Orthodontic Practice in the Times of COVID-19 Pandemic: An Online Survey
Introduction: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is not the first one which the globe has faced but never came across a health crisis that moved so quickly across continents. COVID-19 outbreak presently posed a very serious threat to the existence of mankind on earth. The massive impac...
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
JCDR Research and Publications Private Limited
2021-03-01
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Series: | Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://www.jcdr.net/articles/PDF/14750/48361_CE[Ra]_F(Sh)_PF1(SC_OM_SL)_PFA(SC_KM)_PN(KM).pdf |
Summary: | Introduction: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic
is not the first one which the globe has faced but never came
across a health crisis that moved so quickly across continents.
COVID-19 outbreak presently posed a very serious threat to
the existence of mankind on earth. The massive impact of
COVID-19 pandemic was evident in all aspects of life-personal,
social as well as professional. The field of dentistry including
orthodontics was no exception to this.
Aim: To describe the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on
orthodontic practice, exploring the basic sterilisation protocols
being followed during COVID-19 pandemic and to predict the
future of orthodontics in post-COVID era.
Materials and Methods: The Department of Orthodontics
and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Faculty of Dental Sciences,
SGT University, Gurugram, Haryana, India, conducted this
questionnaire based cross-sectional survey in May 2020 over a
time span of 20 days. A web-based questionnaire of 15 multiple
choice questions in English was created as a Google Form in
Google Documents. The link to this form was shared online with
the orthodontists and postgraduate students (Orthodontics) of
dental colleges situated in the National Capital Region (NCR)
through WhatsApp groups and e-mails. A total of 254 responses
were received.
Results: A 97.6% of respondents agreed that COVID-19 affected
their orthodontic practice. The odds ratio between those not
likely to resume practice and those likely to resume practice
taking educational qualification as the significant predictor
was calculated to be 8.976 at 95% confidence intervals. There
was wide variation in the selection of the safety protocols by
the orthodontists in the present study (p<0.01). Increased
digitalisation in orthodontics (45.7%) followed by less demand
of orthodontic treatment (18.5%) were opted as the future in
post-COVID era (p<0.01).
Conclusion: The present survey found that orthodontic community
as a whole was affected greatly by COVID-19 pandemic and is
quite apprehensive. The future of orthodontics in the post-COVID
era is unpredictable presently. Digitalisation in orthodontics
is the key option to have minimum physical contact with the
patients. The study suggested the need and importance of basic
sterilisation protocols and a training program for dental settings
during COVID-19 for patient’s as well as clinician’s safety. |
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ISSN: | 2249-782X 0973-709X |