VICINITY-Understanding viral carriage in bioaerosols using dentistry as a model

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused huge disruption to healthcare and millions of people are waiting for treatments. Dentistry has been badly affected because dental instruments like drills create tiny droplets of water which float in the air (aerosols). It's possible that viruses from our saliva (like the COVID-19 virus) could be carried in aerosols during dental treatment, however very few researchers have looked at this. Without better understanding the problem and how to control it, access to care will be severely affected in any other infectious disease outbreak in the future. We will use a virus that can't cause infections in people to see if viruses can can be carried in aerosols during simulated dental procedures in a mannequin, and how far they can travel. We will also measure bacteria and viruses in the air during routine dental treatment on patients. This research will help us understand how to control aerosols during healthcare procedures, and how we can better design equipment, clinics, and buildings to help. This is important in other areas of healthcare outside of dentistry, such as surgery, in hospital wards, and during general anaesthetics where there is a risk of viruses being transmitted in aerosols.