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Review
. 2021 Apr;31(1):25-32.
doi: 10.1016/j.pdj.2021.01.002. Epub 2021 Jan 26.

The clinical practice of Pediatric Dentistry post-COVID-19: The current evidences

Sávio Carvalho Sales  1 , Sandra Meyfarth  2 , Angela Scarparo  1   3
Affiliations
Review

The clinical practice of Pediatric Dentistry post-COVID-19: The current evidences

Sávio Carvalho Sales et al. Pediatr Dent J. 2021 Apr.

Abstract

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) caused by SARS-CoV-2 virus has quickly spread all over the world, directly affecting the dentistry practice. This study aimed to perform a literature review about the current evidences on biosafety practices and clinical recommendations regarding the return to the elective dental care in the practice of Pediatric dentistry. An electronic search was performed in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Grey literature databases using the terms "Pediatric dentistry" and "COVID-19". Initially, 38 studies were retrieved. After title and abstract were read, it was identified that 22 studies referred specifically to children's dental practice. A total of 19 studies were included in this study. The COVID-19 pandemic will imply significant changes in the reorientation of dental practices, from biosafety issues to technical procedures. Greater rigor in the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) may cause strangeness for children. Consequently, an improvement in the management of patient's behavior before and during the treatment and new approaches to perform the procedures will be demanded. Non-aerosol techniques and minimally invasive procedures will be preferable whenever possible. Professionals will need to be constantly updated based on what the scientific literature recommends. The moment is suitable for the use of preventive practice and minimally invasive techniques.

Keywords: Behavior; Containment of biohazards; Dentistry; Evidence-based dentistry; Pediatric dentistry; SARS-CoV-2 virus.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow diagram of literature search.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Illustrative scheme considering the practice of Pediatric Dentistry post-COVID. (OSHA - Occupational Safety and Health Administration; CDC - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; PPE - Personal Protective Equipment; ART - Atraumatic Restorative Treatment; SDF - Silver Diamine Fluoride; AGP - aerosol Generating Procedure).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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