List of Personal Protective Equipment - IDST

List of Personal Protective Equipment

1. Gloves

Gloves may be single-use-disposable non-sterile exam gloves or single-use-disposable sterile surgical
gloves that can be used in a patient’s mouth. Over gloves or food handlers gloves are used over contaminated gloves to obtain supplies or touch non-contaminated surface once the dentist has begun treatment and has body fluids on the exam gloves.

2. Masks

Face masks use in dentistry are primarily to control the exposure of the clinician’s oral and nasal mucous
to BOPIM and the patient’s blood and oral fluids. They should not be considered respirators as they do
not have an air tight fit around the face irrespective of the material’s filtration efficiency. Absence of an
airtight fit around the periphery of the mask increases the chances of air to get inside the mask through the
periphery and this phenomenon is called “blow-by”. If there is a blow-by, then masks cannot be deemed
respirators, nor the filtration efficacy of the material applicable.


3. Protective eye-wear

In dentistry can be goggles, poly carbonate glasses with side-shields, face-shields and prescription glasses
with disposable side-shields. Protective eye-wear must be worn in conjunction with face masks. Even
when a face-shield is worn, a mask must be worn along with it to control exposure to splash/spatter from
the sides. Most eyewear should at least be cleaned with soap and water at the end of each session or when
visibly contaminated.

4.  Protective clothing

Scrubs are street clothes and not considered personal protective equipment. A fluid resistant gown that is
full sleeved is adequate for use as protective equipment. Gowns are to be changed between patients to
control cross contamination between patients. If scrubs are used as protective equipment, then reprocessing
(laundering) should be done on premises, done at a laundromat (with contaminated clothes carried in a
biohazard labeled bag) or given to a professional laundry and the costs borne by the employer.
The employer should provide and pay for all clothing and PPE that are used as PPE.

Personal Protective Equipment - IDST

Personal Protective Equipment

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) commonly used in general dental care are single-use-disposable gloves (sterile or non-sterile), protective eyewear, face-shields, masks, gowns and utility gloves used to protect personnel from blood and body fluids and chemical hazards. The main use of barriers is to control gross contamination and not prevent spread of every single microbe. As an example, some of the viruses are smaller than the microscopic pores in latex exam gloves and therefore have a probability of passing through the glove material.

In this instance, one may safely infer that gloves are meant for reducing the amount of exposure to the viral particles of the body fluids and not to totally prevent contact with the virus. Therefore,  hand washing  with an antimicrobial soap after removing gloves is necessary and pragmatic. With respect to dentistry, there has not been a single reported and accepted case of disease transmission linked to passage of viral particle through the pores in the gloves.

When should one wash hands?

When should one wash hands?

Handwashing should be done at the beginning of the clinic session and soon after removal of gloves. 

One of the reasons to wash hands after removal of gloves is to reduce bacterial counts that build up on the skin during glove use. 

Handwashing also helps remove glove related materials on the skin including corn starch; other powders that are used in the gloves for easy donning hat have the potential to cause sensitization or skin irritation.

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8 Sequence followed in routine handwash procedures

Sequence followed in routine Handwash procedures

1) Remove jewelry and wrist watch and examine hands

2) Wet hands with warm water

3) Dispense an adequate amount of soap

4) Thoroughly rub both surfaces of the hands including around the thumb and fingers for about 30 - 60
seconds

5) Wash hands with warm water to remove the soap

6) Dry hands with paper towels

7) Examine hands for injuries such as nicks, cuts and bruises and treat as needed

8) Wear single-use-disposable gloves.

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