CATEGORY AUSTRALASIAN DENTIST 63 LINICAL drilling and scalingwith LVE or HVE suction reduced aerosol generation significantly. We detected significant reductions in aerosol production when drilling was done with a HSH with more coolant ports, and particularly those handpieces with the new aerosol-reducing ‘no chip air’ function. To investigate the different combination of variables for generating aerosol in dental operative procedures, we preferred the air sampling method over the ‘settle plate’ methodology. Although most dental aerosol studies have utilized the ‘settle plate’ method,12 it only detects what has fallen onto a surface and is thus limited to detecting larger droplets. Air sampling provides more clinically relevant data, enabling investigators to detect both aerosol and airborne droplets before they have fallen to the ground.12,21–24 The difficulties of comparing results of previous dental aerosol studies included a lack of consistent methodology and inadequate sampling details (eg, time, frequency of air sampling, distance from sources, etc). In the current study, we have provided a standardized protocol, and our findings can act as a baseline reference for other variables of interest. Because the focus of the current study was to measure and compare the effect of different suctions and air supplies for dental high-speed handpieces and ultrasonic scaling, only 1 brand or type per variable was investigated, which could be a limitation of the study. Further work should include a variety of types (and brands) of handpieces, scalers, and suction systems to investigate their relative ability to reduce aerosol level under identical in vivo clinical conditions. A disadvantage of or approach is that it does not test the effect of other precautions (eg, screening patients for infectious diseases, PPE, mouthwash). Our finding that high-speedhandpieces and ultrasonic scaling produce the most concentrated dental aerosol aligns well with the current literature.12,25 Ultrasonic scalers and the efficiencies of different suction types, in particular, have been topical in the current pandemic. Dental Table 2. Summary of Dental Drilling Protocols and Sequence
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