Abstract
Occupational exposures and infection control among students in Nigerian dental schools

Objective : To assess the incidence of occupational exposures to body fluids and infection control practices among students in Nigerian dental schools.
Materials and methods : A self-administered questionnaire survey of 112 students from three Nigerian dental schools.
Results : 57 (50,9 %) of the students had experienced one or more occupational exposures in the previous six months. There was no statistically significant association between year group and reported number of exposures (p > 0,05). There was also no statistically significant association between sex and reported number of exposures (p > 0,05). 50,7 % of the exposures were percutaneous injuries, 26,1 % splatter of saliva and 23,2 % splatter of aerosol. Percutaneous injuries were most frequently caused by scalers (42,9 %) and needlesticks (37,1 %) Most incidents occurred during scaling (37,7 %),use of dental handpiece (21,7 %) and cleaning of instruments (18,8 %). 96,4 % of the exposures were not reported. Only 36,6 % of the students were immunized against Hepatitis B. None of those immunized had been post-screened for seroconversion. The routine use of gloves, masks and protective eyewear was reported by 87,5 %, 65,5 % and 17 % of students respectively.
Conclusions : This study indicates a high rate of exposure to body fluids and low compliance with infection control guidelines. There is a need for interventions to improve safe work practices, hepatitis B vaccination, HBV post-immunization serology and use of protective barriers. Also appropriate policies and procedures are needed for reporting and managing exposures.