Dentists' concerns about the control of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in daily dental practice: A web-based cross-sectional study

• Main Authors: Nikee Upadhyay, Monali Shah, Yesha Raval
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2021-01-01
• Series: Advances in Human Biology
• Subjects: anxiety; covid-19; dentists
• Online Access: http://www.aihbonline.com/article.asp?issn=2321-8568;year=2021;volume=11;issue=3;spage=250;epage=254;aulast=Upadhyay

Introduction: A newly identified viral infection, a global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019, that began in Wuhan, China, and spread around the world, causing an epidemic of pneumonia (COVlD-19), has infected millions of population, causing social anxiety and panic amongst healthcare professionals and the general public. This study aimed to measure the dentists' anxiety and apprehension of being infected while operating during the latest coronavirus disease (COVlD-19) epidemic through a web-based questionnaire. Materials and Methods: An online survey was used to perform a cross-sectional analysis. The well-constructed questionnaire, which consisted of closed-ended questions, was prepared and submitted to dentists of India. A total of 396 people from all over India took part in the survey. Results: The debilitating consequences of COVlD-19 caused anxiety and fear in a total of 55.8% of general dental practitioners in India. There were 373 dentists (94.2%) who were mindful of recent developments in care procedures. The majority of dentists, 316 (79.8%), are fearful of contracting COVID-19 from a patient or co-worker, and 309 (78%) dentists are nervous when treating a patient with COVID-19. Conclusion: Indian dentists revealed good information regarding COVID-19. However, dentists were comprehensive about the extra precautionary measures that protect them about the virus. A considerable percentage of dentists reflected their anxiety and worries about dental profession due to which they have either changed their services to comply with the rules or shut down their practices for an indefinite time.