Efficacy of pre-procedural rinsing in reducing aerosol contamination during dental procedures

Our objective was to determine the efficacy of pre-procedural rinsing with chlorhexidine in reducing bacterial aerosol contamination during use of ultrasonic scaler and high speed air turbine handpiece. Twenty patients, ten each for the two groups who were found to satisfy the inclusion criteria were selected for the study. Four predesignated locations of the dental clinic were chosen to be evaluated for each patient using blood agar plates. Aerosols were collected during treatment procedures for control and experimental quadrants. Results showed that a regimen of 30-seconds pre-procedural rinsing with 0.12% chlorhexidine gluconate before dental procedures consistently reduced colony-forming units than without rinsing due to the ability of antiseptic mouthwash to inhibit microbial growth. There was more aerosol contamination during scaling procedures than during the use of a high speed air turbine handpiece. The conclusion is that chlorhexidine is an effective primary measure in reducing aerosol cross-contamination when using dental devices in a dental set up.