What infection prevention element provides protection to patients but not the dental team?

Who is reported to have first observed microbes?

Under what conditions do regular bacteria, excluding Richettsia and Chlamydia, multiply:

Choose the microbial killing method referred to as pasteurization.

When was the “Golden Age of Microbiology”?

What microbes are used to make vinegar, vitamins, drain cleaners, enzymes, and other products?

Which microbes are used to make pickles out of cucumbers?

What microbe is used to make bread dough rise?

Microbes that are usually harmless but can cause disease under certain conditions are called:

Microbes that cause disease by producing a toxin are called:

Members of the normal body microbiota that can cause disease are called

That period of an infectious disease between the initial infection and the time when the first symptoms occurs is called the:

That period of an infectious disease when the symptoms are at or near the maximum level is called the:

That period of an infectious disease when the symptoms are declining is called the:

The mode of microbe transmission that involves touching the patient’s teeth while not wearing gloves is called:

The mode of microbe transmission that involves a needlestick is called:

The mode of microbe transmission that involves small droplet nuclei such as those generated from dental aerosols is called:

Which of the following best describes antibodies?

Special proteins produced in our body in the presence of antigens that aid in destroying those antigens or help in their removal from the body.

The major source of disease agents in the dental office is:

The mouths of the patients. 

Special proteins that are made by the body after a microbe invades the body are called:

The next to the last step in the development of an infectious disease is:

Host defense mechanisms that we are born with and are always active are referred to as _________ defenses.

Hay fever and asthma and are examples of

Which of the following is a chemical barrier to infectious diseases?

Cocci are shaped like ____________.

Choose the bacterial structure that controls the flow of nutrients and waste into and out of the cell?

Which of the following groups of bacteria grow best inside your refrigerator?

Which type of microbe is the most difficult to kill?

Some bacteria can change into special forms that are dormant and are highly resistant to heat, chemicals, and drying? These are called:

Which of the following diseases is a bacterial disease?

Viruses cause diseases in humans because they:

invade and kill or damage cells in our body.

During the life cycle of a virus, what is the next step after the virus attaches to the host cell?

Agents that prevent bacterial growth without killing them are referred to as:

Members of the normal body microbiota that can cause disease are called:

The mode of microbe transmission that involves touching the patient’s teeth while not wearing gloves is called:

The mode of microbe transmission that involves small droplet nuclei such as those generated from dental aerosols is called:

Which of the following best describes antibodies?

Special proteins produced in our body in the presence of antigens that aid in destroying those antigens or help in their removal from the body.

The next to the last step in the development of an infectious disease is:

Special proteins that are made by the body after a microbe invades the body and that can destroy that microbe are called:

Which of the following patients appear the same?

Asymptomatic patients and normal patients

The prodormal stages of a disease is defined as the:

appearance of early symptoms.

The immunity that develops from receiving the hepatitis B vaccination series is called:

Spreading a microbe from one patient to another by reusing improperly sterilized instruments is referred to as cross-contamination through:

Which of the following microbes can cause a respiratory disease (mainly in immunocompromised persons) and has emerged as an opportunistic pathogen found in technologically advanced water handling devices including in dental unit waterlines?

Pathogenic antibiotic-resistant bacteria are referred to as:

What causes the critical pH to be reached during formation of dental caries?

Plaque bacteria convert dietary sugar into acids.

What is the most caries conductive component of our diet?

What actually destroys the tooth enamel in dental caries?

Which of the following bacteria is the most important in causing the progression of a carious lesion after the lesion has been initiated?

Lactobacillus acidophilus

Dental plaque is best defined as:

Further progression of a periapical infection may cause:

The greatest occupational risks for exposure to hepatitis B virus are: (1) blood and saliva contamination of cuts and cracks on the skin or ungloved hands or hands with torn gloves; (2) spraying of blood and saliva onto open lesions on the skin or onto mucous membranes; and (3):

through injuries with contaminated sharps.

What bloodborne disease has the greatest potential for occupational transmission risk to dental professionals?

Which of the following hepatitis diseases does not have a chronic carrier state?

Which of the following forms of hepatitis is not bloodborne?

What is the most likely route of hepatitis B transmission from an infected patient to an unvaccinated dental assistant wearing, exam gloves, protective eyewear and a long-sleeved gown but no face mask?

Who has published guidelines for the prevention of tuberculosis in dental health care facilities?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

What microbe that is spread through respiratory/oral droplets causes of vaccine-preventable lung disease, is the leading cause of middle ear infections, and also can cause meningitis and invasive disease?

What virus was first associated with human disease in 2012 and causes a severe acute respiratory illness, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath?

The goal of infection control is:

a. to reduce the number of microbes that are shared between individuals.

Which governmental agency regulates disinfectants?

The Environmental Protection Agency

Wearing gloves when treating a patient prevents which of the following modes of entry of the patient’s microbes into your body?

Percutaneous through breaks in the skin

Which governmental agency sets the standard for drinking water?

Environmental Protection Agency

What is a part of the CDC infection control recommendations for dental facilities rather than OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard?

Sterilizing all instruments before they are reused

Use of high-volume evacuation, preprocedure mouthrinsing, and _______________ are designed to reduce the spread of patient’s microbes in dental aerosols and spatter.

What involves patient to dental team cross-contamination?

Not wearing protective eyewear

If you are working in a private dental office and your employer says that you must buy your own gloves, where is the best place to go to complain?

Which of the following is a not-for-profit nongovernmental organization involved with infection control in dentistry?

The CDC recommends that dental unit water should have no more than _____________ colony-forming-units (CFU) of heterotropic bacteria per milliliter.

When does the required OSHA training on bloodborne pathogens have to be given to employees who have a potential for exposure to human body fluids?

When an employee is initially hired and at least annually thereafter.

The difference between universal precautions and standard precautions is that universal precautions relate only to:

blood and body fluids containing blood.

What part of an infection control program is occurring when a patient enter a dental office and sees a sign stating: “Please cover your mouth/nose when coughing or sneezing”?

What is the least helpful action that can be taken by employers to help ensure a safety culture in the workplace?

Having written safety guidelines and policies.

When should dental healthcare personnel first be introduced to the office’s culture of safety?

When they are first hired

Who should be involved in creating a safety culture in a dental facility?

What is the least safe procedure?

Hand scrubbing contaminated instruments

What is the best way to evaluate performance of surface asepsis procedures?

Observe the staff performing surface cleaning and disinfection.

What infection prevention element provides the least protection to patients?

Wearing of protective eyewear by the dental team.

What office safety element provides protection to the dental team but not patients?

The dental team’s understanding of the Hazard Communication Standard.

Which of the following best describes the recommended inoculation schedule for the hepatitis B vaccine?

First dose followed 1 month later by a second dose and a third dose 6 months after the first.

There is no vaccine for which of the following diseases?

According to OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard, if a dental office staff person who is susceptible to hepatitis B refuses the offer to be vaccinated against hepatitis B, what must happen?

The staff person must sign a vaccine declination form.

What is the antimicrobial agent in hand-rubs used without rinsing?

When alcohol-based hand rubs are used throughout the day, which of the following should be done?

Wash and rinse the hands after every four to five hand rubs to remove the build-up of glove powder, sweat, and glove chemicals from the hands.

Which of the following is appropriate for hand hygiene and gloving?

One should keep nails short to allow for thorough cleaning and to prevent glove tears.

Choose the proper nonsurgical hand hygiene procedure when the hands are contaminated with blood or saliva.

Hand washing with soap, rinsing, and drying

When leaving a patient to retrieve supplies, which barrier(s) should be removed and replaced when you return to the patient?

When putting on your protective barriers, which barrier should be put on last just before patient care begins?

What is the most common form of skin reaction to gloves?

Irritant contact dermatitis

Which of the following is proper handling of reusable protective clothing?

It needs to be removed before leaving the office for lunch.

According to OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, the employer is responsible for providing, maintaining, cleaning/laundering, disposing of and ensuring the use of:

Personal protective equipment

The use of powder-free latex gloves helps:

to limit the spread of airborne latex protein allergens.

When designing a sterilization facility and purchasing a new sterilizer, one should look for clearance of the desired sterilizer by what Federal agency?

How should instrument packages/cassettes be placed into the sterilizer chamber?

On their edges or in a single layer

What should be done to the instruments at the end of a steam sterilization cycle?

Let the instrument packages dry inside the sterilizer before handling them.

What is the main reason for packaging instruments before they are placed in a sterilizer?

To protect the instrument from recontamination after sterilization.

“Autoclave” tape is used for which type of sterilization monitoring?

During instrument processing, what is the reason for sterilizing instruments?

To kill all remaining microbes on the instruments after they have been cleaned.

Which of the following statements is true about ultrasonic cleaning of dental instruments?

Used cleaning solution contains live microbes.

Which of the following is a problem when using a liquid chemical sterilant on heat-sensitive instruments?

These sterilants cannot be spore-tested.

According to CDC how often is one to perform chemical monitoring of the sterilization process?

With every package in every load

According to CDC how often is one to perform biological monitoring of a sterilizer?

What is sterility assurance?

The correct performance of the proper instrument processing steps and monitoring of the sterilization step.

According to the CDC semicritical instruments are those that:

contact mucous membranes but will not penetrate soft tissue, contact bone, enter into or contact the bloodstream or other normally sterile tissue.

According to the CDC how should critical instruments be prepared for use?

According to the CDC how should non heat sensitive semicritical instruments be prepared for use?

According to the CDC how should noncritical instruments be prepared for use?

Processed with high-level disinfection.

What’s the rationale for the holding step as part of instrument processing?

To remove as much of the bioburden as possible to give the sterilization step the best chance to work.

Why did the CDC and the FDA issue a Health Advisory in 2015 urging all healthcare facilities to immediately review current reprocessing practices at their facility to ensure they (1) are complying with all steps as directed by the device manufacturers, and (2) have in place appropriate policies and procedures that are consistent with current standards and guidelines?

Recent infection control lapses due to noncompliance with recommended medical device reprocessing procedures highlighted a critical gap in patient safety.

What type of containers should be used to transport contaminated instruments from the operatory to the sterilizing room?

A covered, leak-proof, puncture-proof, container marked with a biohazard symbol.

What is the most important property of a surface cover?

It must be impervious to water

Which of the following terms indicate the strongest microbial killing power?

What should be done to a clinical contact surface after its protective surface cover has been carefully removed at the end of a patient appointment?

Nothing—just add a fresh cover for the next patient.

Which of the following surfaces is usually not involved in patient-to-patient spread of microbes?

Why are two disinfecting towelettes used during the wipe-discard-wipe procedure?

The first one cleans the surface and the second one disinfects the surface.

Which of the following protective barriers are to be worn when disinfecting a surface?

Utility gloves, mask, protective clothing, protective eyewear

What kinds of dental operatory surfaces best lend themselves to being covered with a surface barrier rather than being cleaned and disinfected between each patient?

Those that are difficult to clean and disinfect

How often should a surface cover on a dental light handle or light switch be replaced?

What is the purpose of the second spray in the spray-wipe-spray procedure?

The labels of properly approved surface disinfectants contain a registration number from which Federal agency?

Supplying sterile forceps or cotton pliers with each instrument set-up to reach into containers of bulk supplies (e.g., cotton rolls, or cotton pledgets) is best referred to as:

How should a cotton roll or other items be retrieved from a bulk container at chairside?

with sterile cotton pliers or forceps

What is the maximum number of microbes CDC says should be in dental unit water used for patient treatment?

When does CDC recommend that dental unit waterlines with the attached handpieces should be flushed?

Which of the following is a waterborne bacterium that can cause a harmful infection in compromised persons?

What is the main reason why relatively greater amounts of biofilm form in dental unit waterlines than in other types of waterlines?

Because the small diameter of these lines cause a high ratio of waterline surface to water volume.

What waterborne bacteria are of most concern in dentistry?

Pseudomonas, Legionella, Mycobacterium

If using an independent water reservoir on a dental unit to deliver good quality treatment water, how often should the bottle be removed and cleaned?

The dental unit water quality recommended by the CDC is based upon what standard?

EPA’s drinking water standard

Explain the CDC recommendation for monitoring the microbial quality of dental unit water?

The quality should be monitored as recommended by the manufacturer of the dental unit or waterline treatment product.

The smallest particles generated during the use of high-speed handpieces are called:

Which of the following infection control procedures best minimizes the patient-to-dental team route of transmission when patient treatment involves using of a high-speed handpiece?

The high-volume evacuator

Which of the following infection control procedures best minimizes the patient-to-dental team route of transmission when patient treatment involves using the air/water syringe?

The high-volume evacuator

Which of the following is not considered as regulated waste in dentistry?

Which of the following is regulated waste in a dental office?

A double-ended scaler with a broken tip

Which of the following is regulated waste?

Sharps containers should have which of the following properties?

Be made so that it can be closed.

What is regulated medical waste?

Infectious medical waste that requires special handling, neutralization, and disposal.

Which of the following should be done before disposing of a used anesthetic needle?

Recap the needle by the scoop technique

What should be done if you drop a contaminated anesthetic needle on the floor during patient treatment at chairside?

Use tongs or cotton pliers to pick it up and place it in the sharps container.

Sharps containers should be:

filled only 3/4  full before disposing.

Which of the following techniques is a safe way to handle sharps?

Do not sharpen contaminated instruments.

What is an engineering control?

A device that removes the potential hazard.

What is a work practice control?

An action that alters the manner in which a task is performed.

Describe the OSHA-required exposure determination.

Listing all tasks and procedures used in the  facility in which occupational exposure may occur.

Torn gloves should be replaced:

obtain a single item from a container without contaminating the other items in the container.

What personal protective equipment needs to be worn when placing fresh surface covers on previously cleaned and disinfected surfaces?

What should be done if an instrument is dropped on the floor during patient treatment?

Obtain a sterile replacement and continue.

What are the 3 methods of infection control?

What involves patient to dental team cross contamination?

What are the five basic principles for infection control?

What are the minimum infection control precautions for all patient contact situations?