Particle Size, Mass Concentration, and Microbiota in Dental Aerosols

During the COVID19 pandemic, dental professionals were thought to be at high risk of acquiring SARS-CoV-2 because their patients cannot wear masks. Therefore, the initial reaction to the pandemic was to close dental clinics for routine treatment until evidence was found for how much risk dental professionals are exposed to by treating their patients. At the beginning of the pandemic, there was scant knowledge of this risk and a rapid study strategy to identify this knowledge was done. This study provided solid evidence for the exposure risk of dental personnels by identifying how much air each dental professional is exposed to that came from patient's mouthes and noses, how far it traveled across dental clinics outside of the immediate area of the patient, what procedures carry more risk, and how to best mitigate them. This study was used to inform the College of Dental Surgeons of Alberta, College of Registered Dental Hygienists of Alberta, and College of Dental Assistants to help them establish their COVID-19 patient and dental professionals safety policies.