Why does my Dentist wear a mask?

The simple answer to this is Infection Control.

Your dentist and their staff come into some pretty infectious particles when they’re working in a patient’s mouth. From simple cold or flu viruses, to blood-borne diseases and general infectious tissues which may become airborne from drilling or cleaning teeth.

These are the types of transmittable infections that they are protecting themselves from. As well as making sure that they are not responsible for transferring biological materials from one patient to the next.

By covering their nose and mouth, your dentist makes sure that they don’t inhale anything dangerous.

Why does my Dentist wear gloves?

Wearing gloves is another form of Infection Control that Dentists use, to protect themselves as well as patients.

Your dentist’s hands have to work in a pretty small area that’s quite cramped. So it’s hard for them to avoid getting saliva, blood or other biological materials on their hands.

From your hands, it’s easy to contaminate others. Even with a simple handshake.

By covering their hands, your Dentist is able to protect you from infectious particles that they may have come into contact with from an earlier patient they treated.

Should I reschedule my dentist appointment if I’m sick?

Yes. There are several good reasons why you’d want to reschedule your dentist appointment when you are sick.

1. Even when you’re starting to feel better, you can still be contagious to others. By making sure you are fully recovered, you are preventing the spread of your cold, flu or virus to others. Something your dentist will be glad you’ve considered.
2. When you are sick your body is more vulnerable to sensations of pain. So no matter how gentle your dentist is, any small amount of discomfort is going to feel a whole lot more painful to you.
3. Being sick is a time when your body needs as much rest as possible to help you to recover. Having any type of treatment that your body will have to recover from is going to jeopardise your overall recovery. Whether the treatment is a dental check-up, getting a filing or getting your teeth whitened. Your body needs to have strong immunity so that it can fight swelling, inflammation as well as infection.