ADEX Infection Control Principles 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: According to OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen Standard, who is responsible for providing hepatitis B vaccination to dental employees?
- The employee at their own expense
- The employer at no cost to the employee (Correct answer)
- The state dental board
- The employee's private insurance
Correct answer: The employer at no cost to the employee
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1030 requires employers to offer HBV vaccination to all employees with occupational exposure at no cost within 10 days of assignment.
Question 2: What does the term 'chain of infection' refer to in infection control?
- The sterilization sequence for dental instruments
- The linked steps required for a pathogen to cause disease in a new host (Correct answer)
- The order in which PPE is removed
- The hierarchy of disinfection levels
Correct answer: The linked steps required for a pathogen to cause disease in a new host
The chain of infection describes six links — infectious agent, reservoir, portal of exit, mode of transmission, portal of entry, and susceptible host — that must all be present for infection to occur.
Question 3: Single-use disposable items such as saliva ejectors should be discarded after each patient because they are:
- Too expensive to sterilize properly
- Unable to withstand heat sterilization cycles without damage
- Regulated as single-use devices that cannot be reliably re-sterilized (Correct answer)
- Required by manufacturer warranties to be discarded
Correct answer: Regulated as single-use devices that cannot be reliably re-sterilized
FDA regulates single-use devices; reprocessing them may compromise function, cannot guarantee sterility, and is prohibited without 510(k) clearance for reprocessing.
Question 4: A dental hygienist's mask becomes moist after 20 minutes of aerosol-generating procedures. What should be done?
- Continue wearing it until the appointment ends
- Replace it immediately with a fresh mask (Correct answer)
- Allow it to dry and reuse it
- Wear a second mask over the moist one
Correct answer: Replace it immediately with a fresh mask
Moisture reduces filtration efficiency; masks should be replaced when they become wet, damaged, or after each patient.
Question 5: Which surface barrier is MOST appropriate to protect the dental unit light handle during patient care?
- 70% isopropyl alcohol wipe applied between patients
- Plastic wrap or pre-fabricated covers changed between patients (Correct answer)
- Glutaraldehyde solution applied with gauze
- No barrier is needed if the clinician wears gloves
Correct answer: Plastic wrap or pre-fabricated covers changed between patients
Plastic barriers on difficult-to-disinfect surfaces like light handles are removed and replaced between patients, protecting surfaces that aerosol disinfectants cannot reliably reach.
Question 6: In the context of instrument processing, what does the term 'ultrasonic cleaning' achieve?
- Sterilization of instruments
- Removal of debris through cavitation before sterilization (Correct answer)
- High-level disinfection equivalent to chemical immersion
- Deactivation of prion proteins
Correct answer: Removal of debris through cavitation before sterilization
Ultrasonic cleaners use cavitation to remove blood, debris, and bioburden from instrument surfaces, which is an essential pre-sterilization step, not sterilization itself.
Question 7: Which hepatitis virus is primarily transmitted through the fecal-oral route and poses a lower occupational risk via blood exposure in dentistry?
- Hepatitis B
- Hepatitis C
- Hepatitis D
- Hepatitis A (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A is transmitted fecal-orally, not through blood, so it poses minimal occupational bloodborne risk in dental settings compared to HBV and HCV.
ADEX Infection Control Principles 3
According to OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen Standard, who is responsible for providing hepatitis B vaccination to dental employees?