Role of professional expertise in the decision-making process for periodontally compromised teeth.

The objective of this study was to evaluate factors that may influence decision-making with regard to extraction or maintenance of periodontally compromised teeth. A questionnaire with 2 distinct clinical scenarios, each including a radiographic image, was provided to students in their final year of dental school and practicing dentists. The participants were asked to record the action that they would take in each case (tooth maintenance vs extraction) and provide a justification for their decision. The questionnaires were answered by 158 dental students and 57 dentists (N = 215). Among the sample as a whole, 31.16% of participants recommended extraction in scenario 1, while only 5.58% recommended that action in scenario 2. In scenario 1, there was a statistically significant difference in the recommendations of the dental students and the dentists, with the former group significantly more disposed to conservative action, that is, maintenance of the tooth (P < 0.001; chi-square test). When the actions recommended by participants specializing in implants or periodontics (or both) were compared with those recommended by other specialists, there was a statistically significant difference between the groups regarding maintenance and extraction (P = 0.012; Fisher exact test), with the former group recommending fewer extractions. When the responses were evaluated in terms of the participants' years of specialty practice, it was observed that professionals with fewer than 20 years of practice were more conservative in their decisions, choosing tooth maintenance significantly more often than specialists with longer experience (P = 0.031; Fisher exact test). Among the majority of both dental students and practicing dentists, the decision in both scenarios was to maintain the compromised teeth; however, the results suggested that that both the years of experience of the individual and the specialty of the practitioner can influence decision-making.

Covid-19 e Odontologia: análise de informações disponíveis em uma plataforma virtual. Um estudo descritivo e observacional / Covid-19 and Dentistry: analysis of available information on a virtual platform. A descriptive and observational study

Objetivo: avaliar as informações disponíveis no site de buscas Google® sobre a relação entre a odontologia e a infecção pelo novo Coronavírus, e sua concordância com a literatura atual. Material e Métodos: estudo descritivo e observacional, realizado em uma universidade privada em Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, através da utilização da plataforma de buscas Google® aonde analisou-se os sites através de um roteiro de perguntas previamente elaborado. Resultados: foram analisados 67 sites após buscas pelas expressões "Coronavírus e odontologia", "Saúde bucal e Coronavírus" e "Fratura de dente e Coronavírus". Apenas 24,2% das perguntas foram respondidas com conteúdo completo enquanto 62,5% não apresentavam os conteúdos e 13,3% simplesmente os citavam sem dar maiores esclarecimentos. Apesar disso, 99% dos conteúdos foram publicados por fontes confiáveis (órgãos renomados, sites privados de profissionais da saúde bucal ou matérias de jornal assessoradas por estes). Conclusão: Apesar de confiáveis, os resultados das buscas apresentaram pequena quantidade de informações que realmente auxiliariam o leigo no entendimento da relação entre Coronavírus e odontologia, o que demonstra a necessidade de criação de canais oficiais para disseminação destas para o público geral

Objective:to evaluate the information available on the Google® search site concerning the relationship between dentistry and infection with the new coronavirus, and its concurrence with the current literature. Material and Methods: a descriptive and observational study was conducted by a private university in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to analyze the Google® search platform and the sites found through a previously prepared questionnaire. Results: the expressions "Coronavirus and dentistry", "Oral health and Coronavirus" and "Tooth fracture and Coronavirus" searched produced 67 sites for analysis. However, only 24.2% of the questions of the questionnaire were answered fully, while 62.5% did not answer them at all and 13.3% simply cited them without giving details. Notwithstanding this, 99% of the contents were published by official entities, dental websites or articles assisted by oral health care professionals. Conclusion: although reliable, the search results presented little information that would really help a layperson understand the relationship between Coronavirus and dentistry, which demonstrates the need to create official channels to disseminate such information to the public in an appropriate manner