The Future of Dental Unit Waterlines

With the state of Washington changing its dental waterline testing requirements as of Dec. 1, the writing is on the wall: Scrutiny around waterline quality is tightening and the monitoring of procedural water in dental practices must be considered part of regular dental infection and prevention control office practices.

Regardless of where your practice is located, all dental professionals have an obligation to ensure that their treatment water meets current potable water standards.

From body positioning to ergonomic instrumentation, here are a few options To help relieve pain.

National Dental Hygiene Month gives us all the opportunity to celebrate the dedicated and hardworking dental hygienists across the country. The latter often gets overlooked. Dental hygiene has always been a taxing profession both on the mind and the body. And hygienists who scale by hand instead of using ultrasonics may be noticing a few more physical aches and pains, especially if hand scaling.

Have Proactive Conversations to Help Patients Feel Safe

With the ongoing threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, patients continue to be reluctant to visit dental offices. Over 10% of patients – both adults and children – have delayed health care, including dental care, despite admitting the need for care.

From data management to teledentistry to sterility assurance, technology is driving infection prevention and control

Oral care, like most other major disciplines, finds itself navigating the uncharted waters resulting from the COVID-19 global health emergency.

The pandemic has greatly affected the way in which dentistry is practiced, placing an even greater emphasis on infection prevention and control protocols as a means of minimizing disruptions in care delivery.

Technological innovation can be an effective solution here.

Exploring the Complete Black Line Collection

In the world of dentistry, small improvements can make a big difference. The same can be said for dental instrumentation - a small detail may have a major impact on your ability to conduct a procedure with ease and efficiency. Consider the decisions you make when selecting the appropriate hand instrument for a procedure – the shape of the working end is certainly important, but so is the weight of the instrument, the surface of the handle which you feel while gripping it, and more.

How Hormonal Changes Throughout a Woman’s Life Can Increase the Risk of Gum Disease and Tooth Decay

Being a woman at any age means contending with certain unique health risks. As a dental health care professional, you can help your female patients manage these risks by refamiliarizing yourself with the direct connections between a woman’s oral health and her overall health.

Guidelines, best practices, and options available

Now that the CDC aggregates and reports COVID-related hospitalizations instead of COVID transmissions, dental professionals could be at risk. By the time a dental practice is alerted to a COVID outbreak in their area, transmissions could already be at concerning levels. 

Ensuring Your Mirrors, Probes, and Explorers Are in Top Shape

Think back: When was the last time you updated your diagnostic instrumentation?

A diagnostic instrument’s useful lifespan can extend for years. There may be probes and explorers in use right now in some dental offices that performed exceptionally well over time but are truly no longer in optimal condition to advance efficient and vital dental diagnoses.

Follow These Steps to Achieve Sterility Assurance for Your Table-Top Steam Sterilizers

Routine sterilizer efficacy monitoring is a critical element of your practice’s infection prevention and control protocol. Steam sterilization is, of course, a routine part of instrument reprocessing, and it’s important to ensure your sterilizer is functioning properly for every load. As a result, there are certain steps you should be taking monthly, daily, and per each load to achieve sterility assurance.

Answering Your Most Frequently Asked Questions

Hand hygiene has always been a critical part of infection prevention in health care settings, and the experience of living and working through a pandemic has only underscored its importance. However, despite the extra attention on infection prevention, the CDC reports that, “on average healthcare providers clean their hands less than half of the times they should.”