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. 2021 Jun 4;18(11):6056.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18116056.

Education Technology in Orthodontics and Paediatric Dentistry during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Assunta Patano  1 , Nunzio Cirulli  1   2 , Matteo Beretta  3 , Paola Plantamura  4 , Alessio Danilo Inchingolo  1 , Angelo Michele Inchingolo  1 , Ioana Roxana Bordea  5 , Giuseppina Malcangi  1 , Grazia Marinelli  1 , Antonio Scarano  6 , Felice Lorusso  6 , Francesco Inchingolo  1 , Gianna Dipalma  1
Affiliations

Education Technology in Orthodontics and Paediatric Dentistry during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Assunta Patano et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Over the last decade, medical education changed from traditional teaching methods to telematic and networking scholar and e-learning approach. The objective of the present systematic review was to evaluate the effectiveness and teachers/student's acceptability of e-learning applied to the field of orthodontics and paediatric dentistry. A database search of the literature was conducted on PubMed and Embase databases from January 2005 to May 2021. A total of 172 articles were identified by the electronic search, while a total of 32 papers were selected for qualitative analysis. Overall, 19 articles investigated the effectiveness of e-learning, and no difference of acceptability was reported between e-learning and traditional methods for a wide part of the articles selected. A total of 25 papers provided a satisfaction questionnaire for learners and all were positive in their attitude towards e-learning. The results showed that e-learning is an effective method of instruction, complementing the traditional teaching methods, and learners had a positive attitude and perception. The evidence of the present study reported a high level of acceptability and knowledge level of e-learning techniques, compared to frontal lecture methods, in the fields of orthodontics and paediatric dentistry.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; distance learning; e-learning; orthodontics; paediatric dentistry; pandemic; virtual learning.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Transition from traditional learning to e-learning.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Example of two of the most employed software to create educational content.
Figure 3
Figure 3
E-learning combination between telecommunication and medical field.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Webinars on multiple topics held online.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Selection of studies for the systematic review.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Graph of the risk of bias assessment of the included studies.
Figure 7
Figure 7
General summary of the risk of bias assessment of the included studies.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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