Here is the latest on Dental Unit Waterlines from the CDC...
Summary
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is issuing this Health Alert Network (HAN) Health Advisory to emphasize the importance of following existing recommendations for maintaining and monitoring dental waterlines. Multiple outbreaks of nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM) infections have occurred in children who received pulpotomies in pediatric dental clinics where the dental treatment water contained high levels of bacteria. CDC provides guidelines on infection control in dental settings which contain recommendations to treat dental unit waterlines and monitor water quality. Dental providers should be familiar with these recommendations on how to properly maintain and monitor their dental equipment to ensure that dental treatment water is safe for patient care.
Background
While rare, there have been multiple documented cases of disease transmission from dental unit waterlines (narrow-bore plastic tubing that carry water to the high-speed handpiece, air/water syringe, and ultrasonic scaler).1-5 Dental units have unique characteristics that make them prone to biofilm formation.6 Biofilms occur in dental unit waterlines due to the long, small-diameter tubing and low flow rates used in dentistry and the frequent periods of stagnation. As a result, high numbers of common waterborne bacteria can be found in untreated dental unit water systems. Disease-causing microorganisms found in untreated dental unit water can include Legionella, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and nontuberculous Mycobacteria (NTM).
Dental providers and patients could be placed at risk of adverse health effects if dental unit water is not appropriately treated. In March 2022, CDC was notified of a new cluster of suspected NTM infections in children following dental procedures at a pediatric dental clinic. Investigation into this cluster is currently ongoing, and preliminary site visit data report that dental unit waterline testing results showed microbial counts much higher than the level recommended by CDC.
In 2016, an outbreak occurred at a pediatric dental clinic in Orange County, California, with 71 patients identified as having odontogenic NTM infections following pulpotomy procedures.1 Municipal water stored in a pressurized bladder holding tank was used to fill the dental unit water bottles. The clinic was not using disinfectants on their dental unit waterlines or regularly monitoring water quality. All water samples tested from the dental units showed microbial counts higher than the level recommended by CDC and multiple species of NTM were identified in syringe water samples from five of the six treatment rooms.
In 2015, 24 cases of odontogenic NTM infections were reported in children receiving pulpotomy treatment from a pediatric dental clinic in Georgia.2 Investigators from the Georgia Department of Public Health found that municipal water was used during dental procedures, the clinic was not using a disinfectant in their dental unit waterlines, and the clinic was not regularly monitoring the water quality as recommended by CDC. Microbial testing of the water samples taken from the dental units showed very high microbial counts of Mycobacterium abscessus. The M. abscessus isolates recovered from the water were found to be identical to eight isolates from tissue samples from seven of the patients, suggesting that water was the source of the infections.
The outbreaks in California and Georgia involved young children, with ages ranging from 4 to 8 years. Many of the children developed severe infections with clinical diagnoses such as cervical lymphadenitis and mandibular or maxillary osteomyelitis, and required hospitalization, treatments such as intravenous antibiotics, and surgical procedures. Complications from their infections included permanent tooth loss, hearing loss, facial nerve palsy, and incision fibrosis.
Because of the potential to form biofilm, CDC recommends that all dental unit waterlines be treated regularly with disinfectants to meet the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulatory standards for drinking water (i.e., ≤500 colony forming units (CFU)/mL of heterotrophic water bacteria).7 There are many commercial products and devices available to disinfect and maintain dental unit waterlines. Dental unit water quality must also be monitored routinely as recommended by the equipment manufacturer to ensure that treatments are working effectively and that the water used in dental procedures meets safety standards.6 Dental providers should consult with the dental equipment manufacturer for appropriate methods and equipment to both maintain and monitor the quality of dental water.
Oral surgical procedures involve the incision, excision, or reflection of tissue that exposes the normally sterile areas of the oral cavity. Examples include biopsy, periodontal surgery, apical surgery, implant surgery, and surgical extractions of teeth (e.g., removal of erupted or nonerupted tooth requiring elevation of mucoperiosteal flap, removal of bone or section of tooth, and suturing if needed). During oral surgical procedures, dental practitioners should use only sterile solutions as a coolant or irrigant using an appropriate delivery device, such as a sterile bulb syringe, sterile tubing that bypasses dental unit waterlines, or sterile single-use devices.
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