The State - News from May 4, 1986

Dentists should wash their hands thoroughly and wear gloves, masks and eye protection to avoid spreading or catching AIDS, hepatitis and other infectious diseases, the California Dental Assn.’s dental research council recommended at a state dental convention in Anaheim. Dentists were also urged to use heat-sterilized or disposable instruments, to cover chairs, trays, switches and handles with disposable materials or disinfect them between patients, and to be careful in disposing of contaminated materials. Dentists are fearful that they might catch acquired immune deficiency syndrome or spread it from one patient to another because of frequent use of sharp objects and contact with blood and saliva in dental practice, although there have been no documented cases of AIDS transmission from patients to dentists.