An Epidemiological Study of the Decontamination of Impressions and Prosthetic Appliances

Background: To minimize the risk of cross-contamination in the prosthetic practice in dental offices, the decontamination of the entire prosthetic chain is essential.We conducted a survey of dental offices in the city of Casablanca, which aims to assess the practice of decontamination during the performance of prosthetic work.Material and Methods: To achieve our purpose, an epidemiological investigation was conducted among 308 dentists of the city of Casablanca using an anonymous questionnaire. Results:The participation rate in our study was 62%, and revealed that only 34% of dentists decontaminate impressions before sending them to the laboratory, and 62.8% decontaminate fittings and prostheses before placing them into the mouth.77% of dentists in our sample are not trained in impression's decontamination and 84% do not know the specific decontamination protocol of each material.This shows that there is a concordance between the practice of the decontamination of prosthesis and initial trainings.In our study, 12% of the practitioners do not use any protective measures when decontaminating impressions and the majority of practitioners are vaccinated against hepatitis B with a percentage of 75%, followed by 41% against tuberculosis, 10% against influenza and 22% have not received any vaccination. Conclusion:The practice of the decontamination of impressions and prosthesis work is not respected by the majority of Moroccan dentists working in the private sector in the city of Casablanca, and there is an underestimation of the risks incurred by transmissible diseases through prosthetic works going from the office to the laboratory and vice versa.