ABSTRACT
The aim of this pilot study was to describe the advantages of telemedicine (TM) in dental practice during the current national emergency condition due to the Covid-19 dissemination. At Department of Oral Surgery and Pathology-Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, regional reference center for Covid-19-two groups of patients were determined: patients with urgent conditions (group U) and patients in follow-up (group F). Both groups were instructed to implement remote consultations using a messaging service (WhatsApp Messenger, WhatsApp Inc., Mountain View, California, USA) to send photos. A total of 418 photos were collected by 57 patients. Thirty-four photos were obtained by five patients in the U group after surgical procedures. All patients sent photos on the established evening, except for two patients who sent two photos outside the set days. In the F group, 384 photos were collected by 52 patients. None of them sent more photos than the number that was established by the protocol. Telemedicine allowed a monitoring of all patients, reducing costs and limiting human contact, decreasing the risk of Covid-19 dissemination.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The aim of this study is to evaluate the perception of the risk and prevention of work-related COVID-19 infection in dentistry during the first week of the virus dissemination in Italy. Methods: The study was implemented as a cross-sectional study. The sample was composed of Italians of the age 18 and over and with a personal computer (PCs), tablets or smartphones connected to the web. An anonymous online survey was distributed using social media platforms and all the participants sent their responses. The outcome variable was the perception of COVID-19 risk dissemination at the dental office. Other study variables evaluated include the ability to distinguish between urgent and deferable oral surgical procedures, the perception of COVID-19 dissemination in oral surgical treatments compared to other medical procedures and the concomitant state of anxiety of the Italians. Results: The study sample included 512 participants (315 women and 197 men). Most of the participants (306, 59,8%) declared that at this moment dental procedures are quite risky, 67 respondents declared that there is a high risk for COVID-19 dissemination and 139 participants defined absent the risk of the virus dissemination after oral surgical procedures. The respondents declared that the most urgent and not-deferrable dental problems are dental abscess (72%), dental trauma (61%), and biopsy for suspect lesions of the oral cavity (49%). Comparing oral surgical treatments with other medical procedures the risk of COVID-19 dissemination was the same for most of the respondents. Results of HAM-A questionnaire showed that the majority of participants (87.3%) had a mild severity of anxiety symptoms (score ≤ 17). Most Italians perceive the risk of COVID-19 dissemination in oral surgical procedures, suggesting these last only in urgent cases. This diffuse concern increases the mild level of anxiety of Italian population. © 2021, Nova Science Publishers, Inc.. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
The SARS-Cov-2 pandemic that exploded in 2020 resulted in an exceptional school closure involving at least 188 countries worldwide, leaving more than 90% of children at home. This event excluded children and teenagers from the opportunity to learn, socialize, experiment and increased early school leaving. In light of these premises, during the summer months of 2020 the Azienda sanitaria Friuli Occidentale (AsFO) decided to set up a working group to accompany schools in the prevention and containment of the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection in the course of the school year 2020-21, with the aim of guaranteeing the right to study and favoring teaching activities in presence in the highest conditions of health and safety. The school reality of the Pordenone area is made up of 40 Comprehensive Institutes for a total of about 206 school complexes of all levels (public, equal and private). In total, the local school population is about 33,000 pupils and 4,000 units of school staff (teachers, ATA, etc ...). The activities of the Schools Group were analyzed by monitoring all interventions with carrying out rapid antigen tests at school and by assessing the incidence of infections within schools. From September 2020 to June 2021, the AsFO Schools Group participated in about 35 teaching colleges and more than 10 dedicated meetings with the families of school pupils of all levels. In total, 170 interventions with rapid antigen tests were carried out at school, involving all the schools in the Pordenone area and a total of 206 classes. During the interventions at school, a total of 6,370 rapid antigen tests were carried out, of which 70% concerned pupils (4,458 total tests) and 30% concerned school staff (1,912 total tests). The antigen tests carried out at school found 173 total positivity (equal to 3% of all tests carried out at school). Out of 173 positives found, 121 are students (70% of the total) and 52 are school staff (30% of the total). During the observation period, the results of the interventions with rapid antigen tests carried out at school led to the continuation of the teaching activity in the presence (with respect to the hygiene and behavioral measures defined by the DP) in 69% of cases (118 interventions). In 9% of cases (15 interventions) the "cross" quarantine was carried out, while in 17% of cases (29 interventions) the quarantine was established for the entire class / section. In 7 circumstances, following the intervention at school, quarantine was established for several classes. Only in 4 circumstances was the institution of quarantine for all school staff, a situation that led to the interruption of all educational activities for the quarantine period.
ABSTRACT
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a major global concern. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the knowledge of dental students toward COVID-19 in a context of a health emergency. Methods: A questionnaire-based survey was drawn up in an online form, to investigate knowledge and awareness level about COVID-19 among dental students at Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Italy. The questionnaire contained socio-demographic questions and 12 questions about definition, contagiousness, symptoms, incubation, source of infection, routes of transmission, treatment and infection control practices related to COVID-19. Results: 72 dental students responded to the questionnaire-based survey. The participants had 87.6% of the essential knowledge about COVID-19 and 56.9% of the participants had also already heard about similar respiratory diseases. However, only 50% of the responders perceived a greater risk of contagion for dentists than other health professionals. Conclusion: Italian dental students had a good level of awareness of COVID-19. The most positive attitude of participants was toward the period of incubation, route of transmission and treatment. The COVID-19 outbreak reminded us the importance of knowledge on cross-infection control. It is essential to further sensitize future dentists to not underestimate the risk of exposure to the virus in dentistry. © 2020 Bennardo et al.
ABSTRACT
COVID19 Pandemic impacts have been associated with Air Quality (AQ) with its mortality index being significantly affected by high pollution levels. Significant mobility limitations have contributed to slow down the pandemic in Italy having as a side effect a definite decrease of pollution levels. Phase 2 while easing those limits still see a significant reduction of commuting and schools related car traffic emissions. High resolution AQ monitoring can now allow to obtain a picture of AQ if smart cities will be capable to reach long sought emissions goals. Furthermore, it could support the identification and forecasting of possible future local SARS-COV-2 outbursts. In this work, we present the outcomes of a high resolution AQ monitoring opportunistic campaign. These have been achieved through the deployment of field data driven calibration trough machine learning and a smartphone centered IoT infrastructure, capable to store, visualize and give exposome feedback to monitoring volunteers. © 2020 AEIT.
ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19, originated in China in December 2019, has spread worldwide pandemically. Infection control measures are especially needed for healthcare professionals who meet potentially infected patients. Objective: The authors aimed to provide general knowledge about COVID-19 disease and indications for the management of emergency dental procedures based on recent literature and experience gained. Methods: A literature search was performed to identify scientific information on COVID-19 and prevention of cross infection appropriate for the practice of dentistry. Results: The authors provided relevant information about SARS-CoV-2 virus, COVID-19 disease, and prevention of cross infections in the dental office. Furthermore, the authors described their experience and highlighted the potential of telemedicine. Conclusion: This article, based on relevant researches, guidelines and Authors’ experience in a COVID-19 Hospital, introduces essential knowledge about COVID-19 and transmission routes and provides recommended management protocols for dental practitioners.