What are some measures to reduce the risk of blood contact?
Avoiding occupational exposures to blood is the primary way to prevent transmission of HBV, HCV, and HIV in health care settings. Methods used to reduce such exposures in dental settings include engineering and work practice controls and the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). Engineering controls isolate or remove the bloodborne pathogens hazard from the workplace. These controls are frequently technology-based and often incorporate safer designs of instruments and devices. Examples include sharps disposal containers, rubber dams, and self-sheathing anesthetic needles. Whenever possible, engineering controls should be used as the primary method to reduce exposures to bloodborne pathogens following skin penetration with sharp instruments or needles. Work practice controls are behavior-based and are intended to reduce the risk of blood exposure by changing the manner in which a task is performed. Examples include using the “scoop” technique to recap an anesthetic needle, removin
