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Dental Unit Waterlines

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Dental Unit Waterlines and Microbial Contamination Waterline treatment has become the topic of the day, and its product sets are growing year over year at an astounding 15% growth. Why is that? Take a look at what has been going on in the news lately and you will find that the media has it out there. Children and immunocompromised individuals are most susceptible to waterborne illnesses related to dental unit waterlines. These waterlines are the lines that service into the client’s mouth. Water traveling through high speed hand pieces, air water syringe tips, ultrasonic scaling units, ultimately transports these troublesome issues. As studies become available the awareness of waterline treatment has been stirred. It is all about the client’s …show more content…

These organisms are attracted to solid, moistened surfaces. Biofilm contains a protective polysaccharide insoluble slime layer which defends it from dying. The majority of microorganisms are from main source water. For example, water coming from tap, distilled, or sterile. These waterborne pathogens, such as, Legionella, Non-tuberculosis mycobacteria (NTM), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa have been linked with hospital contaminations as well as immunocompromised patients (Fotedar & Ganju, 2014). Dental units and equipment incorporate water systems to deliver water which acts as a coolant and also maintain moisture on teeth during dental procedure treatments. Narrow bore plastic or polyurethane tubing, stated as dental unit waterlines (DUWL), is the means by way water is supplied to these instruments. This tubing is approximately 1/16th inch or 2 millimeters in diameter. Water from city sources travels through roughly a 10-inch-wide channel, then to the dental office ½ inch plumbing, and lastly to the dental unit water lines of just 1/16th inch (Slonczewski, 2012). As the water approaches the DUWL, the flow greatly decreases. The amount of water stagnation because of this tight constriction as well as offices being closed over weekends encourages microbial …show more content…

2012, March 29). This states that, using distilled or even sterile water in a self-contained bottle is not considered treating the water unless a chemical is also involved. Murdoch-Kinch et al. (1997), emphasize that when dental unit waterline maintenance procedures are precisely followed, DUWL contamination can be controlled. It is recommended to flush the dental unit waterlines at the beginning of each day for several minutes. Also, flushing the lines in-between patients for 20-30 seconds will reduce the number of bacteria in the DUWL. Although this may be a temporary reduction and the bacterial growth will proliferate quickly, the decrease in bacterial count warrants this (Slonczewski 2012). Basically, flushing the DUWL is imperative to limit bacterial

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