In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Dental Association (ADA) and the CDC have asked dental clinics to stop non-urgent dental visits and surgeries. They now recommend dental teams to pay attention to assessing risk in their areas before providing care to their patients. Here is what you may need to know about dental care with the pandemic still far from over.
Is the dental office safe?
You are at the risk of contact with the virus the moment you get out of your home. The good thing is that healthcare workers follow safety guidelines more than anyone else. Still, you have to make sure that your dentist and staff in the dental office wash their hands and sterilize their tools. Many of the tools used in dental procedures are disposable, but your dentist may have to work on additional precautionary measures to prevent the spread of the virus. These precautionary measures may include the following.
- Disinfecting tools and surfaces in the dental office
- Properly cleaning, covering, and replacing tools between every two uses
- Wearing protecting gear
- Covering the mouth using a rubber dental dam
A few other things that you may want to take into consideration include the following.
- Extending duration between every two appointments
- Calling before every appointment to see if it is an appropriate time to visit
- Checking your temperature
- Wearing a face mask the entire time
- Telling the dentist if you have been in contact with any people who were later diagnosed with COVID
- Seeing if chair in the waiting room are six feet apart
What to consider before going to the dentist
The virus that can cause COVID spreads through droplets that come out of the mouth during the respiratory process. These droplets generally become airborne when someone coughs or sneezes. Breathing in the air that has these droplets can increase the risk of you becoming sick. This virus can also be present in the mucus or saliva in the throat. The dentist gets the most exposure to this virus due to the body area he has to deal with. Some dental devices can even cause these droplets to spread around.
Before going to the dentist's office, make sure that it is designed for high-level protection. You will need to check for the following features in this regard.
- Isolation rooms
- Rooms for individual clients
- Availability of N95 facemasks
What are non-urgent treatments?
Non-urgent treatments are also called elective procedures. These are generally preventative treatments that can wait for a particular duration. So you can certainly have these treatments after the COVID is over. A few examples of non-urgent dental treatments include the following.
- Dental cleaning
- X-rays tests
- Treatment for cavities
- Treatment for cosmetic issues
- Adjusting braces
What are the urgent treatments?
A problem that is life-threatening or causes severe pain should be treated right away. It is up to your dentist to decide whether or not you need urgent treatment. Problems that may cause a dental emergency include the following.
- Severe pain
- Persistent bleeding
- Tissues requiring biopsy
- Swelling in the area around your mouth
- Broken teeth, particularly when they cause severe pain
- Postoperative care that requires professional intervention
- Dental work associated with cancer treatment
- Ill-fitting dentures
You will need to call your dentist immediately if you face these issues.
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