Research Article
Assessment of a Biosafety Device to Control Contamination by
Airborne Transmission during Orthodontic/Dental Procedures
Josilene Santa Rita de Assis ,
1
Aguinaldo Silva Garcez ,
2
Hideo Suzuki ,
1
Victor Angelo Martins Montalli ,
2
Denise Nami Fujii ,
1
Michelle Bertini Prouvot ,
1
and Selly Sayuri Suzuki
1
1
Department of Post-graduation in Orthodontics, Faculdade Sao Leopoldo Mandic, Campinas, SP, Brazil
2
Department of Oral Microbiology, Division of Oral Medicine, Faculdade Sao Leopoldo Mandic, Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Correspondence should be addressed to Selly Sayuri Suzuki; sellyszk@hotmail.com
Received 11 October 2021; Accepted 23 March 2022; Published 15 April 2022
Academic Editor: Sandrine Bittencourt Berger
Copyright © 2022 Josilene Santa Rita de Assis et al. is is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, dental professionals have faced high risk of airborne contamination between dentists, staff, and
patients. e objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of an individual biosafety capsule in dentistry (IBCD) on reducing the
dispersion of droplets and aerosols during orthodontic treatment and evaluate the clinician and patient’s perception of using the
IBCD. For the in-vitro part of the study, aerosol quantification was performed with and without the IBCD, using a nonpathogenic
bacterial strain and viral strain in the reservoir and high-speed dental handpiece. Petri dishes with MRS agar were positioned from
theheadoftheequipmentatdistancesof0.5,1,and1.5m.After15minutesofpassiveaerosolsampling,thedisheswereclosedand
incubated using standard aerobic conditions at 37
°
C for 48 hours to count colony forming units (CFUs). For the clinical part of the
study, a questionnaire was sent to clinicians and patients to understand their perception of orthodontically treat and receive
treatment using the barrier. e use of IBCD showed an effective means to reduce the dispersion of bacterial and viral con-
tamination around 99% and 96%, respectively, around the main source of aerosol (p < 0.05). Clinical results showed a 97%
bacterial reduction during patient’s consultations (p < 0.05). e vast majority of clinicians and patients understand the im-
portance of controlling the airborne dispersion to avoid contamination.
1. Introduction
As some countries mitigate lockdown and quarantine
measures due to COVID-19 pandemic, returning to work
has become a possibility for dentists as well as students at
dental schools. To become a reality, it is imperative and
urgent for clinicians to review biosafety protocols during the
dental procedures. Center for Disease Control and Pre-
vention (CDC) and American Dental Association (ADA)
have launched guides with recommendations to be adopted
prior, during, and after the patient consultation for both
dentists and dental healthcare personnel (DHCP) [1,2].
Among occupations, dentists are considered the highest
risk group of healthcare workers at risk for contracting in-
fections in general, including COVID-19 (CDC, 2020) [3]. A
recent study showed that there were a 5% higher incidence of
COVID-19 cases among oral health professionals compared to
general population [4,5]. SARS-CoV-2 RNA was found in
gingival crevicular fluid and saliva [6] in asymptomatic as well
as mildly symptomatic patients who tested positive for
COVID-19 through PCR [7]. is finding incites that the oral
cavity probably actively participates in SARS-CoV-2 trans-
mission [8]. erefore, measurements should be implemented
to reduce contamination during aerosol-generating procedures
(CDC, 2020) in order to safely treat even SARS-CoV-2
asymptomatic patients, as shown in this recent study [9].
Contamination is likely to be due to the nature of the
dental practice, generating droplets and aerosols by high-
and low-speed handpiece, and the close proximity between
clinicians and patients during dental care [10].
Hindawi
International Journal of Dentistry
Volume 2022, Article ID 8302826, 9 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8302826