RDA (Other exams) key terms

An infection-control approach in which gloves, masks, eye protection, and gowns are used for every patient, because any person's blood or saliva may carry transmissible disease. It replaced the practice of deciding protection based on a patient's diagnosis.

Barrier items worn by dental staff, including gloves, mask, protective eyewear, and gown, that keep blood, saliva, and droplets away from skin, eyes, and street clothing. Each item is removed in a set order to avoid contamination.

Cleaning the hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based rub before and after patient contact and after glove removal. It is the single most effective action for reducing transfer of microorganisms in the dental office.

Microorganisms such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV that are carried in blood and can pass to a worker through a needlestick, a cut, or contact with mucous membranes and broken skin.

A puncture-resistant, leakproof, clearly labeled container kept close to where needles, scalpel blades, and other sharp items are used, so they can be discarded without recapping or bending by hand.

A written, site-specific program required by OSHA that identifies job tasks with risk, lists protective measures and housekeeping routines, and describes exactly what an employee must do after an exposure incident.

A device that sterilizes instruments by exposing them to pressurized steam at a set temperature for a set time, commonly around 121 or 132 degrees Celsius. Instruments must be cleaned and dried before loading.

A biological monitor in which a strip carrying highly resistant bacterial spores is run through the sterilizer and then incubated, confirming that the unit is actually killing the toughest organisms rather than merely heating them.

Using a chemical agent to destroy most disease-causing organisms on surfaces or equipment, though not necessarily bacterial spores. The level chosen depends on whether the item touches intact skin, mucous membrane, or nothing at all.

As Low As Reasonably Achievable: the principle that every radiation exposure should be kept to the smallest amount that still yields the diagnostic information needed, using shielding, good technique, and fast image receptors.

Restricting the x-ray beam to a small, well-defined area, typically with a rectangular cone, so that less of the patient's body is exposed to radiation and less scatter is produced in the room.

The tube or cone attached to the x-ray head that aims the beam at the film or sensor and sets the distance from the source to the patient's skin, which affects both magnification and dose.

Shielding placed on the patient during exposure that absorbs scatter radiation before it reaches the trunk and the radiation-sensitive thyroid gland. The apron is checked periodically for cracks and stored flat, never folded.

Radiation that bounces off the patient, the tubehead, and room surfaces and then travels in many directions. It is the main source of occupational exposure, which is why staff stand behind a barrier during exposure.

An intraoral method in which the film is placed as close to the tooth as comfort allows and the beam is aimed perpendicular to an imaginary line that bisects the angle between the tooth axis and the film.

A film-holding method in which the image receptor sits parallel to the long axis of the tooth and the beam is aimed perpendicular to both, producing less distortion and more accurate images than the bisecting method.

Aluminum disks built into the tubehead that absorb low-energy x-rays before they reach the patient, lowering skin dose without removing the useful rays that create the image. Total filtration has a required minimum.

A team method in which dentist and assistant work together on the same patient, with instruments and materials passed in a planned sequence so treatment flows smoothly without the operator reaching across the patient.

The small working area in front of the patient's chin where instruments and materials are passed between dentist and assistant, kept clear of the patient's face, the suction lines, and the bracket table.

A finger rest on a nearby tooth or on the patient's jaw that steadies the operator's hand and instrument, improving control and helping prevent slips that could injure soft tissue.

A wide-bore suction tip that removes large volumes of saliva, blood, water, and debris from the mouth. Its rigid tip can also retract tissue, hold a rubber dam edge, or protect the throat during treatment.

A latex or nonlatex sheet stretched on a frame and held by a clamp on the tooth, sealing the treatment site from saliva and soft tissues so the field stays dry and debris cannot be swallowed.

A thin metal or plastic strip held by a clamp-like retainer around a prepared tooth so that a missing wall can be rebuilt and restorative material packed and contoured instead of collapsing into the contact area.

A small wooden or plastic triangle placed between teeth just before a matrix band is seated. It presses the band against the tooth, separates the teeth slightly, and helps reproduce a tight contact.

A thin cord tucked gently into the sulcus around a prepared tooth to push gum tissue away and control seepage, so impression material can record the margin accurately. It may be soaked in a hemostatic agent.

A powder-and-water impression material, commonly called alginate, that sets by chemical reaction and cannot be melted and reused. It is used for study models, opposing casts, and provisional work rather than precision dies.

Rubber-like products such as polyvinyl siloxane and polyether that are mixed and set into a flexible, highly accurate copy of prepared teeth. They come as tubes, cartridges, or putty and are poured soon after setting.

Powders such as plaster, stone, and high-strength stone that are mixed with water and harden into models and dies. The water-to-powder ratio controls setting time, strength, and expansion of the finished cast.

A tooth-colored restorative material made of resin with filler particles that is bonded to etched tooth structure and hardened with a curing light. Shade selection, layering, and moisture control affect the final result.

Placing acid gel on enamel or dentin, rinsing and drying it, then applying an adhesive that flows into the microscopic surface pores so composite can grip the tooth instead of lifting off.

The rotary instrument held by the dentist, either high-speed for cutting with a friction-grip bur or low-speed with a latch-type bur or polishing cup. Each unit needs cleaning, lubrication, and sterilization between patients.

Mixing dental amalgam by shaking a capsule in a mechanical device for a set time so the alloy powder and mercury combine into a workable mass. Too little or too much mixing changes setting and strength.

A patient's agreement to treatment given after being told the diagnosis, proposed procedures, risks, alternatives, and likely outcome, and given freely without pressure or coercion.

The level of skill and judgment a reasonably competent practitioner in similar circumstances would provide. It is the benchmark used to judge whether treatment fell below acceptable practice in a negligence claim.

Professional negligence. The patient must show that a duty was owed, that the duty was breached, that the breach caused the injury, and that real damages resulted from it.

The duty to keep patient information private and to share it only with people involved in care or with those the patient has authorized, apart from narrow situations where the law requires disclosure.

A federal law that sets national rules for protecting health information, covering privacy, security, patient rights to access their records, and the permitted uses and disclosures of that information.

A signed patient authorization that names which records may be shared, with whom, for what purpose, and for how long, allowing the office to disclose information lawfully and document that permission.

The ongoing written account of care, including dated progress notes, procedures, materials, anesthesia used, radiographs, and the patient's response. It documents treatment and serves as a legal document.