One in three owner dentists indicated they need more staff to see the same number of patients compared to before the pandemic, according to new data from November’s COVID-19 Economic Impact on Dental Practice poll conducted by the ADA Health Policy Institute. Moreover, the results reveal that 35% of dentists have recently or are currently recruiting a … Read more
According to a study from the University of Illinois Chicago, adding a small amount of hydrogen peroxide to the water in ultrasonic scalers used to clean teeth can help mitigate the risk of spreading airborne diseases, including COVID-19, in clinical dental environments. Researchers from UIC’s College of Dentistry and College of Engineering co-authored “Effect of H₂O₂Antiseptic on … Read more
Does close contact with patients put dentists at greater risk of catching COVID-19? According to a new study by researchers at the University of Toronto and three other Canadian universities, dentists appear – perhaps counterintuitively – less likely than the general population to contract the virus. “When we started this study in July of 2020, there … Read more
The B.C. Ministry of Health says it is working on a plan that will require doctors and dentists who operate out of private practices to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Health care workers who don’t work at public facilities such as hospitals aren’t currently required to be vaccinated. But a spokesperson for the ministry told … Read more
After years of consecutive decline, the rate of dental antibiotic prescribing increased by over a fifth in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions. Dentistry was the only part of England’s publicly-funded National Health Service to experience an increase. The steepest rise occurred when dental practices were closed from March to June 2020 during the first wave of COVID-19, and it … Read more
The “Cs” (or cytokines) are making headline news frequently. The most unfavourable outcomes in COVID-19 patients’ risk profile repeatedly directs our attention to an over-expression of immune response termed a “cytokine storm.” Today’s global research focuses on further understanding the potential role of cytokine storms in dictating the severity of the SARS-CoV-2 viral infection. The … Read more
A majority of U.S. dental schools took a hit to their budgets during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and even more suspended community-based patient care experiences—two of several shocks to the system that are still playing out as academic institutions and health care delivery organizations continue to weather the crisis, according to a … Read more
In a new study using 3D holographic imaging, University of Minnesota Twin Cities researchers tested the effectiveness of three filtration devices that can mitigate the spread of aerosols during ultrasonic scaling, a common dental cleaning procedure. The findings could increase health safety in dental offices during the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers found that two of … Read more
Knowledge is defined as facts, information and skills acquired through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject. According to Krathwohl (2002), knowledge can be categorized into four subtypes: factual, conceptual, procedural and metacognitive. It’s important to clearly understand the distinctions between the four and strive to implement your strengths and limitations … Read more
The COVID-19 pandemic has given the dental industry an opportunity to discuss many topics, including the importance of mental health. During the Data Driven Dentistry survey last year, 21 percent of dentists responded that the one positive thing they could take away from their pandemic experience was spending more time with family and living life … Read more
A Palmerston North dentist has been bombarded with threats – including to burn the practice down – after advising it wants all patients to be vaccinated, and will charge those that aren’t a fee for use of PPE. Vivian St Dental put up the notice a week ago, and the practice spokeswoman, who only wanted … Read more
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected an unbelievable percentage of the population since it caught fire in the first quarter of 2020. Being an essential service, you may believe the field of dentistry to be untouched by the pandemic, but that is far from true. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the dental industry, just as … Read more
University of Utah Health scientists are leading an effort to determine if salivary glands infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 could diminish a person’s long-term immunity to the disease after being immunized or after recovering from the illness. The investigation, supported by a two-year grant from the National Institutes of Health, will explore whether … Read more
The province is further protecting health-care workers, patients, families and frontline workers during COVID-19 with Western Canada’s first accredited personal protective equipment (PPE) lab, specializing in testing and validating PPE. The lab is a pandemic-driven innovation by Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), with support from the Ministry of Health and the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA). … Read more
We live in very uncertain times. With the spread of COVID-19 in late 2019 and throughout 2020, we are now all living in a world of variants. Just as society was really beginning to feel like we could start getting back to normal, cases of COVID-19 variants such as the delta variant have people all … Read more
Dental school, like any professional educational program, is challenging. Students are expected to develop their manual dexterity skills and maintain a heavy course load, which makes it difficult to maintain the balanced and healthy lifestyle that they know is important. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that a high occurrence of depression, anxiety and … Read more
Each year, Oral Health invites us to contribute a piece to their student issue, and the article tends to be focused on our organization, the Federation of Canadian Dentistry Student Associations (FCDSA). However, in light of the pandemic, I have opted to use this as an opportunity to highlight the perseverance and dedication of dental … Read more
A girl has been left “crying in the night” after waiting nine months to have a tooth removed. Grace, nine, from Leicestershire, was put on a list in January but needs a general anaesthetic to have it extracted. Her mother, Heather, said her daughter has missed time at school, lost sleep and even had her … Read more
An Iowa dental hygienist who kept working while aware she had COVID-19 agreed to pay $100 fine in a settlement with the Iowa Dental Board. The hygienist also agreed to a five-day suspension and was required to take five hours of classes on infection control and ethics. The Sac City, Iowa, resident did not respond to multiple interview requests by … Read more
I read with great interest the response letter written by Dr. Mark Antosz to my editorial published in Oral Health in the June issue of this year. Dr. Antosz’s letter appeared in the August issue. The purpose of my editorial was to comment on the effect the COVID-19 pandemic has had on oral and maxillofacial … Read more