Abstract
In the current study, we measured the air quality of 60 dental clinics and hospitals in Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, and Incheon, with the aim to determine how best to create a pleasant indoor dental environment. We measured and evaluated the humidity, CO2, total volatile organic compounds (TVOC), particulate matter less than 10 μg (PM-10), CO, NO2, and O3 using a uHoo filter. After dividing by area, region, and scale, air quality measurements were performed using an indoor air quality sensor. The collected data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 20, and the significance level was set at 0.05. The dental air quality of the included clinics was generally within the range of domestic and international standards, but the TVOC level was higher than domestic standards in operating rooms, Gyeonggi, Incheon, and hospitals. Moreover, in hospitals, the level of humidity was higher than the domestic standards, and the level of NO2 was higher than the domestic and international standards in all areas, regions, and scales of medical institutions. The average value of dental air quality measurements differs by region and scale, highlighting the need for systematic education and environmental improvement.