Safety First! Protecting Patients and Staff with Hospital Grade, Non-toxic HOCl

With the United States picking up the pace of COVID-19 vaccinations, many states are reporting zero coronavirus-related deaths for the first time in months. Coinciding with this new milestone, many state governors have gradually begun reopening their economies, allowing non-essential businesses to resume services.

The coronavirus outbreak effectively shut down about 198,000 active dentists and dental specialists in the USA, and the consensus in the dental community is that in planning a full-scale reopening of dental services, practices must include finding ways to reassure patients who are still reluctant to schedule an appointment.

With the resumption of dental care services, discussion has shifted to how to provide oral healthcare in safer surroundings, given the nature of the virus and how easily it may be transmitted during common dental procedures.

The widespread transmission of Covid-19, the potential for infected individuals (either pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic) to transmit the virus, along with the specific nature of dental procedures—with the close proximity of the practitioner to the patient’s open mouth and nasal passage—all contribute to the high risk for dental personnel teams to be exposed and to transmit the virus to other patients or staff.

To address patients’ fear of contracting Covid-19 (or any other pathogen or virus for that matter) dental care providers must make a complete and potent sanitization process a top priority. For this to happen, a medical grade, highly effective, yet non-toxic cleaner is a necessity, because dental offices require a much higher degree of sanitization and disinfection, before patients can be welcomed back.

Protecting Dental Patients and Staff Against the Coronavirus and Other Bacterial and Viral Infection

Dental practitioners are particularly exposed to a high risk of coronavirus infection because the nature of their work means they cannot always respect the social distancing regulation of remaining six feet apart. The challenge is magnified during sessions involving surgical procedures, where blood, saliva, and other fluids are in close proximity.

The virus has also been found to survive outside living organisms, particularly on fomites (objects or materials which are likely to carry infection, such as clothes, utensils, and furniture), by aerosolizing particles into smaller ones for easy transmission, and over long distances. The fact is that viruses can infect humans even without direct contact. The droplets from an infected person's cough or sneeze linger on surfaces, waiting for the next victim to come along.

Dental surgeries inevitably generate bioaerosols. Such aerosols are very common during different dental treatments, such as scaling and root planing using ultrasonic scalers, air polishing procedures or preparing the teeth with rotating instruments, with the risk of airborne infection considered higher in these type of scenarios.

Continuous and vigorous disinfection of the dental office is thus paramount to minimize the risk of infection to patients and staff alike.

The added challenges means that up-to-date directives for communications, protocols, and physical measures must be in place to resume safe patient care, in addition to ensuring that dentists and staff are safe, too. Interim guidance from the American Dental Association (ADA) includes:

• Implementing a pre-appointment screening process
• Expanding the in-office registration process to screen out patients with symptoms consistent with COVID-19
• To provide and make mandatory the proper use of a face mask; to check patients’ temperature; and to provide wipes or materials to clean pens, clipboards, counters, phones, keyboards, light switches, and other “high touch” surfaces
• Extending time between patients to allow for proper decontamination of examination rooms
• Extensive preparation strategies for the physical office and staff to prepare the environment and familiarize the staff with new policies and procedures to reduce the risk of transmission
• Implementing a chairside checklist to prepare for procedures
• Staff protection strategies that emphasize that clinical attire should only be worn in the dental practice, not in staff members’ homes or other community settings
• A daily COVID-19 screening log for team members before entering the practice
• Limiting the number of patients in the waiting room at the same time

Disinfecting Methods for COVID-19

The effectiveness of conventional cleaning and disinfection methods are limited by several factors, and first among these are the right choice of products and if there is strict adherence to the prescribed method of applying a professional disinfectant.

There are various options available, with conventional methods involving cleaning surfaces and equipment with specially formulated disinfectant solutions. The effectiveness of this method, though, depends mostly on individuals implementing correct procedures. Serious slip-ups such as the use of the wrong chemicals, incorrect dilutions, numerically deficient microfiber cloths or paper towels, and incorrect application methods increases the risk that pathogens will be spread from one surface to another. The human element in all these appears to be the weak link in such procedures.

Experts believe it’s time to consider a dental practice in a similar vein to that of a hospital surgery room, where particular attention is paid to significantly minimizing the spread of infections caused by air and surface contaminations, while minimizing the use of strong, harmful chemicals and avoiding toxic ingredients.

Alternative Sterilization Methods

As alternative sterilization methods goes, there are options that require minimal human intervention. These methods, referred to as noncontact disinfection systems (NTD), could prove crucial in the dentistry field, especially now that important sterilization questions have arisen as a result of COVID-19.

These include the following:

Ozonation

With its oxidizing ability, ozonation can easily cover an entire office and penetrate all areas within a room, including cracks and corners. Previous studies have confirmed the effectiveness of the gas in killing the SARS virus, which has a similar structure to COVID-19 (also known as SARS-CoV-2). Ozonation destroys viruses by damaging the virus’ viral RNA. Ozonation, though, can cause respiratory and pollution issues because of its high oxidizing ability, so it’s advised to proceed with caution when using this approach.

Air Ionization

An air ionizer is a device that generates negative ions which kill bacterial and viral elements found in the air. While effective in addressing contaminated air, air ionization is ineffective for contaminated surfaces. As such, it will require an additional process to manage surface disinfection.

Photocatalytic Oxidation

Photocatalytic oxidation, or PCO, oxidizes viruses and bacteria mostly through UV radiation. It is often found mounted within HVAC systems to ensure that HVAC filters won’t further contaminate the air during high humidity.

Water-Based Systems

There are many sterilization methods involving hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which is an active ingredient in many professional disinfectants. This includes H2O2 aerosol mists, H2O2 vapor, or combining H2O2 with UV light.

While peroxides are effective and leave an ideal environmental footprint (they break down into water and oxygen), they are highly oxidizing agents and will react with organics present in surfaces that weren’t cleaned.

Hypochlorous Acid: A Professional Disinfectant to Protect Dental Patients and Staff

While H2O2 remains a safe choice for many disinfection and sanitization procedures, the high infection rates of COVID-19 might warrant a stronger and more effective solution. An alternative to hydrogen peroxide-based professional disinfectants is hypochlorous acid (HOCl), nature’s own powerful disinfectant.

It’s an inexpensive, nontoxic, and practical disinfectant that’s proven to kill SARS-COV-2 viruses. The crystal form of HOCl is even more potent than the liquid form because its shelf life is longer: mix as much as you need to use and save the rest for another time.

What Is HOCl?

Hypochlorous acid is considered nature’s oldest disinfectant, and it just happens to be in each one of us right now. Also known as HOCl, it’s a naturally occurring substance produced by our white blood cells and plays an important role in our immune systems. HOCl destroys the cell wall of pathogens through oxidation, and while HOCl is a powerful disinfectant that eliminates pathogens, it is harmless to the rest of the human body.

Hypochlorous acid works against many types of pathogens, including bacteria, spores, fungi, and viruses. Hypochlorous acid, which is between 80-200 times more powerful than bleach despite being much safer, is included on the list of disinfectants recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency that can kill coronaviruses.

HOCl As Professional Disinfectant

Used as a professional disinfectant, a mixture of 200 ppm hypochlorous acid is enough to kill the virus almost immediately. It eliminates SARS-COV-2 by forming chloramines and nitrogen-centered radicals, causing the viruses’ DNA to break into single and double-strands. This action then neutralizes its nucleic acid, rendering it incapable of causing harm.

For dental offices in particular, an ideal disinfectant and sanitizer must be non-toxic, non-corrosive, effective, and relatively inexpensive. HOCl is fast emerging as an ideal disinfection method for oral-maxillofacial clinics. Hypochlorous acid can be sprayed liberally on all surface types and pathogens are neutralized within seconds.

HOCl is a hospital grade disinfectant/cleaner. HOCl is used by hospitals for definitive terminal cleaning.

Hypochlorous Acid Beyond the Surface

Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) can also be used for dental waterlines, allowing you to eliminate biofilm and legionella with no side effects. Other uses include: impression disinfectant, instrument soak, ultrasonic cleaners, disinfecting root canals, removing biofilms from implant surfaces, mouth rinse (particularly effective post-surgical), and endodontic irrigation.

Hypochlorous acid can also be used in humidifiers to mist an entire space, according to the The Ear Nose and Throat Institute, who adds, that it can even be sprayed into the nostrils for extra defense against pathogens.

BN-200: The Natural Way to Disinfect

BN-200 is a hospital grade bacterial and viral disinfectant that eliminates the need for toxic quaternary ammonia-based disinfectants. It can used for both air and surface disinfection.

BN-200 is a newly developed EPA registered sanitizer and disinfectant for the future fight against old and new bacteria, viruses (including the coronavirus responsible for Covid-19), molds, and fungus. It comes in a convenient granule form that is mixed with water to create as much (or as little) as you need. BN-200 is:

• Biodegradable
• Broad-spectrum efficacy
• Safe for the environment
• Non-corrosive
• No dyes, no bleach, alcohol free
• No harsh fumes
• Color safe
• No allergens
• Pet and child safe
• In its packaging of pre-measured sticks or 10 oz . jar allows savings on shipping and storage
• Delivers consistent potency every-time
• Can be used in spray bottles, humidifiers or foggers

The new normal requires new approaches in the quest for complete dental office sanitization. Limiting the spread of COVID-19 requires disinfection methods that surpass previously set standards in effectiveness and safety.

Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) will eliminate the need to use a range of expensive, toxic cleaners that are not as effective. Get in touch with Sterngold Dental today. Step up your cleaning product to the medical grade, non-toxic, COVID-19 effective BN-200.