Dealing with dental patients during and after coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak was declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Several dental care facilities in affected countries have been completely closed or have been only providing minimal treatment for emergency cases. However, several facilities in some affected countries are still providing regular dental treatment. This can, in part, be a result of the lack of universal protocol or guidelines regulating the dental care provision during such a pandemic. This lack of guidelines can, on the one hand, increase the nosocomial COVID-19 spread through dental health care facilities, and on the other hand, deprive patients' in need of the required urgent dental care. Moreover, ceasing dental care provision during such a period will incense the burden on hospital emergency departments already struggle with the pandemic. This review article is aimed to develop guidelines for dental patients' management during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords

• coronavirus disease 2019
• dental emergency management
• infection control
• severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2