Citation Information :
Al-Ehaideb A, Naik S, Vishwananthaiah S. Primordial-level Preventive Measures for Dental Care Providers against Life-threatening Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19). Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2020; 13 (2):176-179.
The outbreak of this corona virus disease 19 (COVID-19) was first reported in Wuhan city in China and now it has become a global issue. The total number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 recorded globally has surpassed 100,000. The mode of transmission of COVID-19 is usually from person to person and it could also be through direct transmission such as cough, sneeze, and inhalation of droplets. Dental care providers are at higher risk since they are more prone to cross contamination with the patient's saliva and aerosols that are released during the dental procedures. They can also be transmitted through other routes such as direct contact with blood, oral fluids, and from contaminated instruments. This paper intends to provide primordial-level preventive measures for dental care providers against this life-threatening COVID-19.
Gorbalenya AE, Baker SC, Baric RS, et al. The species severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus: classifying 2019-nCoV and naming it SARS-CoV-2. Nat Microbiol 2020;5:536–544. DOI: 10.1038/s41564-020-0695-z. Accessed March 04, 2020.
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019. Accessed March 06, 2020.
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Situation Report – 41.World Health Organization Published: 01 March 2020. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200301-sitrep-41-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=6768306d_2. Accessed March 04, 2020.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/abou/symptoms.html. Accessed March 06, 2020.
Clinical management of severe acute respiratory infection when Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infection is suspected: Interim Guidance. Published: 28 January 2020. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/clinical-management-of-novel-cov.pdf. Accessed March 02, 2020.
Transmission of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/transmission.html. Accessed March 06, 2020.
People at Risk for Serious Illness from COVID-19. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/high-risk-complications.html. Accessed March 06, 2020.
Laheij AMGA, Kistler JO, Belibasakis GN, et al. Healthcare-associated viral and bacterial infections in dentistry. J Oral Microbiol 2012;4(1). DOI: 10.3402/jom.v4i0.17659.
Ward K. Airborne contamination in dentistry. Int Dent SA 2006;9(1): 62–65.
Upendran A, Geiger Z. Dental infection control. [Updated 2020 Feb 17]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL), StatPearls Publishing; 2020. Available from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470356/. Accessed March 06, 2020.
ADA releases coronavirus handout for dentists based on CDC guidelines. Published: February 24, 2020. https://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2020-archive/february/ada-releases-coronavius-handout-for-dentists-based-on-cdc-guidelines. Accessed March 08, 2020.
Report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Published: 24 February 2020. https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-final-report.pdf. Accessed March 06, 2020.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Evaluating and Reporting Persons Under Investigation (PUI) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Published: March 09, 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/clinical-criteria.html. Accessed March 09, 2020.
Interim U.S. Guidance for Risk Assessment and Public Health Management of Healthcare Personnel with Potential Exposure in a Healthcare Setting to Patients with Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Published: 07 March 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/guidance-risk-assesment-hcp.html. Accessed March 08, 2020.
Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) or Persons Under Investigation for COVID-19 in Healthcare Settings. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/infection-control/control recommendations.html. Accessed March 08, 2020.
Infection Control in Healthcare Personnel: Infrastructure and Routine Practices for Occupational Infection Prevention and Control Services (2019) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. Published: 21 February 2020. https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/pdf/guidelines/infection-control-HCP-H.pdf. Accessed March 02, 2020.
Improving infection prevention and control at the health facility: Interim practical manual supporting implementation of the WHO Guidelines on Core Components of Infection Prevention and Control Programmes. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2018 (WHO/HIS/SDS/2018.10). https://www.who.int/infection-prevention/tools/core-components/facility-manual.pdf. Accessed March 06, 2020.
