Comparison of Clinical-related Characteristics of Endodontic Patients Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Year 2022, Volume: 12 Issue: 3, 618 - 623, 28.09.2022

Tuna Kaplan Sema Sönmez Kaplan

https://doi.org/10.33808/clinexphealthsci.1001197

Abstract

Objective: To compare patient-related and clinical-related characteristics of endodontic patients, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: The study population comprised 506 patients (teeth: n=674) aged 13–81 years who attended undergraduate dental clinics in the Endodontics Department of the Faculty of Dentistry at Biruni University for endodontic treatment. Patient-related and clinical-related data were compared at two time intervals: before the first COVID-19 case was reported in Turkey and after the first COVID-19 case was reported in Turkey

Results: There were no significant differences in terms of age and sex of the patients attending the clinics before versus during the pandemic. The incidence of reported pain before the pandemic was significantly lower than that reported during the pandemic (p=0.041). Periapical health before the pandemic was significantly better than that during the pandemic (p<0.001). The frequency of a diagnosis of asymptomatic irreversible pulpitis before the pandemic was significantly higher than that during the pandemic (p<0.001). The frequency of a diagnosis of asymptomatic apical periodontitis was higher during the pandemic than before the pandemic (p<0.001).

Conclusion: These results may be explained by patients, other than those with severe symptoms, not wishing to attend endodontics clinics during the pandemic due to concerns about contracting the virus and passing the infection to family members.

Keywords

COVID-19, endodontic diagnosis, PAI score, pandemic, systemic disorders

References

• [1] Wang C, Horby PW, Hayden FG, Gao GF. A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern. Lancet. 2020;395(10223):470-473. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30185-9
• [2] Zhang J, Lin G, Zeng J, Lin J, Tian J, Li G. Challenges of SARS- CoV-2 and lessons learnt from SARS in Guangdong Province, China. J Clin Virol. 2020;126(5):104341. DOI: 10.1016/j. jcv.2020.104341
• [3] World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak situation. Available at: https://www.who.int/ emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019. Accessed March 21, 2020.
• [4] World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) weekly epidemiological update and weekly operational update. Available at: https://www.who.int/emergencies/ diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/situation-reports. Accessed March 21, 2021.
• [5] Yu J, Zhang T, Zhao D, Haapasalo M, Shen Y. Characteristics of Endodontic Emergencies during Coronavirus Disease 2019 Outbreak in Wuhan. J Endod. 2020;46(6):730-735.
• [6] Rechenberg DK, Held U, Burgstaller JM, Bosch G, Attin T. Pain levels and typical symptoms of acute endodontic infections: a prospective, observational study. BMC Oral Health. 2016;16(5):61.
• [7] Dou L, Vanschaayk MM, Zhang Y, Fu X, Ji P, Yang D. The prevalence of dental anxiety and its association with pain and other variables among adult patients with irreversible pulpitis. BMC Oral Health. 2018;18(6):101.
• [8] Dimitroulas T, Bertsias G. Practical issues in managing systemic inflammatory disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mediterr J Rheumatol. 2020;31(2):253-256.
• [9] Tan B, Sun Q, Xiao J, Zhang L, Yan F. Pulp status of teeth in patients with chronic advanced periodontitis. Int J Clin Exp Pathol. 2020;13(4):635-641.
• [10] Zanini M, Decerle N, Hennequin M, Cousson PY. Revisiting Orstavik’s PAI score to produce a reliable and reproducible assessment of the outcomes of endodontic treatments in routine practice. Eur J Dent Educ. 2021;25(2):291-298.
• [11] Shinde O, Pawar AM, Banga KS, Atram J, Wahjuningrun DA. Endodontic Emergencies in Mumbai City during COVID-19 Lockdown and Different Phases of Unlock. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021;18(14):7314.
• [12] Martinho FC, Griffin IL. A cross-sectional survey on the impact oc coronavirus disease 2019 on the clinical practice of endodontists across the United States. J Endod. 2021;47(1):28 – 38.
• [13] Yu J, Zhang T, Zhao D, Haapasalo M, Shen Y. Characteristics of endodontic emergencies during coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak in Wuhan. J Endod. 2020;46(6):730-735.
• [14] Yang J, Zheng Y, Gou X, Pu K, Chen Z, Guo Q, Ji R, Wang H, Wang Y, Zhou Y. Prevalence of comorbidities in the novel Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) infection: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Infect Dis. 2020;94(5):91-95.
• [15] Bogari DF, Bakalka GT, Hazzazi LW, Jan AM, Elias WY, McDonald NJ, Alhazzazi TY. The prevalence of hypertension in endodontic clinics: A pilot study. Dentistry 2016;6(4):1000370.
• [16] Abuzenada B, Syed GA, Pullishery F, Ahmed T, Sindi A, Khan A, Alogaly J, Alshareef M. Frequency and Distribution of Teeth Requiring Endodontic Treatment in Jeddah Subpopulation: A Retrospective Cross-sectional Study. Ann Med Health Sci Res. 2021;11(5):1428-1430. https://www.amhsr.org/articles/ frequency-and-distribution-of-teeth-requiringendodontic- treatment-in-jeddah-subpopulation-aretrospective- crosssectional-study-8102.html
• [17] Demirci M, Tuncer S, Yuceokur AA. Prevalence of caries on individual tooth surfaces and its distribution by age and gender in university clinic patients. Eur J Dent. 2010;4(3):270-279.
• [18] Johnson RE, Foy TE, Ellingsen TA, Nelson JL, Dillon JK. Odontogenic infections : Disease burden during COVID-19 at a single institution. J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2021;79(4):830-835.
• [19] Rechenberg DK, Munir A, Zehnder M. Correlation between the clinically diagnosed inflammatory process and periapical index scores in severely painful endodontically involved teeth. Int Endod .2021;54(2):172-180
• [20] Patel B, Eskander MA, Ruparel NB. To drill or not to drill: Management of endodontic emergencies and in- process patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Endod. 2020;46(11):1559-1569.