Efficacy of pre-procedural mouth rinses in the reduction of microorganisms in aerosol

Abstract: In the dental office, the use of certain equipment such as ultrasonic devices, high-speed dental hand pieces, and three-way syringes generate aerosols and spatters which could spread microorganisms to the environment and lead to cross-infections. The importance of this issue magnifies when it comes to pandemic times like this world pandemic of coronavirus we are experiencing now. An up to date report has suggested that stability kinetics of severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronaviruses may leave them viable in aerosols for at least 3 hours. To minimize cross-contamination in the dental office different ways have been demonstrated which using pre-procedural mouth rinses is one of them. Among these mouth rinses, chlorhexidine (CHX), cetylpyridiniumcloride (CPC), and essential oils (EO) have antimicrobial properties and have been proved to be significantly effective to reduce the number of microorganisms in oral aerosols. This result is important because it may reduce the risk of cross-contamination in the dental office.