COVID-19 Pandemisinde Üniversite Merkezli Çocuk Diþ Hekimliði Kliniðine Yapýlan Acil Baþvurularýn Deðerlendirilmesi

GÝRÝÞ ve AMAÇ: Bu çalýþmanýn amacý mutant virüs varlýðý ile birlikte COVID-19 vakalarýnýn en yüksek sayýya ulaþtýðý dönemde üniversite merkezli çocuk diþ hekimliði kliniðine acil dental şikayet ile baþvuran çocuklarýn ziyaret nedenlerini incelemek ve ebeveynlerinin/yasal temsilcilerinin acil diþ tedavisi hizmetine eriþim süreçlerindeki deneyimlerini deðerlendirmektir.
YÖNTEM ve GEREÇLER: 30 Nisan-30 Eylül 2021 tarihleri arasýnda acil nedenli baþvuran 0-14 yaþ arasýndaki çocuklar bir triaj sistemi ile deðerlendirilmiþtir. Uygun olanlarýn demografik verileri, baþvuru nedeni, baþka merkeze baþvuru durumu ve tedavi uygulanmasý ile ilgili bilgileri prospektif olarak kaydedilmiþ ve klinik muayeneleri tamamlanmýþtýr. Mevcut acil durumun tedavisine yönelik hekimin belirlediði yaklaþým kaydedilmiþtir. Veri analizleri ki-kare ve/veya Fisher kesin ki-kare testleri ile yapýlmýþtýr
BULGULAR: Acil baþvuruda bulunan 650 çocuk hastanýn 363’ü dahil edilme kriterlerine uygun bulunmuþtur (ortalama yaþ: 7,8 yýl). Çürük kaynaklý diþ aðrýsý (%34,7) en sýk karþýlaþýlan baþvuru nedenidir ve tüm hastalarýn %57,0’ý daha önce ayný þikayet nedeniyle baþka bir merkeze baþvuruda bulunmuþtur. Daha önce baþvurduklarý merkezde acil þikayet ile ilgili hizmet alabilen hastalarýn oraný ise oldukça düþüktür (%4,8). Kliniðimize yapýlan acil baþvurularýn %63,1’ine tedavi/çekim randevusu planlanmýþ, sadece %8,0’ýnýn tedavisi ayný seansta yapýlmýþtýr. Ýlk seansta tedavisi yapýlan hastalarýn çoðunluðunun travmatik diþ yaralanmasý (%62,1) nedeniyle baþvurduðu belirlenmiþtir.
TARTIÞMA ve SONUÇ: COVID-19 pandemisi tüm dünyada olduðu gibi ülkemizde de diþ hekimliði hizmetlerinin verilmesinde aksamalara neden olmuþtur. Mevcut çalýþmanýn sonuçlarý tedaviye ulaþmak için hastalarýn tekrarlayan baþvurularýnýn sýklýðýný ve uygulanan tedavilerin üçüncü basamak kurumlarda dahi yetersiz olduðunu desteklemektedir.

Evaluation of Dental Emergencies During COVID-19 Pandemic in a University-Based Pediatric Dentistry Clinic

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this prospective trial was to determine the types of dental emergencies in a university-based pediatric dentistry clinic at the period of the highest number of COVID-19 cases due to the mutant virus and also evaluate the parental experiences in accessing emergency dental treatment.
METHODS: Between April-September 2021, children (0-14 years) who attended with dental emergencies were evaluated by a triage system. Demographic variables, reason for seekingdental care, previous admission to another clinic and history of provided treatment were collected. The treatment indicated by pediatric dentists for the current dental emergency was recorded. Statistical analyses were performed with chi-square and/or Fisher’s exact test.of Turkish Dental Association and 217 responses were received. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics,chi-square and Fisher’s exact tests.
RESULTS: Of the 650 pediatric patients who presented with an emergency complaint, 363 were included following triage evaluation (mean age: 7,8 years). “Pain due to caries" (34,7%) was the most common reason for admission and 57,0% of the included patients previously applied to another clinic with the same complaint. Limited number of patients (4,8%) were able to receive treatment regarding their dental emergency in other clinics. In our clinic, treatment/ extraction appointment was scheduled for 63,1% of the cases and only 8,0% were received urgent treatment at the same session. The majority of the patients, who were treated at referral day, had traumatic dental injury (62,1%).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Pandemic posed a significant challenge to provide dental services in Turkey well as all over the world. The results of the current study showed repeated admissions of patients for receiving dental treatment and inadequacy of provided treatments even in tertiary institutions.