Ultrafine particles in scanning sprays: a standardized examination of five powders used for dental reconstruction

BACKGROUND: Intraoral matting sprays for chairside systems can release fine or ultrafine particles or nanoparticles at dentists’ workplaces and cause work-related health problems by inhalation exposure. Until now, little is known about the magnitude of the ultrafine fraction, when using these scanning sprays. Hence, more information is needed for workplace risk assessments in dental practices. METHODS: Five commonly used dental spray-powders were examined under standardized conditions. Ingredients were taken from the respective safety data sheet. Particle number-size distributions and total number concentrations were analyzed with a fast mobility particle sizer, and reported graphically as well as mean particle fractions smaller than 100 nm. Based on these measurements, risk assessments were conducted, and particle depositions in the lung were modelled. RESULTS: The mean fraction of particles smaller than 100 nm varied between 9 and 93% depending on the matting agent and mode of application of the intraoral scanning spray. Propellants can represent a large fraction of these particles. Titanium dioxide, pigment-suspensions, talcum and others particles, which can pose relevant health risks, were listed as ingredients of scanning sprays in safety data sheets. Nevertheless, the deposited fraction of hazardous particles in the lung of employees in dental practices seems to be small (15%) during this dental procedure. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that dentists’ personnel can be exposed to hazardous fine and ultrafine particles. Though extensive standardized measurements and systematic evaluation of safety data sheets were used for this study, they cannot sufficiently assess and categorize potential workplace-related health risks.