Infection Control & Safety Standards Flashcards
7 cards from real CDT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Infection Control & Safety Standards flashcards as text
Which CDC transmission-based precaution category is most relevant to dental laboratory infection control when handling materials from a patient with active tuberculosis?
Answer: Airborne precautions
Airborne precautions are required for M. tuberculosis because the organism travels on small droplet nuclei that remain suspended in air and can infect anyone in the workspace.
What does a Class 5 chemical integrator (moving front indicator) provide that a Class 4 multi-variable indicator does not?
Answer: A performance standard correlated with biological indicator results
Class 5 integrators are designed to correlate with the performance of biological indicators and react to all critical sterilization parameters (time, temperature, steam).
In dental laboratory practice, which surface is classified as a 'clinical contact surface' requiring regular disinfection between patient cases?
Answer: The handpiece and equipment controls that may be touched with contaminated gloves
Clinical contact surfaces are surfaces that may be directly or indirectly contaminated during patient care or handling of patient materials, including equipment controls and work surfaces.
When using an ultrasonic cleaner to pre-clean instruments before sterilization, the primary reason for covering the tank during operation is to:
Answer: Contain aerosols generated by the cleaning process
Covering the ultrasonic cleaner tank during operation prevents the release of aerosolized contaminated fluid and microorganisms into the laboratory environment.
Which NIOSH-approved respirator category provides protection against both oil-based and non-oil-based particulates encountered during dental alloy grinding?
Answer: P95
P-series (P95, P100) respirators provide protection against oil-based aerosols and are appropriate when the specific composition of alloy grinding mists is unknown or includes oil-containing lubricants.
Under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, which scenario CORRECTLY describes when an employer must offer the hepatitis B vaccine?
Answer: Within 10 working days of initial assignment to tasks involving occupational exposure
Employers must offer the hepatitis B vaccine series at no cost to employees within 10 working days of initial assignment to duties with occupational exposure risk.
Which practice violates standard infection control protocols in a dental laboratory?
Answer: Touching a phone with contaminated gloves to answer a call
Touching personal items such as phones with contaminated gloves spreads pathogens to non-clinical surfaces and represents a cross-contamination breach of infection control protocol.