The perception of COVID-19 among Italian dental patients: an orthodontic point of view

Abstract Background The present study aimed to investigate the patients’ perception of the dental practice during the COVID-19 outbreak, and whether the pandemic will affect the attendance of orthodontic patients at the dental practice. An online questionnaire, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4), was submitted to Italian dental patients with items about their perceived risks when going to the dentist, concerns about continuing orthodontic treatment, and the onset of temporomandibular disorders (TMD). Data were analyzed with a chi-square test and logistic regression analysis. The level of significance was set at P < 0.05. Results A total of 1566 subjects completed the survey, including 486 who were under orthodontic treatment or who had a child in orthodontic treatment. A total of 866 participants (55.3%) thought the risk of contracting the COVID-19 infection was higher in a dental practice; this perception was associated with gender (women more than man), age (over 60 years old) and high levels of distress (P<0.001). However, 894 patients (57.1%) felt comfortable going back to the dentist. Most of the orthodontic patients (84%) would continue their treatment. After the lockdown, there was a slight increase in the frequency of TMD pain (356 versus 334). Conclusions Most of the participants believed that the dental practice is a place at greater risk of contracting COVID-19, even if they continue to go to the dentist. Gender, age, and the level of distress were associated with the increase in the fear of going to the dentist due to COVID-19. Because of the pandemic, 16% of patients undergoing orthodontic treatment would not return to the dental practice to continue their orthodontic treatment after the lockdown. The prevalence of TMD pain in the population increased due to the pandemic.

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The Perception of COVID-19 among Italian Dentists: An Orthodontic Point of View

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17124384 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (12) ◽

pp. 4384 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Stefano Martina ◽

Alessandra Amato ◽

Roberto Rongo ◽

Mario Caggiano ◽

Massimo Amato

Keyword(s):

Perceived Risk ◽

Working Hours ◽

Point Of View ◽

Daily Activities ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Chi Square ◽

Work Activity ◽

Daily Work ◽

Patient Health ◽

Chi Square Test

COVID-19 has severely impacted dentists, who are at a great risk of infection. This study aimed to investigate if dentists are anxious about returning to their daily activities, and what the perception of the risk is for dentists and orthodontists regarding orthodontic procedures. An online questionnaire, including the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4), was sent to Italian dentists during the final days of the lockdown with items about anxiety, fear, distress, perceived risk for operators, and concerns about orthodontic patients caused by working during the COVID-19 outbreak. Data were analyzed with a chi-square test and logistic regression analysis. The level of significance was set as p < 0.05. A total of 349 dentists completed the survey, including 183 orthodontists. Returning to their daily work activity was a source of anxiety for 192 participants and this was associated with the level of distress (odds ratio (OR) = 3.7; p < 0.001). Most of the orthodontists (67.6%) thought that they would increase the number of working hours during the week (OR = 1.8; p = 0.007). Italian dentists were mostly scared to return to their daily activities because they considered their jobs a high risk to them and their families. Dentists with an exclusive/prevailing orthodontic activity were forced to increase their working day during the week.

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Patients Preference to Clear Aligner Therapy Over Conventional Orthodontic Therapy

International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical Sciences ◽

10.26452/ijrps.v11ispl3.3718 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (SPL3) ◽

pp. 1990-1996

Author(s):

Harippriya Karthikeyan ◽

Remmiya Mary Varghese ◽

Visalakshi Ramanathan

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Economic Status ◽

Treatment Options ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Chi Square ◽

Randomized Sampling ◽

Normal Occlusion ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Level Of Significance ◽

Clear Aligner

Malocclusion is defined as irregularity of the teeth or a mal-relationship of the dental arches beyond the range of what is accepted as normal occlusion. Maloccluded teeth can cause psychological problems that are related to impaired dentofacial esthetics. Malocclusion may also cause serious problems related to oral health. This is a multifactorial defect caused by factors such as environment, lifestyle, health, genetics, socio-economic status etc. Clear aligners are orthodontic therapeutic options which are preferred for the correction of maloccluded teeth. The main aim of the study was to find out the awareness of the patients towards the preference of clear aligners as orthodontic treatment options. A University based setting was conducted. A sample size of hundred patients was taken for the survey. The survey was done by distributing an online questionnaire through Google forms consisting of 11 questions and circulated among the participants. The participants comprise both male and female patients. To eliminate bias, a randomized sampling method was used. The data was collected over a period of one week. All the 11 questions of the survey were close ended questions. Chi square test was applied to find the association between the parameters and the level of significance. This study shows the patients have a moderate understanding of clear aligners and their acceptance of it as an orthodontic treatment option.

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Perception of Iraqi Orthodontists and Patients toward Accelerated Orthodontics

International Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1155/2021/5512455 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

Ali M. Al-Attar ◽

Samher Al-Shaham ◽

Mushriq Abid

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Treatment Time ◽

Multiple Choice Questions ◽

Chi Square ◽

Electronic Survey ◽

Acceleration Techniques ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Level Of Significance ◽

Patient’S Perception ◽

Accelerated Orthodontics

Background/Purpose. In the literature, no consensus about the duration of orthodontic treatment has been reached out. This study aimed to identify orthodontist’s and patient’s perception about the time of orthodontic treatment and their willingness to undergo and pay for various acceleration techniques and procedures. Materials and Methods. An electronic survey was conducted from August to October 2020. The questionnaire consisted of 20 multiple choice questions which was designed and emailed to members of the Iraqi Orthodontic Society and self-administered to patients in several orthodontic centers in Baghdad. The questionnaire included questions about the perception toward the duration of orthodontic treatment, approval of different procedures used to reduce treatment time, and how much fee increment they are able to pay for various techniques and appliances. Descriptive and chi-square test statistics were used, and the level of significance was set at p ≤ 0.05 . Results. The response rate was 78.7%. The willingness for additional techniques and procedures was rated in the following order: customized appliances: 50.8% orthodontists and 38.4% patients, followed by intraoral vibrating devices: 49.2% orthodontists and 38.1% patients, piezocision: 10.2% orthodontists and 8.2% patients, and corticotomies: 8.1% orthodontists and 5.9% patients. Most orthodontists were willing to pay up to 40% of treatment income for the acceleration procedure, while the payment of patients was up to 20%. Conclusion. Both orthodontists and patients were interested in techniques that can decrease the treatment duration. Noninvasive accelerating procedures were more preferable by orthodontists and patients than invasive surgical procedures.

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Dental Practitioners’ Opinions and Methods in the Management of Oral Mucosal Lesions and TMJ Disorders in Dakshina Kannada District: A Questionnaire Based Survey

International Healthcare Research Journal ◽

10.26440/ihrj.v2i7.145 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (7) ◽

pp. 168-175

Author(s):

Jayaprasad Anekar ◽

Ivin Elsa John ◽

Raj A C ◽

Deepika Nappalli ◽

Krishna S Kumar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Dental Practice ◽

Chi Square ◽

Oral Ulcers ◽

Dental Practitioners ◽

Oral Mucosal Lesions ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Awareness Programs ◽

Mucosal Lesions ◽

Topical Anaesthetics ◽

Level Of Significance

INTRODUCTION: Oral mucosal lesions and temperomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders are important areas of concern in the present dental practice due to their increasing prevalence. Timely management is important as it aids in maximal prognosis.AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to determine the awareness of dental practitioners in Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka, regarding various aspects of oral mucosal lesions and TMJ disorders. And also to know their interest in managing such disorders.MATERIALS AND METHODS: A self- administered questionnaire was constructed and given to dental practitioners, selected through multistage cluster random sampling method; from Dakshina Kannada district. Chi-square test was performed and the level of significance was set at p < 0.05.RESULTS: The majority of dental practitioners had a dental practice of duration five to ten years. Many of the respondents (72%) indicated that oral ulcers are the most common mucosal lesions and prescribed topical anaesthetics for these. The investigations suggested were blood investigations (24%) for various oral mucosal lesions and radiographs (20%) for TMJ disorders. Different pharmacological treatments provided by the majority of the respondents were topical anaesthetics and multi vitamin supplements. About 34% dental practitioners routinely refer the patients to specialty practitioners.CONCLUSION: The present study shows that there should be emphasis on workshops and various other awareness programs for general dental practitioners for better understanding of the subject and about the latest protocols regarding referral of the patients to specialists.

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Responsible Decision making for Sustainable Motivation

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10103393 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 3393 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Martina Blašková ◽

Irena Figurska ◽

Ruta Adamoniene ◽

Kristína Poláčková ◽

Rudolf Blaško

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

Slovak Republic ◽

Point Of View ◽

Human Potential ◽

Organizational Sustainability ◽

Chi Square ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Empirical Point ◽

Level Of Significance

This article examines motivation and the quality of decision making’s effect on motivation as important preconditions for organizational sustainability. The article is focused on an examination of the content and intensity of perceived motivation, and the forms of decisions that were made while motivating people. Motivation (from a theoretical and empirical point of view) is related to crucial processes of human potential development and motivation. The analysis, synthesis and generalization of knowledge related to sustainability, motivation and decision making in human potential motivation are presented in the theoretical part of the article. The empirical part presents the results of sociological questionnaire, focusing on the area of decision making in motivation that was carried out on sample of respondents in the Slovak Republic (n = 500), Poland (n = 390) and Lithuania (n = 226). The results confirm a strong correlation between the level of the motivation and the quality of key processes of development of human potential (leadership, appraisal, communication, and the creation of an atmosphere of trust). In all examined countries and processes, the calculated values of the chi-square test were significantly higher than the table value (level of significance = 0.05). The section describing the results contains a proposed content-componential model of decision making in affecting and building sustainable motivation.

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Pattern of Malocclusion in Patients Seeking Orthodontic Treatment at Medical Colleges & Teaching Hospitals of Chitwan, Nepal

Orthodontic Journal of Nepal ◽

10.3126/ojn.v8i2.23069 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 41-44

Author(s):

Bashu Raj Pandey ◽

Shailendra Kumar Singh ◽

Rajan Singh ◽

Rajeev Mishra ◽

Srijana Mishra ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Class Ii ◽

Class I ◽

Teaching Hospitals ◽

Class Iii ◽

Chi Square ◽

Deep Bite ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Orthodontic Patients ◽

Medical Colleges

Introduction: Various forms of malocclusion is most common dentofacial abnormality found in human population. People seek tteatment for such abnormalities based on the severity. The objective of this research is to evaluate Pattern of Malocclusion in Patients Seeking Orthodontic Treatment at Medical Colleges and Teaching Hospitals of Chitwan, Nepal. Materials & Method: Two hundred thirty nine pre-operative study casts of orthodontic patients aged from 12-50 years selected from 550 patient’s records of departments of orthodontics of Chitwan Medical Colleges and Colleges of Medical Sciences, Bharatpur of Chitwan. Standard protocol of Angle’s classification of malocclusion was used to classify malocclusion and its attributes were recorded. Pearson’s Chi square test was performed to justify the result. Result: The prevalence of malocclusion were 61.92% , 33.47% and 4.60% for Angle’s class I, Angle’s class II and Angle’s class III malocclusion respectively. Among various attributes of malocclusion, deep bite had highest frequency with 67.36% followed by overjet 58.99%, crowding 53.13% and spacing 35.98%, Anterior cross bite 11.71% reverse overjet 4.6%, posterior cross bite 1.2% and scissor bite 0.041%. Pearson Chi square test showed no relation among these attributes and sex and age at p < .05. Conclusion: Angle’s class I malocclusion is most prevalent followed by Angle’s class II and Angle’s class III.

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Assessment of Periodontal Health in Nepalese Orthodontic Patients

Orthodontic Journal of Nepal ◽

10.3126/ojn.v3i1.9278 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 26-30

Author(s):

Bhageshwar Dhami ◽

Priti Shreshta ◽

Rabindra M Shrestha ◽

Jyoti Dhakal

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Periodontal Health ◽

Chi Square ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Probing Depth ◽

Periodontal Index ◽

Community Periodontal Index ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Orthodontic Patients

Objective: To assess periodontal status of the patients undergoing orthodontic treatment and to compare periodontal health of patients with and without orthodontic treatment. Materials & Method: A cross sectional study was done on 100 patients (50 orthodontic and 50 non-orthodontic). CPITN (Community Periodontal Index for Treatment Need) was used to assess the periodontal health of indexed teeth. SPSS version 17 and Chi Square test were used to analyze and compare the data. Result: There was a statistically significant association in CPITN score between orthodontic and non-orthodontic patients (p<0.01). Conclusion: Patients undergoing orthodontic treatment have increased plaque accumulation and probing depth that may be associated with periodontal destruction. Patient motivation to maintain oral hygiene and regular scaling will minimize hazardous effects in orthodontic patients. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ojn.v3i1.9278 Orthodontic Journal of Nepal, Vol.3, No.1, 2013: 26-30

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Oral Health Status in Patients with Fixed Orthodontic Appliance with Molar Bands and Bonded Tubes

Orthodontic Journal of Nepal ◽

10.3126/ojn.v6i1.16176 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (1) ◽

pp. 27-31 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sandhya Shrestha ◽

Anuj Kumar Sharma ◽

Bikash Lamichhane

Keyword(s):

Oral Health ◽

Oral Health Status ◽

Gingival Index ◽

Periodontal Health ◽

Chi Square ◽

Pocket Depth ◽

Important Concern ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Orthodontic Patients ◽

Level Of Significance

Introduction: Studies on effect of orthodontic treatment on oral health are found in ample and have demonstrated a causeeffect relationship. Many comparative studies on molar bands and bonded tubes have shown that, former are detrimental for periodontal health. However there are evidences of bonded molar tubes with high failure rates and causative of gingivitis.Objective: To assess the effect of molar bands and bonded tubes on periodontal health of the Nepalese orthodontic patients.Materials & Method: A total of 112 orthodontic patients aged between 13-30 years were assessed for Plaque Index, Gingival Index, Calculus Index and pocket depth on upper first molars with cemented bands and bondable tubes. Statistical analysis was done using Chi-square test to find the association between cemented molar bands and bonded molar tubes to periodontal status. Level of significance was set at p<0.05.Result: Very few orthodontic patients showed poor plaque accumulation sore, severe gingivitis and calculus deposits. Contrarily, 17% patients showed deeper periodontal pockets. The Gingival Index showed significant association between cemented molar band and bonded molar tube groups (p=0.001).Conclusion: Oral health is an important concern in fixed orthodontic patients. Use of both molar band and molar tube can cause progression of gingivitis. There is no significant change in periodontal health parameters in using cemented bands or bonded tubes when the oral hygiene is controlled. Orthodontic Journal of Nepal, Vol. 6 No. 1, June 2016, pp.27-31

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An Analysis of Malocclusion and Occlusal Characteristics in Nepalese Orthodontic Patients

Orthodontic Journal of Nepal ◽

10.3126/ojn.v3i1.9272 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 19-25

Author(s):

Sujita Shrestha ◽

Rabindra Man Shrestha

Keyword(s):

Orthodontic Treatment ◽

Dental Health ◽

Open Bite ◽

Class I ◽

Class Iii ◽

Chi Square ◽

Treatment Need ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Orthodontic Patients ◽

And Gender

Objective: To analyze the prevalence of malocclusion and occlusal characteristics in referred Nepalese orthodontic patients with respect to age, gender, Angle’s classification. Materials & Method: Study models of 464 orthodontic patients (165 male and 299 female) of the age ranging from 11 to 30 years were studied to evaluate the prevalence of malocclusion using Angle’s classification and occlusal characteristics of overjet, overbite, open bite, cross bite, displacement, and hypodontia according to the method of Dental Health Component of Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need. The association between DHC grades and Angle’s classification and gender were assessed using chi-square test (p < 0.01). Result: The malocclusion status among the Nepalese seeking orthodontic treatment was 54.7% Class I, 36.9% Class II, and 8.4% Class III. The occurrence of occlusal discrepancies were overjet in 43.8%, increased overbite in 20.7%, open bite in 8.2%, cross bite in 23.3%, displacement in 65.7% and hypodontia in 11.3%. Conclusion: 16.2 % required no/little treatment need, 20.4% required borderline treatment need, and 63.4 % required great/severe treatment need according to DHC scale. There was statistically significant association between DHC grades and distribution of malocclusion and gender of the Nepalese subjects. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ojn.v3i1.9272 Orthodontic Journal of Nepal, Vol.3, No.1, 2013: 19-25

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COVID-19: The Patients’ Perceived Impact on Dental Care

European Journal of Dentistry ◽

10.1055/s-0041-1734470 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Alessandra Amato ◽

Alfredo Iandolo ◽

Giuseppe Scelza ◽

Francesca Spirito ◽

Stefano Martina

Keyword(s):

Oral Hygiene ◽

Eating Habits ◽

Italian Population ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Chi Square ◽

Perceived Safety ◽

Fat Consumption ◽

Hygiene Measures ◽

Chi Square Test ◽

Level Of Significance

Abstract Objectives The present study aims to investigate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s mental and physical balance, oral hygiene habits, type of diet, perceived safety of returning to the dentist, and aesthetics with the use of masks. Materials and Methods An online questionnaire was submitted to the Italian population between December 2020 and January 2021. It was sent via online platforms and included 21 questions. Statistical Analysis Differences in rates were calculated by using the Chi-square test. The level of significance was set at p <0.05. Results A total of 1,008 individuals completed the questionnaire. About 72% of participants were not concerned about returning to the dentist. Approximately 45% of the individuals intensified their oral hygiene and preventive rules. About 38% of participants increased their carbohydrate intake, while 28% increased their fat consumption. Furthermore, 75% of the participants felt that the mask did not diminish the beauty of their smile. Conclusions Most participants felt comfortable returning to the dentist but only for more urgent treatment. However, most people reported that they had not stepped up their home oral hygiene measures. The biggest changes in the population’s eating habits involved increased carbohydrate and fat consumption. Finally, most participants responded that mask use did not compromise their aesthetics.

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