scholarly journals Ventilation rate assessment by carbon dioxide levels in dental treatment rooms

Author(s):  
Qirong Huang ◽  
Tamer Marzouk ◽  
Razvan Cirligeanu ◽  
Hans Malmstrom ◽  
Eli Eliav ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectivesThe purpose of the present study was to monitor and evaluate CO2 levels in dental operatories using a consumer-grade CO2 sensor and determine the utility and accuracy of various methods using CO2 levels to assess ventilation rate in dental clinics. We aim to find a practical tool for dental practitioners to conveniently and accurately monitor CO2 levels and assess the ventilation rates in their office in order to devise a pragmatic and effective strategy for ventilation improvement in their work environment.MethodsMechanical ventilation rate in air change per hour (ACHVENT) of 10 dental operatories was first measured with an air velocity sensor and air flow balancing hood. CO2 levels were measured in these rooms to analyze the effects of ventilation rate and number of persons in the room on CO2 accumulation. Ventilation rates were estimated using natural steady state CO2 levels during dental treatments and experimental CO2 concentration decays by dry ice or mixing baking soda and vinegar. We compared the differences and assessed the correlations between ACHVENT and ventilation rates estimated by steady states CO2 model with low (0.3 L/min, ACHSS30) or high (0.46 L/min, ACHSS46) CO2 generation rates, by CO2 decay constants using dry ice (ACHDI) or baking soda (ACHBV), and by time needed to remove 63% of excess CO2 generated by dry ice (ACHDI63%) or baking soda (ACHBV63%).ResultsACHVENT varied from 3.9 to 35.0 with a mean of 13.2 (±10.6) in the 10 dental operatories. CO2 accumulation occurred in rooms with low ventilation (ACHVENT≤6) and more persons (n>3) but not in those with higher ventilation and less persons. ACHSS30 and ACHSS46 correlated well with ACHVENT (r=0.83, p=0.003), but ACHSS30 was more accurate for rooms with low ACHVENT. Ventilation rates could be reliably estimated using CO2 released from dry ice or baking soda. ACHVENT was highly correlated with ACHDI (r=0.99), ACHBV(r=0.98), ACHDI63%(r=0.98), and ACHBV63% (r=0.98). There were no statistically significant differences between ACHVENT and ACHDI63% or ACHBV63%.ConclusionsDental operatories with low ventilation rates and overcrowding facilitate CO2 accumulations. Ventilation rates could be reliably calculated by observing the changes in CO2 levels after a simple mixing of household baking soda and vinegar in dental settings. Time needed to remove 63% of excess CO2 generated by baking soda could be used to accurately assess the ventilation rates using a consumer-grade CO2 sensor and a basic calculator.

2021 ◽  
pp. 002203452110144
Author(s):  
Q. Huang ◽  
T. Marzouk ◽  
R. Cirligeanu ◽  
H. Malmstrom ◽  
E. Eliav ◽  
...  

It is important for dental care professionals to reliably assess carbon dioxide (CO2) levels and ventilation rates in their offices in the era of frequent infectious disease pandemics. This study was to evaluate CO2 levels in dental operatories and determine the accuracy of using CO2 levels to assess ventilation rate in dental clinics. Mechanical ventilation rate in air change per hour (ACHVENT) was measured with an air velocity sensor and airflow balancing hood. CO2 levels were measured in these rooms to analyze factors that contributed to CO2 accumulation. Ventilation rates were estimated using natural steady-state CO2 levels during dental treatments and experimental CO2 concentration decays by dry ice or mixing baking soda and vinegar. We compared the differences and assessed the correlations between ACHVENT and ventilation rates estimated by the steady-state CO2 model with low (0.3 L/min, ACHSS30) or high (0.46 L/min, ACHSS46) CO2 generation rates, by CO2 decay constants using dry ice (ACHDI) or baking soda (ACHBV), and by time needed to remove 63% of excess CO2 generated by dry ice (ACHDI63%) or baking soda (ACHBV63%). We found that ACHVENT varied from 3.9 to 35.0 in dental operatories. CO2 accumulation occurred in rooms with low ventilation (ACHVENT ≤6) and overcrowding but not in those with higher ventilation. ACHSS30 and ACHSS46 correlated well with ACHVENT ( r = 0.83, P = 0.003), but ACHSS30 was more accurate for rooms with low ACHVENT. Ventilation rates could be reliably estimated using CO2 released from dry ice or baking soda. ACHVENT was highly correlated with ACHDI ( r = 0.99), ACHBV ( r = 0.98), ACHDI63% ( r = 0.98), and ACHBV63% ( r = 0.98). There were no statistically significant differences between ACHVENT and ACHDI63% or ACHBV63%. We conclude that ventilation rates could be conveniently and accurately assessed by observing the changes in CO2 levels after a simple mixing of household baking soda and vinegar in dental settings.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-35
Author(s):  
MAI Khan ◽  
A Taleb

A survey was conducted on dental surgeons’ perception of ethics concerning informed consent. Forty-six dentists employed in different private and government dental colleges and private dental clinics, responded to a questionnaire, which contained ten questions related to the ethics of informed consent. The Study revealed that the dentists were aware of legal and ethical issues related to informed consent, and majority of them relied on verbal consent (82.6%) rather than a written consent for any form of treatment. All the dentists (100%) agreed to the importance of informed consent for patients, and almost all the participants (97%) agreed that patients hold the right to refuse treatment or take legal action if they were not informed properly, although 19% of the participants did not consider failure in obtaining informed consent as an offence. Sixty-three percent of the participants did not agree to the notion that a written consent would make dentistry difficult while the remaining 37% feared that dentistry would be difficult if written consent was made mandatory. The survey also revealed that participants were keen to learn more about principles of medical ethics and felt ethics be taught more elaborately in the undergraduate level. In conclusion it was suggested that dentists should obtain a written consent for ethical reason or legal safeguard or at least keep a written account of the type of consent given by the patient.DOI: http://doi.dx.org/10.3329/bjdre.v2i2.16241 Bangladesh Journal of Dental Research & Education Vol.2(2) 2012: 31-35


Author(s):  
Lirim Mustafa ◽  
Hilmi Islami ◽  
Ivana Sutej

Abstract Objective Antibiotics misuse and a high level of antibiotics resistance is observed worldwide, but particularly in developing countries. Kosovo in the last decade is facing challenges regarding antimicrobial resistance. The purpose of the present study was to investigate patterns of antibiotics prescriptions of dentists in Kosovo's major dental clinics. Materials and Methods For Kosovo's prescribing pattern, data collection was obtained from 10 Regional Dental Clinics and a Tertiary Health Center regarding patients who were prescribed antibiotics in the years 2015 to 2019. Data analysis was performed by using descriptive statistics and was processed by using MS Excel. Results Most prescribed antibiotic during the observed period from 2015 to 2019 in Kosovo was amoxicillin, although a drastic increase of amoxicillin with clavulanic acid—as a broad-spectrum antibiotic—is observed. The trend of antibiotics use in tertiary health institutions is in an overall decrease in Kosovo with an exception in the year 2017. Despite this overall decrease, inconsistency in prescribing is observed when the pattern is analyzed for each region separately. The highest number of patients in health care dental clinics received antibiotics for maxilla-related health conditions and the lowest number of them for oncologic ones. Conclusion The patterns of antibiotics prescriptions by dental practitioners in Kosovo during the years 2015 to 2019 are fluctuating. Compared with the global health care standards, the irrational use of antibiotics in dental health care clinics in Kosovo still exist and this issue should be further addressed by respective actors.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (SPL1) ◽  
pp. 710-715
Author(s):  
Neha N ◽  
Anjali A K ◽  
Brundha M P ◽  
Jayalakshmi Somasundaram

The coronavirus causing COVID-19 is officially named as SARS-CoV-2. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which originated in Wuhan, China, has become a major public health concern all over the World. Infection control measures are necessary to stop the virus from spreading further and help to manage the pandemic situation. Many countries have implemented lockdown measures and social distancing to slow down or prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. This implementation is believed to possess a significantly decreased rate of growth and increased doubling time of cases. Due to the spread through respiratory droplets, the incidence of infection will be high between patients and dental practitioners. The dental clinics and hospitals within the containment areas of COVID-19 should follow infection control protocols precisely in order to confer safety to both the patients and the practitioners. This article thus provides important and requisite knowledge about COVID-19 and therefore, the restrictions and strict protocols to be followed for or while undertaking dental treatment during the crucial lockdown period of COVID-19.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 679
Author(s):  
Roya Aeinehvand ◽  
Amiraslan Darvish ◽  
Abdollah Baghaei Daemei ◽  
Shima Barati ◽  
Asma Jamali ◽  
...  

Today, renewable resources and the crucial role of passive strategies in energy efficiency in the building sector toward the sustainable development goals are more indispensable than ever. Natural ventilation has traditionally been considered as one of the most fundamental techniques to decrease energy usage by building dwellers and designers. The main purpose of the present study is to enhance the natural ventilation rates in an existing six-story residential building situated in the humid climate of Rasht during the summertime. On this basis, two types of ventilation systems, the Double-Skin Facade Twin Face System (DSF-TFS) and Single-Sided Wind Tower (SSWT), were simulated through DesignBuilder version 4.5. Then, two types of additional ventilation systems were proposed in order to accelerate the airflow, including four-sided as well as multi-opening wind towers. The wind foldable directions were at about 45 degrees (northwest to southeast). The simulation results show that SSWT could have a better performance than the aforementioned systems by about 38%. Therefore, the multi-opening system was able to enhance the ventilation rate by approximately 10% during the summertime.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuji Sato ◽  
Shigeto Koyama ◽  
Chikahiro Ohkubo ◽  
Shin Ogura ◽  
Ryutaro Kamijo ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Self-care and professional care of implants may prove difficult for elderly people who require nursing care. However, the actual state of care and problems remains unknown. In this study, we investigated the actual state of implant problems in elderly people living in their own home or in a nursing home who received visiting dental treatment. Methods We mailed questionnaire survey forms to 2339 representatives or specialists who were members of the Japanese Society of Oral Implantology, the Japanese Society of Gerodontology or the Japan Prosthodontic Society. We narrowed down the respondents to those who provided visiting dental treatment, and analyzed the actual state of implants observed during visiting dental treatment (type, care, problems, countermeasures, etc.). Results Of the 924 dentists who responded to the questionnaire survey, 291 (22%) provided visiting dental treatment. While the majority of implant types encountered in the previous 12 months were root-form implants, there were still a certain number of blade and subperiosteal implants. Daily implant care involved mostly cleaning with a toothbrush + auxiliary tools. The most frequent implant problems encountered in the past were difficulty in cleaning and peri-implantitis. Medication and antiphlogistic treatment were most frequently adopted as countermeasures to implant problems, followed by observation. When we classified the results into those for the dentists who provided implant treatment and those for the dentists who did not, we found that many of the dentists who did not provide implant treatment opted for observation or medication, while those who provided implant treatment also implemented removal of superstructure, retightening of screws, repair and so forth. Conclusions We found that many of the implant troubles encountered by dentists who provided visiting dental care were difficulty in cleaning or peri-implantitis, and that the actions taken against these troubles varied depending on the experience of the dentist performing the implant treatment. Our study also revealed that dentists who provide visiting dental care need to acquire knowledge and skills of implant treatment, to have actions prepared in case they encounter such cases, or to closely coordinate with dentists who specialize in implants.


1979 ◽  
Vol 19 (96) ◽  
pp. 102 ◽  
Author(s):  
HJ Banks ◽  
AK Sharp

The use of carbon dioxide, added as dry ice, was demonstrated as a means of disinfestation of bagged wheat and rye enclosed in a PVC membrane. The bag stack was dosed with dry ice giving an atmosphere of about 60% CO2. Carbon dioxide levels were maintained over 22 days with additional charges of dry ice added directly on top of the stack or enclosed within a polystyrene box to regulate the CO2 release rate. A natural infestation of Rhyzopertha dominica with small numbers of other stored product pest species was controlled, with complete mortality of adult insects, but slight survival of some early stages of R. dominica. Some of the hymenopterous parasitoids, Anisopteromalus calandrae and Choetospila elegans, survived the treatment, apparently as pupae. The treatment was successful under conditions where many other methods of pest control were inapplicable because of difficulty or expense of application, as in a small bulk (2.8 tonnes), at low temperature (11-13�C), when the commodity is close to working areas and when there is a requirement for freedom from pesticide residues.


Author(s):  
Maximiliane Amelie Schlenz ◽  
Alexander Schmidt ◽  
Bernd Wöstmann ◽  
Andreas May ◽  
Hans-Peter Howaldt ◽  
...  

Dental care has been affected by SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) worldwide. In contrast to other dental clinics, the Justus-Liebig-University Giessen (Germany) decided not to limit dental treatment to emergencies alone, but to continue dental care for all patients, with increased safety measures. As such, health care professionals may be exposed to additional physical and mental stress. The aim of this study was to assess the perspectives of all persons involved in dental care (dentists, dental assistants, students, and patients) regarding the aspects of safety measures, anxiety about self-infection and infecting others, and other prospects in the period March to December 2020 using a questionnaire. Data collection was performed between 14 December 2020 and 23 January 2021. A total of 35 dentists (response rate of 79.5%), 23 dental assistants (65.7%), 84 students (80%), and 51 patients (21.8%) completed the survey. The patients did not notice any changes in the care received. Dentists and dental assistants reported a higher workload due to additional safety measures. The majority of dentists, students, and patients agreed that normal patient care was maintained. One-third of dental assistants would have preferred emergency treatment alone and expressed significantly higher anxiety about COVID-19 infection than all other groups (p < 0.05). In conclusion, all groups showed a predominantly positive perspective on dental care, and anxiety about self-infection and infecting others was especially low. However, additional measures are time-consuming and compound daily patient care. This concept, based on well-established infection control, might be a viable proposal for current and future pandemics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (46) ◽  
pp. 15-22
Author(s):  
Ana de Lourdes Sá de Lira ◽  
Francisca Janiele de Sousa

This study aimed to review, qualify and summarize the existing evidence on associations and risk factors for Covid-19 during dental treatment and dentists’ knowledge about these risks. After being registered with PROSPERO, the systematic review was carried out in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines, with searches in electronic databases, in specific journals, manual searches and Google Scholar, without language restrictions, from December 2019 to August 2020. Two questions were asked to be investigated: did patients seek dental care in the emergency room and do dentists know the symptoms and the mode of transmission of Covid-19, feeling qualified to attend them? Only 6 articles were included because they met all defined inclusion criteria. It was concluded that endodontic urgencies and emergencies with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis are the most common, consisting of a much higher proportion of dental emergencies during Covid-19 epidemic compared with dental trauma and no-urgent care. Although dentists are aware of the symptoms, mode of transmission, infection controls, and measures in dental clinics, they do not feel confident about the correct measures to be taken to prevent Covid-19 for their staff and patients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 1745-1748
Author(s):  
Zaid Bin Sohail ◽  
Muhammad Salman Chishty ◽  
M. Shairaz Sadiq ◽  
Farhan Riaz ◽  
Mehwish Munawar ◽  
...  

Objective: To assess the knowledge about different mandibular nerve block techniques of fresh dental graduates, dental surgeons and specialists to attain mandibular nerve block for dental treatment in Multan. Design of the Study: It was a cross-sectional survey. Study Settings: This study was carried out at Department of Dentistry at Multan Medical & Dental College, Nishtar Institute of dentistry (Nishtar Medical University) and Bakhtawer Amin Dental College from August 2019 to August 2020. Material and Methods: The study involved 220 respondents. The questionnaire was administered to fresh dental graduates (house officers) and dental surgeons in 3 dental colleges of Multan, and was collected on the same day. House officers who did not return the forms were reminded personally and contacted on the phone thrice over the following week. Results of the Study: The frequency of respondants who could administer Gow-Gates without supervison was 20.9% (n=46). Participants from NID, Multan had the highest frequency (35.3%) with the lowest in BIMDC (16.6%)and MMDC(20.6%). The differences were non-significant (p=0.19). Significantly higher frequency of male respondants (10%, n=22) claimed they could administer Gow-Gates without supervison compared to female respondants (5.4%, n=12, p=0.012, Chi-Square). Training for Gow-Gates had been received by 12.7% (n=28) of the House Officers and dental surgeons. The Highest frequency of training was in NID, Multan (5.4%, n= 12, p= 0.016, chi-square). Conclusion: The majority of the dental practitioners of Multan used IANB as their primary LA technique and intraligamental injections as a supplemental LA technique in their clinics to attain mandibular molars anesthesia for general dental procedures like fillings, root canals and extractions. Keywords: Mandibular local anesthesia, Inferior alveolar nerve block, Gow-Gates technique


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