Emergency Dental Procedures

Attending To Emergency Dental Procedures During COVID19 Outbreak

Various dental associations around the world have asked dentists to suspend any dental procedures unless emergency in their dental clinics. Most dentists around the globe are therefore only carrying out emergency procedures which need to be carried out immediately. The precautions to be taken by any dentist (and member of staff present during the treatment procedure) who is treating a patient are as follows:

• Place multiple advisories and signs within and around the clinic to educate patients about hygiene practices such as hand wash procedure, coughing or sneezing etiquette, disposal of used tissues etc.

Always ask the patient about recent travel history outside or within the country. Include this in the patient records.

Watch out and question regarding the various symptoms of COVID19, however mild it may be and record this in the patient chart.

Take a note of all vitals of the patient including body temperature and re-schedule the appointment if a COVID19 infection is suspected from the history, symptoms or clinical findings. Immediately inform the concerned governing authorities in case of a suspected patient.

Get detailed contact information of the person and record this in their charts.

Physical barriers such as a glass partition should be installed in the reception, waiting areas, doctor’s cabin etc.

Wear the appropriate PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) . This includes a surgical or N95 mask , eye protective goggles, face shield, disposable gown etc.

Use a rubber dam isolation wherever possible. This will reduce chances of exposure to infectious agents.

Always use a high speed evacuation to get rid of the aerosols produced during the treatment procedure.

Autoclave sterilize all your instruments and hand piece following a dental procedure.

Prior to commencing a treatment, make the patient rinse their oral cavity with 1.5% of hydrogen peroxide

Fumigate the clinic after the procedure when possible and thoroughly disinfect all surfaces in the clinic including the public waiting area, door knobs or handles, side tables, dental chair etc using a regular disinfectant.

Also remember that

• Any patient with a suspected COVID19 infection SHOULD NOT be treated for any dental emergency without involving the patient’s treating doctor and informing the concerned governing authorities. These patients will have to be treated in controlled environments such as a COVID19 treating hospital which has the necessary resources and precautions in place.

• Any staff or doctor showing mild  to severe symptoms of the infection SHOULD NOT report to work and should seek medical assistance.

• Immediate, safe disposal of any used PPEs, tissues, patient drapes, patient blood, saliva, extracted tooth etc using clinical waste disposal protocols.

• Strict hand wash and hand hygiene protocols before and after treatment.

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