexistent, and the University of Minnesota has had
over 100,000 appointments since March 2020 without trans-
mission to or from the patients, according to the university.
But the researchers hope that their findings can guide den-
tal professionals on what strategies they can use to keep
COVID-19 from spreading in their offices, the university stated.
The university said the study is one of the first to use advanced
engineering imaging techniques to map out aerosol spread in
dental offices.
The results were published in the Journal of the American Den-
tal Association. n
Image Credit: Adobe Stock
