How Clean Are Your Waterlines?

We’ve all heard the high-profile stories of contaminated dental unit waterlines exposing patients to harmful bacteria—most notably at a pediatric practice in Anaheim, CA—and the serious consequences that followed, from patient health issues to legal repercussions for the practice. These types of cases are still happening today, they’re just not making the news, said Amanda Hill, RDH, BSDH. Why? They’re getting settled quickly, as anything involving compromised dental waterlines is a clear violation of standard of practice. They also share a common thread.

“In all the cases that have happened in the United States, the one thing they all have in common is none of them were testing,” said Hill, who is known in the dental world as the waterline warrior. “Many of them were actually treating and shocking the water, and they thought they were doing the right thing. But they weren’t testing, and that’s the only way to really know.”

To keep waterlines safe for patients (and you and your team members, for that matter), you should be testing at least quarterly to see how you’re doing—some state dental boards have even made this a requirement—and then treating the water as needed. It’s also critical to determine exactly where your water is coming from to ensure you treat it properly.

“Is your water coming from a bottle? Is your water going through a centralized filter system, or is it coming in directly from the city?” Hill said. “Depending on how your water is set up, that's going to guide your next steps.”

An Easy Solution for Scaler Waterlines

One of the areas most at risk for developing biofilm if not cleaned properly, Hill said, is the power scaler waterline. “It has the longest tubing of all the different lines,” Hill said. “So there’s just more room, there’s more surface area for contamination to occur. It’s just the perfect environment for biofilm to form.”

Parkell developed the PureClarity Scaler Waterline Purification System to protect scaler lines. The system, which includes a shock syringe and a filter, uses a biopharmaceutical-grade microporous membrane to physically block harmful bacteria and pathogen formation closer to the scaler's point of use. This makes shocking easier and simplifies maintenance. And with PureClarity, offices get EPA-compliant water (≤500 CFU/mL) for up to 6 months.

An Easy Fix

In some delivery units, there’s one line that doesn’t draw directly from the bottle, Hill said, and it’s usually the scaler. In the past, clinicians had to call a technician to reroute the waterlines so everything pulled from the same source. PureClarity changes that.

“Now, I can say, ‘Oh, there’s an easy fix,’” Hill said. “There’s this filter with a shocking syringe that lets you maintain your scaler without having to rerun all the lines.'"

The purification system is also easy to install. PureClarity connects directly to both the dental scaler waterline and the water source line with a simple twist of your wrist, Hill said. Just load the syringe with the recommended shock solution for your scaler and shock the lines. Attach the PureClarity filter to protect them, and you’re done.

Keeping Your Patients Safe

For clinicians, all water is significant. Waterline safety must be taken seriously. Products like PureClarity and regular testing are critical to ensuring you keep your patients safe.

“Would you fill a cup of water from your air-water syringe and drink it? If you can’t confidently say, 'Yeah, I would,' then what are you doing?" Hill asked. “It is our duty as clinicians to deliver safe care to our patients. And part of safe care is safe water.”