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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Eur J Dent 2020; 14(S 01): S14-S19
DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1715990
Original Article

Dental Care during COVID-19 Outbreak: A Web-Based Survey

Melissa Faccini
1   Department of Orthodontics, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Fernanda Ferruzzi
2   Department of Prostodontics and Restorative Dentistry, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Aline Akemi Mori
2   Department of Prostodontics and Restorative Dentistry, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Gabriela Cristina Santin
1   Department of Orthodontics, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Renata Cristina Oliveira
1   Department of Orthodontics, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Ricardo Cesar Gobbi de Oliveira
1   Department of Orthodontics, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Polyane Mazucatto Queiroz
3   Department of Oral Radiology, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Samira Salmeron
4   Department of Periodontics and Implant Dentistry, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Nubia Inocencya Pavesi Pini
2   Department of Prostodontics and Restorative Dentistry, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Daniel Sundfeld
2   Department of Prostodontics and Restorative Dentistry, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
,
Karina Maria Salvatore Freitas 
1   Department of Orthodontics, Ingá University Center Uningá, Maringá, Brazil
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Abstract

Objective This survey aimed to assess the effects of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on elective and urgency/emergency dental care and dentists concerned.

Materials and Methods A web-based survey was performed using Google forms questionnaire sent to dentists in Brazil. Questions included: personal information, type of dental care provided during quarantine, if emergencies increased, the dental office biosafety routine, among others. The levels of concern about the impact of quarantine on dental care and patient oral health conditions and the economic impact on dental practices were evaluated using a 0- to 10-point scale. Statistical analysis included descriptive, percentages, one-way ANOVA, Tukey, and chi-square tests.

Results During quarantine, 64.6% of the dentists attended only urgency/emergency treatments, while 26.1% maintained routine appointments, and 9.3% closed the dental offices. A higher percentage of dentists from the least affected states continued routine dental treatment; dentists were younger and presented a significantly lower level of concern about dental treatments and oral health conditions of their patients. An increase in urgency/emergency procedures was reported by 44.1% of the dentists, mostly due to the unavailability of routine/elective dental care and increased patient anxiety and stress. The main causes of urgency/emergency appointments were toothache, dental trauma, and broken restorations, besides the breakage of orthodontic appliances and temporomandibular disorders. Dentists reported a high level of concern about the economic impact caused by quarantine.

Conclusions The pandemic/quarantine has negatively affected the clinical routine. Personal protection/hygiene care must be adopted and reinforced by dental professionals/staff to make dental procedures safer.

Keywords

COVID-19 - pandemic - dental care - emergencies - dentistry


Publication History

Article published online:
03 September 2020

© 2020. European Journal of Dentistry. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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