An unwelcome comeback

David Gibson discusses the re-emergence of some diseases.

Whenever I envisage the modern dental practice, I picture a busy waiting room, buzzing environment and diligent dental team working hard to deliver a high standard of patient care. A nice image don’t you think? At least until you start thinking of the tens or even hundreds of people that have passed through the practice that day, sneezing, coughing and touching surrounding objects such as door handles and armrests.

Indeed, according to a recent survey, just 75 per cent of Brits say they wash their hands after visiting the bathroom, with one in four at greater risk of becoming infected by the millions of microorganisms our hands come in to contact with everyday. Should an infected individual present to your practice carrying a common modern day communicable disease such as MRSA, influenza or measles, there is an immediate risk that the pathogen could be transmitted to others within the practice. This alone is enough for any dental practice to contend with, but now it seems that there has been a resurgence of a number of (what should be) dated diseases.