Straight to the point: considering sharp safety in dentistry

All members of the clinical dental team face a daily risk of a personal sharp injury. A wide range of sharp instruments are used, some of which are specifically designed to easily pierce the skin and mucosa. The instruments are placed, moved, passed between colleagues, used for treatment, replaced and cleaned, all in relatively confined areas. The clinical dental workplace and the decontamination unit are both therefore sharp-risk environments. There is a clear risk of a sharp injury and the potential consequences of occupational exposure to blood-borne pathogens are at least inconvenient and at worst, career and even life threatening. However, good sharp safety is not universally understood and practised throughout the dental profession. This paper considers the risk of sharp injury in dentistry and discusses some of the methods used to improve sharp safety.