Rinsing impressions under running water as soon as they’re removed from a patient's mouth was standard practice for sanitization up until 1991. In most cases, impressions are left under running tap water to get rid of blood and saliva. It is the dental health-care providers' responsibility to ensure that all surfaces and devices, including dental impression materials, are adequately cleaned, disinfected, and sterilized to prevent cross-contamination and exposure to blood- and saliva-borne diseases. 2As well, the risk of hepatitis B infection among dental professionals is five to 10 times higher than that of the general population. 1 Studies have also shown that microbes of tuberculosis and hepatitis B can live for up to seven days or more at room temperature. In one study, some 67% of materials sent from dental offices to labs were found to be contaminated with Streptococci, Staphylococci, Candida species, MRSA, or P. Appropriate disinfection of dental impressions In this instance, what happens in the dental office doesn’t always stay in the dental office. ![]() These impressions can transport potentially infectious material, including disease-causing microorganisms such as hepatitis B and C, tuberculosis, and HIV, out of the dental office and contaminate others in the community. ![]() Although digital impressions are the way of the future, many offices will continue to use impression material as part of their standard procedures.
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