Dental check-ups, cleaning and preventive care could be postponed until coronavirus infection rates decline significantly, the World Health Organization has advised.
WHO also cautioned against procedures that produce aerosol spray from patients’ mouths.
“The same applies to aesthetic dental treatments. However, urgent or emergency oral health care interventions that are vital for preserving a person’s oral functioning, managing severe pain or securing quality of life should be provided,” WHO said on Tuesday.
The directives are contained in WHO’s new guidelines for dentists on how to minimise the risk of transmission during the pandemic.
The United Nations health agency acknowledged that dental services had begun to resume in many countries.
If possible, the agency advised, patients should be remotely screened before their appointments.
The WHO said dentists were at high risk of being infected with the coronavirus. Oral healthcare teams work in proximity to patients’ faces for prolonged periods.
“Their procedures involve face-to-face communication and frequent exposure to saliva, blood and other body fluids and handling sharp instruments. Consequently, they are at high risk of being infected with SARS-CoV-2 or passing the infection to patients,” the guidance said.
The guidance listed ways in which broken dentures, orthodontic appliances and extensive dental caries could be treated while minimising or avoiding aerosol producing sprays.
WHO’s dental chief Benoit Varenne in a statement said that oral disease is a neglected health burden in many countries, affecting people throughout their lives.
“At the global level, last estimates that are available show that 3.5 billion are affected by oral disease,” he said.
Currently, untreated dental caries in permanent teeth is the most common health condition in human beings.
He said that in a survey, 75 per cent of WHO member states said dental services had been completely or partially disrupted during the pandemic.
Varenne also voiced concern about the availability of personal protective equipment for dentists working during the pandemic.