Does air polishing produce more aerosol than ultrasonic scaling?

The indexed literature does not directly compare aerosol production between air polishing and ultrasonic scaling in a head-to-head manner. What the evidence does address is aerosol generated specifically by ultrasonic scalers: a systematic review and meta-analysis found a significant increase in airborne bacteria in the dental environment during ultrasonic scaling, with bioaerosol reaching up to 2 m from the patient's mouth ^[1]. The use of low-volume or high-volume evacuation, or a combination of devices, can be effective in reducing that airborne contamination, with no significant difference found between suction types ^[1].

The remaining studies in this context focus on clinical outcomes of air polishing versus ultrasonic instrumentation - such as bleeding on probing, pocket depth reduction, and patient comfort - rather than on aerosol generation from air polishing itself ^[2][3][4]. Therefore, a direct evidence-based comparison of aerosol output between the two modalities cannot be made from the available indexed literature.

We found no a passage in the indexed literature that directly answers whether air polishing produces more or less aerosol than ultrasonic scaling.