Dirty dental tools used for years

Nova Southeastern says improper sterilization dates back to 2015

An orthodontic clinic operated by Nova Southeastern University’s dental school failed for more than two years to properly sterilize equipment used on patients, college officials say.

An internal review “indicated that dental residents deviated from protocols between July 2015 and February 2018,” leading to 1,152 orthodontic patients being sent notices Nov. 23 that they could have been exposed to viruses.

University spokeswoman Kyle Fisher said those notices were not legally required, and the chances of infection are extremely low. She said the problem was isolated to one of the university’s 12 dental clinics, and the issue was quickly fixed once identified.

The investigation focused on the Post-Graduate Orthodontic Clinic at 3200 S. University Drive in Davie.

The university’s review found the equipment was being cleaned with disinfectant wipes instead of heat sterilization, which is recommended by national guidelines and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The issue involved postdoctoral residents and their use of a high-speed orthodontic hand piece used to place braces, remove them or repair a bracket.

The university recently released a timeline of steps officials say they took to correct the problem.

The College of Dental Medicine initiated an internal review when the issue was identified in February. By the end of February, clinic faculty corrected the issue and ensured that all heat-sterilization protocols were followed consistently, college officials said. Sterilization procedures involve the use of a heated container called an autoclave to kill bacteria, viruses and other microbes.

The dean notified the university administration, including the president, in late April.

The administration brought in an outside expert who determined the risk to patients was extremely low. The Florida Board of Dentistry was notified in June. University officials say it took several months to separate records of patients who had potentially been exposed to improperly sterilized equipment. Once that review was completed, notifications were sent.

The letters to patients offered physician consultations and blood tests.

Gregg Marquardt, a spokesman for the Commission on Dental Accreditation, declined to comment on whether the organization is reviewing the dental school’s accreditation status. The school’s program is in good status “without reporting requirements,” according to the organization’s website.

A spokesman for the Florida Department of Health said the agency could not say whether an investigation has been opened until 10 days after probable cause is determined.

University officials say the issues were confined to the orthodontic clinic, but an internal email provided to the Sun Sentinel shows administrators were grappling with sterilization issues in another clinic.

Peter Keller, an associate dean at the dental school, sent an email on April 10 to students telling them it had come to his attention that there had been “problems with students getting the hand pieces sterilized in time to care for a patient in the morning.”

He wrote that students would need to purchase another hand piece, a term for a dental drill, that could be used while the first one was being sterilized. The email didn’t indicate that any patients had been exposed to dirty equipment as a result of delays in sterilizing equipment.

University officials say that issue only caused scheduling issues, and no evidence was uncovered of patients being exposed to improperly sterilized equipment.