Protective wear and instrument sterilisation/disinfection in UK general dental practice

The 18,000 United Kingdom general dental practitioners registered for National Health Service (NHS) practice were surveyed in July 1991 to assess their current use of protective gloves, eyewear and masks, and instrument sterilisation. Nearly 7,000 (6,588) valid responses were obtained immediately; of these, 70% of practitioners wore gloves routinely for clinical work, but only 14.5% donned new gloves for each patient. About 60% wore protective eyewear routinely or all the time but 12% never wore eye protection, and only 36% of practitioners used masks. Autoclaves or chemical solutions were the most popular methods to disinfect handpieces, but less than half the respondents stated that handpieces were sterilised or disinfected after each patient use. Most respondents (81%) routinely used autoclaves for sterilisation of other instruments. Although the response rate to the questionnaire was low, the results indicate that, despite the risks of, and publicity about, cross-infection, a substantial number of NHS dental practitioners may not adequately disinfect or sterilise their equipment between patients.