Int J Paediatr Dent. 2023 Jan 20. doi: 10.1111/ipd.13048. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Limited evidence regarding the post-COVID dental status of paediatric patients is available, with most studies assessing only children’s oral health habits.
AIM: To evaluate the effect of COVID-19 lockdown on the oral health of paediatric dental patients in Greece.
DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study that included a questionnaire reporting on children’s oral health behavior and a clinical examination assessing dental caries and dental treatment needs using the ICDAS criteria, dmft/DMFT, and Treatment Need Index. Wilcoxon sign ranked test was used for statistical comparison of questionnaire and clinical data before, during and after the lockdown.
RESULTS: A total of 102 children with a median age of 9 years-old were recruited from current patients attending the clinic that had their last dental exam 6 months prior to the lockdown. Results from the questionnaire showed decreased brushing frequency, increased eating frequency and sugar consumption during the lockdown period (p< 0.001). Moreover, 16.5% had to visit the dentist for urgent care during the lockdown, 13.6% experienced dental pain, while 51.5% did not experience any dental emergencies. Clinical examination, after the lockdown, recorded significant increased mean dmft/DMFT scores by 0.63 units in the primary dentition (p=0.01) and 0.52 units in the permanent (p=0.002). Significantly higher treatment needs, with more carious lesions requiring extensive treatment after the lockdown were recorded (p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Covid-19 lockdown negatively affected children’s oral health behavior; caries prevalence increased while more complex dental treatments were required after the lockdown.
PMID:36680387 | DOI:10.1111/ipd.13048
