Percutaneous exposure injuries among dental staff and students at a university dental clinic in Australia: A 6-year retrospective study

Abstract

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: Dental care providers are at risk of percutaneous exposure injuries (PEIs) due to the intimate nature of the patient-dentist environment and the routine use of sharp instruments. They are the most vulnerable to accidental exposure of blood borne viruses. The aim of this study was to determine the types of PEIs sustained by staff and students at the Griffith University Dental Clinic over a six-year period. METHODS: Data was collected regarding PEIs sustained among dental staff and students between 2014 and 2019. Data was obtained from the risk incident reporting system (GSafe) and the patient management Software (Titanium), and then analysed using IBM SPSS. Chi-squared tests and multinomial logistic regressions were performed with significance set at <0.05. RESULTS: Over the six-year period, there were 308 PEIs with an incidence rate of 0.109%, with 67 being needle stick injuries (0.023%). These injuries happened more often in restorative procedures, followed by local anaesthesia and oral surgery. Dental students were at a greater risk of sustaining PEIs (65.6%) when compared with professional staff (34.4%). Most common instruments included needles (21.8%), probes (20.5%) and burs (18.2%). CONCLUSION: Overall, the incidence of percutaneous injuries at the Griffith University Dental Clinic was low. The most common instruments were needles, probes and burs, and dental students were at greatest risk of sustaining injuries. Prevention of injuries by not recapping needles, immediate removal of burs from handpieces, the use of cassettes and single use instruments has effectively decreased PEIs experienced by dental students and staff.