Abstract
Objectives: During the months of March and April 2020, Italy saw an exponential outbreak of COVID-19 epidemic. Dental practitioners were particularly limited in their routine activity, and the sole performance of urgent treatments was strongly encouraged during the peak of the epidemic. A survey among dental professionals was performed between 6th and 13th of April, in order to evaluate the status of dental practice during COVID-19 in Italy.
Materials and methods: An online anonymous questionnaire was administered to retrieve data on the dental procedures performed, the preventive measures adopted, and the predictions on the future changes in dentistry following the pandemic.
Results: The survey was completed by 3,254 respondents and, according to the results obtained, dental activity was reduced by the 95% and limited to urgent treatments. The majority of the surveyed dentists employed additional personal protective equipment compared to normal routine, although in a non-negligible number of cases difficulty in retrieving the necessary equipment was reported.
Conclusions: The survey provided a snapshot of dental activity during the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. Overall, following the peak of the epidemic, it is probable that dental activities will undergo some relevant changes prior to fully restart.
Keywords: dental education; dental public health; infection control; practice management; prevention; virology.
【저자키워드】 infection control, prevention, Virology., dental public health, dental education, practice management, 【초록키워드】 COVID-19, Treatment, Personal protective equipment, pandemic, equipment, Infection, Italy, activity, outbreak, change, questionnaire, COVID-19 epidemic, dental, preventive measure, dentist, material, professional, Administered, Practitioner, the epidemic, performed, evaluate, reported, provided, was performed, undergo, majority, changes in, adopted, was reduced, the SARS-CoV-2, 【제목키워드】 Perspective, Italian,