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Published on: November 7, 2020
Paediatric dental pain and infection during the COVID period
Nabeel Ilyas1, Sanjeev Sood1, Ria Radia2
1Department of Paediatric Dentistry, King's College Hospital NHS Trust, London, SE5 9RS, UK.
Insights
Paediatric Dentistry and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) collaboration streamlined care for children with dental pain during COVID-19 lockdowns. Most cases were treated effectively without general anaesthesia (GA), highlighting a successful model for future disruptions.
Area of Science:
- Dentistry
- Oral Surgery
- Public Health
Background:
- Paediatric patients continue to experience dental pain and infections, even during pandemics.
- King's College Hospital (KCH) established a collaborative approach between Paediatric Dentistry and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) to manage these cases.
- This initiative aimed to streamline patient care amid limited access to general anaesthetic facilities during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the demographics, presenting complaints, and treatment needs of paediatric patients with dental pain and infection during the lockdown period.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a collaborative care model between Paediatric Dentistry and OMFS.
- To assess the requirement for general anaesthesia in paediatric dental emergencies during the lockdown.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective review of paediatric patients presenting with dental pain and infection during the lockdown period (March 23rd - June 14th).
- Data collected included presenting complaints, treatment needs, and treatments received.
- Triage of 420 calls, with 67 patients seen face-to-face by either Paediatric Dentistry or OMFS.
Main Results:
- 41% of paediatric patients were successfully treated using local anaesthetic alone.
- Only 13% of patients required general anaesthesia (GA) during the lockdown period.
- Antibiotics were prescribed to 80% of patients prior to their attendance.
Conclusions:
- The collaborative approach between Paediatric Dentistry and OMFS effectively streamlined patient care for dental emergencies in children.
- The majority of paediatric dental pain and infection cases during lockdown could be managed without general anaesthetic facilities.
- This model offers a viable strategy for other institutions to adopt during future lockdowns or similar public health crises.
Background:
During the coronavirus pandemic, paediatric patients will still likely present with dental pain and infection. In order to streamline care at King's College Hospital (KCH), Paediatric Dentistry and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) have developed a collaborative working approach allowing patients to be treated effectively and to streamline patient care in the absence of easy access to general anaesthetic facilities.
Method:
Presenting complaints, treatment need and the treatment received were recorded for all paediatric patients presenting with dental pain and infection in the "lockdown" period (23rd March- 14th June) during "normal" working hours and "out of hours" to either paediatric dentistry or OMFS.
Results:
420 calls were triaged which converted to 67 patients seen face-to-face for oro-facial pain and infection. 41% of children were treated successfully under Local anaesthetic alone, only 13% required a general anaesthetic (GA) in the "lockdown" period. The vast majority of patients had antibiotics prescribed prior to attendance (80%).
Conclusion:
We have demonstrated the demographic, presenting complaints and treatment need of patients who presented to KCH during the lockdown period with dental pain and infection. The majority were able to be treated without needing for GA facilities. This paper highlights how a collaborative approach between paediatric dentistry and OMFS can help streamline patient care and is a model which can be adopted by other units in the event of further "lockdowns".
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