Dental Professionals Turn to Ultraviolet Light Air Purifiers to Address Transmission Risks in Dental Offices
BONITA SPRINGS – There has been a lot of concern centered around the dangers and risks that dental professionals face in their field of work, with many reports finding that jobs in dental work, like dentists, dental hygienists, and dental laboratory technicians, were among one of the most damaging jobs to one’s health. Business Insider launched an article in 2015 highlighting the risks that dental workers face due to their exposure to contaminants and disease pathogens that were present in the air of many dental offices, many of which were transmitted by patients. These transmission risks inside dental offices have led to an increasing number of dental professionals to integrate Ultraviolet Light Air Purifiers within their practices, to ultimately aid in the mitigation of these potentially dangerous contaminants and pathogens from the air.
As we continue to deal with the challenges of the transmission of airborne pathogens throughout the world, those essential businesses, such as medical facilities, are experiencing heightened risks to infectious disease. Dental professionals, in particular, are experiencing tremendous concern, as many dental procedures and routine cleanings that they conduct can produced aerosolized spray in the air that will include water, saliva, blood, microorganisms and other potentially hazardous debris. Thus, these professionals are turning to mitigation solutions, such as UV air purifiers like the EnviroKlenz UV Mobile Air System to help minimize transmission risks in the air of these dental offices.
In dental offices and dental laboratories, there are several sources of indoor air contamination that will lead to the public health risks that are present in these dental facilities. These indoor air contaminants that are of most concern to dental offices include bio-aerosols, patients, chemicals, and dust. Bio-aerosols are one of the most concerning health risks in dental offices, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, since dental instruments are known for creating hazardous bio-aerosols that contain saliva, blood, and subgingival fluids within this aerosolized liquid. These airborne droplets can remain suspended in the air for up to six hours and settle onto surfaces within the indoor space, which can be dangerous to both the dental professionals and their patients’. The dental patients, as well can be a source of contamination in the dental office, since sick patients can spread infectious illnesses throughout this space. Lastly, chemicals and dust can also be problematic for the indoor air quality of a dental office – specifically chemical compounds used in dentistry for disinfection of surfaces, instruments, and other materials used in these dental offices.
In an effort for dental facilities to reduce or minimize exposure to their staff and their patients from these airborne contaminants, particularly airborne pathogens, an ultraviolet light air purifier can be part of a solution to integrate into these dental facilities. Ultraviolet light (UV light) used in air purification devices are a known method for inactivating or reducing pathogens found in the indoor air. This added capability in air purifiers will provide the ability to deactivate airborne pathogens within the air purifier, which will be beneficial in any indoor space with high levels of transmission risks, such as dental offices. Many air purification devices contain UV lights to enable the capability to deactivate these airborne pathogens within the air purification system, but unfortunately a vast majority of these UV lights used in air purifiers fall within the hazardous wavelength production ranges which allow for the creation of ozone byproducts in the air, according to the American Cancer Society or have short exposure (or low dosage) to the germicidal UV
The EnviroKlenz UV System solves the dosage problems by placing the UV-C light before the HEPA filter which captures biological contaminants 0.3 microns and larger. The droplet size from coughing or sneezing humans is very broad, and a HEPA filter can capture the bulk of that particulate matter range. Integrating UV lamps within the air purification device allows for continual bathing of the collection site of the HEPA filter, which allows for the items collected on the surface of the HEPA filter to get a lengthened or even infinite residence time. In the EnviroKlenz Mobile Air System with UV lights, the pathogens are exposed to the UV-C light as long as the unit and its lights remain on in the air purification system. Additionally, UV-C is a specific wavelength (254 nm) that is not an ozone producing wavelength.
This means that even though the UV lamp is relatively low intensity, given the airflow of the unit (approximately 80-250 cfm), the UV-C dosage required for destruction is created for the trapped pathogen because it will continue to be exposed to the UV-C radiation regardless of how quickly air is passing through the unit. Therefore, allowing the EnviroKlenz UV Mobile Air System to continuously work within these indoor environments, such as a dental office, to capture, contain, and deactivate pathogens that are transmitted within the air of this facility safely and effectively.
About EnviroKlenz®.
EnviroKlenz® is an environmentally friendly chemical and odor restoration process that is available to consumers and manufacturers across all industries. The EnviroKlenz process is a scientifically and field proven choice for the safe, rapid, convenient, and cost-effective restoration of indoor spaces from a broad spectrum of hazardous chemical compounds and other toxic vapors.
The EnviroKlenz® core chemistry (the “Product”) irreversibly captures and neutralizes a broad range of indoor air pollutants. EnviroKlenz® works by ‘destructive adsorption.’ As EnviroKlenz® comes in contact with chemical pollutants in circulating air or on surfaces of materials, the Product’s chemistry 1) irreversibly attaches to and reacts with the pollutants, and 2) destroys/neutralizes the pollutant. The irreversible result is a benign, environmentally safe byproduct and elimination of the unpleasant and potentially dangerous pollutant(s).
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City: Bonita Springs
State: FL
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