Learn to limit the spread of COVID-19 following the latest respiratory guidelines
Safety for patients and staff is always a top priority in dentistry. This interactive article presents a real-world scenario that provides context for respiratory droplet and aerosol protection during the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn how to establish and maintain a safe work environment and limit the spread of contamination based on Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidance and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements for respiratory protection.
You will have access to this article for six months, so you can read and review the material at your own pace, on your own schedule. In addition, the interactive format allows you to take notes and access a glossary and links to related resources while you read, so you can be sure you understand the information before you take the assessment.
You will earn 2 CDE credits when you achieve a passing score of 75% on the assessment. You will receive your pass or fail result immediately after completing the assessment, and you can take the assessment more than once if needed.
This Continuing Dental Education Articles (CDEA®) module is a part of a collaborative partnership between the Organization for Safety, Asepsis and Prevention (OSAP) and the DALE Foundation. For the latest COVID-19 guidance for dental settings, please visit the CDC's Interim Infection Prevention and Control Guidance for Dental Settings During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic.
Subject Matter Experts
The material featured in this CDEA module was originally published in Infection Control In Practice Team Huddle™, a resource for clinicians from OSAP to help build a framework for the Safest Dental Visit™.
Course credentials
Creation date: February 2020
Date of next review: February 2023
This continuing educational activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the standards of the ADA Continuing Education Recognition Program (ADA CERP) through joint efforts between the DALE Foundation and the Organization for Safety, Asepsis and Prevention (OSAP).


After completing this article, the reader should be able to:
• Describe source control and how it is achieved in dentistry
• Describe respiratory protection and how it can be achieved in dentistry
• Describe the different levels of surgical facemasks
• Describe the different types of filtering facepiece respirators
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