TELECONSULTATION IN ORAL MEDICINE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: A BRAZILIAN CENTER'S EXPERIENCE

OBJECTIVE: This article shows the Brazilian Teleconsultation Program in Oral Medicine, used to advise dentistry professionals on the diagnosis of oral lesions and guide them on the proper clinical treatment of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. STUDY DESIGN: The professional sends the case report, clinical images, and complementary exams of patients, if appropriate, remotely by smartphone, via Whatsapp® (https://www.whatsapp.com/?lang=pt_br). RESULTS: Since the beginning of the program, over a 14-month period, dentistry professionals from 40 municipalities received dental advice, and 207 teleconsultations and 76 face-to-face consultations were carried out; 24 cases were hypothesized as malignant lesions, and had their medical treatment conducted and followed up by a multidisciplinary team, when appropriate. Another 52 cases were consulted in our Oral Diagnosis Service. CONCLUSION: Our Teleconsultation program in Oral Medicine, which began as an experience during the COVID-19 pandemic, represents an important tool to streamline the flow of diagnoses of new suspected cases of oral cancer for the Oncology services in the North Macro-region of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. FUNDING SOURCES: Fapemig, CNPq, and CAPES.