COVID-19 Contraction Among Dental Healthcare Workers in the Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics - A Retrospective Analysis During the Pandemic

Aerosol-generating procedures and associated control/mitigation measures: Position paper from the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association and the American Dental Hygienists' Association

Background

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, how to reduce the risk of spreading viruses and other microorganisms while performing aerosolgenerating procedures (AGPs) has become a challenging question within the dental and dental hygiene communities. The purpose of this position paper is to summarize the evidence of the effectiveness of various mitigation methods used to reduce the risk of infection transmission during AGPs in dentistry.

Methods

The authors searched 6 databases-MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar-for relevant scientific evidence published between January 2012 and December 2022 to answer 6 research questions about the risk of transmission, methods, devices, and personal protective equipment (PPE) used to reduce contact with microbial pathogens and limit the spread of aerosols.

Results

A total of 78 studies fulfilled the eligibility criteria. The literature on the risk of infection transmission including SARS-CoV-2 between dental hygienists and their patients is limited. Although several mouthrinses are effective in reducing bacterial contaminations in aerosols, their effectiveness against SARS-CoV-2 is also limited. The combined use of eyewear, masks, and face shields is effective in preventing contamination of the facial and nasal region while performing AGPs. High-volume evacuation with or without an intraoral suction, low-volume evacuation, saliva ejector, and rubber dam (when appropriate) have shown effectiveness in reducing aerosol transmission beyond the generation site. Finally, the appropriate combination of ventilation and filtration in dental operatories is effective in limiting the spread of aerosols.

Discussion and Conclusion

Aerosols produced during clinical procedures can pose a risk of infection transmission between dental hygienists and their patients. The implementation of practices supported by available evidence will ensure greater patient and provider safety in oral health settings. More studies in oral health clinical environments would shape future practices and protocols, ultimately to ensure the delivery of safe clinical care.

Factors associated with scientific production citations in dentistry: Zero-inflated negative binomial regression and hurdle modelling

Background: The global scientific literature in dentistry has shown important advances in the field, with major contributions ranging from the analysis of the basic epidemiological aspects of prevention to specialised results in the field of dental treatments. The present investigation aimed to analyse the current state of the scientific literature on dentistry hosted in the Web of Science database. Methods: The methodology included two phases in the analysis of articles and indexed reviews in all thematic areas. During the first phase, the following variables were analysed: scientific production by the publisher, the evolution of scientific output published by publishers, the factors associated with the impact of scientific production, and the modelling of the impact of scientific production on dentistry. During the second phase, associations, evolutions, and trends in the use of keywords in the scientific literature in dentistry were analysed. Results: The first phase shows that scientific production in dentistry will increase between 2010 and 2021, reaching 12,126 articles in 2021. Publishers such as Wiley and Elsevier stand out, but Quintessence Publishing has the most citations. Factors such as pages, authors, and references influence the number of citations. Phase 2 analyzes trends in the dental literature using the WoS database. Topics such as "dental education", "pediatric dentistry", and "pandemic" stand out. The intersection of technology and dentistry and the importance of evidence-based education are highlighted. Conclusions: In conclusion, the study shows that the most studied topics include the association of dental education and the curriculum, the association of pediatric dentistry with oral health, and dental care. The findings show that more recently emphasised topics also stand out, such as evidence-based dentistry, the COVID-19 pandemic, infection control, and endodontics, as well as the need for future research to expand current knowledge based on emerging topics in the scientific literature on dentistry.

Apprehensions and Optimism among Dental Professionals during the COVID-19 Pandemic-A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Evaluation

Globally, the pandemic of the coronavirus disease, which started in Wuhan, China, has become a major issue for public health. The COVID-19 epidemic notably causes health professionals to experience significantly more emotional stress than the general populace. The present study proposes to investigate the fear aspect in dentists in the initiation of clinical practice during these times. An online cross-sectional study was conducted among dental practitioners based on a pre-validated questionnaire. The data were expressed as frequency and percentage analyzed using the chi-square test using SPSS version 25. The data was obtained from 271 participants, where clinical practice after the first wave was mostly by freelancers (p-value = 0.01); most of whom were married (p-value = 0.065); 19.1% attached to institutes did not have changes in earnings; 28.1% of private practitioners had less than 10% reduction in cases. A total of 62% of private practitioners are concerned about the vaccine's preventative effects (p-value = 0.026), and 57% of private practitioners worry about being sued for the delay in treatment (p-value = 0.036). Only 33.1% of employees in institutions worry that becoming sick could endanger their family. As dentists continue to work their way through this pandemic, these pressures only occasionally have an impact on them. According to the researchers, this is the first study that has captured the anxiety and apprehensions that dental practitioners experienced during the height of the COVID-19 outbreak in India in April 2021. The study's findings demonstrate that the study population was generally upbeat and confident that they could quickly overcome their fear.