Report of AIDS Transmission During Dental Visit Met With Skepticism

In the first case of its kind, federal researchers reported today that a woman apparently got AIDS from her dentist during a tooth pulling, even though he was wearing gloves and a mask.

The case has prompted the government to review its guidelines for AIDS prevention during medical procedures even though “the possibility of another source of infection cannot be entirely excluded,” the federal Centers for Disease Control said.

It said all evidence was “consistent with” the patient being infected during her trip to the dentist.

The dentist, who had been diagnosed three months earlier, was wearing protective gloves and a mask, as recommended, while extracting two molars for the patient, who was visiting him for the first time.

Officials of the American Dental Assn. said the CDC may have jumped to conclusions.

“We’re not happy about it,” said Dr. Enid Neidle, director of scientific affairs for the Chicago-based ADA. “We think it is not a totally conclusive case of transmission. . . . We are not happy at any report that could raise fears on the part of the public that the dental office is a place of danger and infection.”