The Impact of COVID-19 Related Lockdown on Dental Practice in Central Italy—Outcomes of A Survey

Bruna Sinjari, Imena Rexhepi, Manlio Santilli, Gianmaria D′Addazio, Piero Chiacchiaretta, Piero Di Carlo and Sergio Caputi
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Bruna Sinjari: Department of Medical, Oral and Biotechnological Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Imena Rexhepi: Department of Medical, Oral and Biotechnological Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Manlio Santilli: Department of Medical, Oral and Biotechnological Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Gianmaria D′Addazio: Department of Medical, Oral and Biotechnological Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Piero Chiacchiaretta: Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Piero Di Carlo: CAST, Center of Advanced studies and Technologies, University “G. d′Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy
Sergio Caputi: Department of Medical, Oral and Biotechnological Sciences, University “G. d′Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 16, 1-14

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected lives and professions worldwide. We aimed to determine the behavior of dentists during the lockdown in Central Italy through an online survey. We demonstrated that the most frequent of urgencies, not otherwise manageable through telemedicine, was dental pulp inflammation. Although a statistically significant increase in the use of some of the personal protective equipment (PPE) from pre to during lockdown was shown, dentists were afraid of being infected during the dental procedures. Moreover, we showed that digital dentistry, telemedicine, use of the rubber dam, distancing of the appointments and further structural changes at the dental office are necessary to reduce the contagion among dentists and patients. No significant differences were shown between gender.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19; dentistry; contagion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (17)

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