Exploring the impact of Covid-19 on delivering periodontology treatments

In a paper published recently in the Journal of Dentistry, academics and undergraduate students at King’s College London set out to investigate how Covid-19 has impacted periodontal practice in the United Kingdom. Periodontology is the speciality of dentistry that studies supporting structures of teeth, as well as diseases and conditions that affect them.

An online survey was sent to members of the British Society of Periodontology and Implant Dentistry. A total of 358 respondents engaged in the survey, who as a profession, deliver oral health care treatment in periodontology and hygiene therapy. Giving respondents time to fully assess and reflect on the situation, the survey was issued around two months after initial restrictions were implemented and followed up two weeks after gradual returns to work were implemented.

The great majority of participants thought that the pandemic had a significant impact on their profession. Financial implications of the pandemic were high on the list of concerns for most respondents and listed as one that is having a major impact on their mental wellbeing. Individuals highlighted the adverse impact of practice closures on patient perceptions of dentistry, concerns about the future of dentistry and practical issues such as the need for spaced appointment times to deliver heightened infection control procedures.