The COVID-19 pandemic and its threat to dental practice teams -- specifically hygienists -- dominated DrBicuspid.com's headlines. Our most-read hygiene articles focused on connections between dental problems and the novel coronavirus and tensions between dentists and hygienists.
Here are the top five hygiene articles of 2020:
- An open letter to Dr. Anthony Fauci from a dental hygienist
Amanda Hill, RDH, BSDH, asks Fauci to consider dental care when he begins looking at healthcare inequities and access to care after the pandemic is over. - 6 steps to reduce the tension between dentists and dental hygienists
As dental practices began reopening following COVID-19 shutdowns, tensions began flaring between dental hygienists and dentists. Hill offers tips to get the two sides to understand each other and resolve their issues. - What store-bought mouthwashes kill SARS-CoV-2 in a half a minute?
Over-the-counter mouthwashes containing cetylpyridinium chloride or ethanol/ethyl lauroyl arginate killed SARS-CoV-2 within 30 seconds of exposure to the virus in lab tests, according to a study published on the preprint server bioRxiv. Two Venture Life Dentyl mouthwashes, which contain cetylpyridinium chloride, and Johnson & Johnson's Listerine Advanced Gum Treatment, which contains ethanol/ethyl lauroyl arginate, appeared to eliminate the novel coronavirus after a 30-second treatment. - Hygienists walk fine line between anxiety, sense of duty as practices begin to open
Hill and others discuss their preparations for returning to dental offices, following shutdowns during the pandemic. - Gum disease may affect COVID-19 severity
Patients with inflammation caused by periodontitis may experience more severe COVID-19 complications, according to research published in July in the Journal of the California Dental Association.
