Influence of COVID-19 pandemic on paediatric dental attendance

OBJECTIVES: This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the effect of COVID-19 pandemic on dental attendance and emergency/non-emergency visits of children during the outbreak, compared to the same period of 2019. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients who visited the paediatric department clinic during the observed period were included in this study. The patient’s demographic data, purpose of visit, and treatment type were evaluated retrospectively from patient examination records. The Pearson chi-square and t-tests were used for comprehensive statistical analysis. RESULTS: A total of 1454 patient files (1184/270 cases from non-pandemic/pandemic period) were assessed. A significant reduction was found in aggregated emergency/non-emergency visits during the pandemic period (p < 0.01). During the pandemic, average daily visits for emergency dental care were observed to have a decrease to half of the non-pandemic period. Non-emergency routine dental visits have also exhibited a drastic decline. Severe dental pain due to pulpal inflammation and abscess/swelling were the most frequently reported urgent dental complaints that patients applied to the paediatric dental clinic during the pandemic period. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 pandemic has a significant influence on patients’ attendance to paediatric dental clinic. Therefore, concerning a potential post-pandemic increase in treatment demand, meticulous future planning and proper regulation of dental care should be provided for better oral health and children’s quality of life. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This study’s importance is the observation of dramatically reduced number of patient visits during the pandemic period which may yield increased number of oral health-related complications in the long run.