Dental Infection Control from a Patient’s View point

Are you in pain? Has your mouth been hurting but you keep putting off going to the dentist? Don’t wait any longer. If there is a dental infection in your mouth and it isn’t taken care of quickly, this can lead to serious consequences. As a patient, you should know there are many precautionary steps that your dentist and the dentistry staff will take to reduce the chances of an infection setting up in your mouth; however, sometimes even the best precautionary measures won’t keep an infection from building up. Fortunately, though, even if an infection does set up, your dentist can prescribe the appropriate antibiotics to take away the infection and reduce pain.

What is dental infection control?

In the field of dentistry, there are certain protocols that must be met in order for a practice to stay in business. Such protocols include following infection control standards that are set into place by the OSAP, the ADHA, OSHA, and the CDC. These standards mandate that all instruments be not only cleaned after each use but also bagged and sterilized before being used on the next patient. The protocols also outline various cleaning methods for the counters and surfaces in a dental office. Furthermore, dentists and staff members must wear protective clothing along with gloves and masks as well as glasses during almost all dental procedures; this helps reduce the likelihood that disease transmission will take place.

There is no doubt that your dentist is doing all that he or she can to uphold the highest of dental infection control practices. As a patient, though, it is your responsibility to make sure you are receiving services from a dentist that follows all industry regulations. And while you may not have to thoroughly investigate all of your dentist’s practices, you can ask about dental infection control procedures, such as whether or not the office has an infection control officer. If not, then who inspects the office for its dental infection control procedures? As you discover who is in charge of making sure proper dental infection control is taking place in the office, you will be able to see for yourself whether or not this is the dental office you want to continue visiting. If you find yourself looking for a new dentist, always ask about dental infection control precautions up front and ask who is in charge of making sure these precautions are always followed.