ORIGINAL STUDY

J Orthodontics
I
D Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study
A Saptarshi Roy1, Kuldeep Dmello2, Atul Singh3

Abstract
Brief Background
As there have been 15,785,641 confirmed cases of
COVID-19 Pandemic, including 640,016 deaths around
the world till 26 July 2020, and Lockdown has been
implemented in most of the nations, the Orthodontic
specialty is affected extensively due to this. So a study
was conducted to determine the impact of the COVID-19
outbreak on the specialty of Orthodontics and how the
situation was being managed around the globe.

Materials and Methods

An anonymous questionnaire containing 24 questions
was developed in google form which was posted on
various online platforms and also sent to Orthodontists
around the globe using Social media. The questionnaire
asked for information about the effect of the pandemic in
their workplace, and about the changes they were facing
1. P. G. Student in their clinical practices, and how they are handling it at
the time of the pandemic.
2. HOD
3 Professor Results
Department of Orthodontics and A total of 226 responses were acquired. 96.46% of all
Dentofacial Orthopaedics respondents believed that this Pandemic has affected their
routine Orthodontic practice. Although almost 47.79%
KD Dental College
of respondents opined that most of their patients are well
Mathura, Uttar Pradesh
aware of this emergency but the most common complaint
from patients was broken brackets and molar bands.
Access this article online Although 51.59 % of respondents are aware of WHO
Quick Response Code: guidelines for health workers regarding COVID-19 but a
majority of Orthodontists are under stress as they believe
Website: that there will be a decline in Orthodontic treatment need
jida.ida.org.in with the declined global economy.

Discussion
DOI: 10.33882/jida.15.28786 Anticipating the situation that how this lockdown has
affected the Orthodontic practice, the results revealed
that most Orthodontists are bearing the repression and
repercussions together at the same time.

How to cite this article: Saptarshi Roy, Kuldeep Dmello, Atul

Summary and Conclusions
Singh. Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study. The survey shows that COVID-19 has affected Orthodontic
JIDA 2021; XV; 31-41.
https://doi.org/10.33882/jida.15.28786.
practice in various aspects. We need to modify and adapt
ourselves for each and every orthodontic procedure to be
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons done in the future.
Attribution-Non Commercial-Share Alike 4.0 License, which allows others to remix,
tweak, and build upon the work non-commercially, as long as the author is credited
and the new creations are licensed under the identical terms Key Words
Corona Virus, COVID 19, Impact, Orthodontic Practice,
Orthodontists.
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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study
Introduction
The whole world had witnessed the disastrous effects
of various epidemics like H1N1, H5N1, SARS, Avian
Influenza, Ebola, Zika, and Nipah in the previous time,
and they were successfully intercepted with appropriate
management and research1. But the outbreak of life-
threatening coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused
by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus2,3,
which is rapidly destroying the healthcare system and
economy across the world, is of prime concern because
till now no effective measures has been invented for
management of this disease. The novel coronavirus
is a single-stranded RNA virus, that comes under the
family called Coronaviridae. This family includes two
prime disease causative viruses named as- severe acute
respiratory syndrome corona virus (SARS-CoV), which was
first identified in 2002, and the Middle East respiratory
syndrome corona virus (MERS-CoV), which was first
identified in 2012. Globally, as of 2:31 pm CEST, 26 July
2020, there have been 15,785,641 confirmed cases of
COVID-19, including 640,016 deaths, reported to WHO4.
Almost every nation and their respective governments are
literally battling to combat the rapid spread of the disease
by taking some strong decisions.
The 2 main steps for controlling the situation are
to limit the spread of the infection and improve the
healthcare system of each country. On January 30, the
World Health Organization (WHO) announced that this
outbreak constituted a global public health emergency
and declared it a pandemic. By declaring a nationwide
lockdown, India has retrenched the spread of this virus to
a certain extent. However, the total number of reported
cases as of 2:31 pm CEST, 26 July 2020, has crossed
14,36,019 with approximately 32,812 deaths and these
numbers continue to rise. Because of the widespread
transmission of SARS-CoV-2, healthcare providers are at
a high risk of getting affected by the virus and becoming
potential carriers of the disease.
According to Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), Dentists, including Orthodontists,
are placed in a very high exposure risk category because
they work in close proximity to the patient’s oral cavity5.
The routes of transmission may include, respiratory
droplets coming from coughing and sneezing during any
Orthodontic Procedure, aerosol created while using an air
rotor during de-bonding, indirect contact such as droplets
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falling on Orthodontic instruments that Orthodontists
contact later. Though according to the American Dental
Association6 Orthodontic procedures other than acute
issues (e.g. pain, infection, trauma) or other situations,
critically necessary to prevent harm to the patient are
considered as Non-emergency dental procedures, but Pain
due to impingement of wire because of bracket breakage
or other causes, needs emergency appointments in this
time also.
This study aimed to determine the impact of the COVID-19
outbreak on the specialty of Orthodontics and how the
situation was being managed around the globe. For
achieving this goal, a questionnaire was developed which
was uploaded on various online platforms and also sent to
Orthodontists around the world, using Social media. The
questionnaire was asked for getting information about
the COVID-19 effect in their workplace, and what hurdles
they were facing in their practices in the testing time.
The objective was to emphasize the situation that the
specialty is facing and how it is being handled. The study
was done aiming that the information and results will be
a useful reference in the future, not only for Orthodontics
but also for other specialties, against COVID- 19 or if any
similar Pandemic arises again.
Materials and Methods
The survey was conducted from April 23rd, 2020 to May
06, 2020. The questionnaire was formed using Google
Forms because this platform is free and easy to use for
both the researchers & respondents. The questionnaire
was created in English which consisted of 24 questions,
both close-ended and open-ended.
The first section was asked for general information
about the respondent like their Email address and work
area. In the second section, the respondents were asked
about their situation of practicing during the pandemic,
how they are handling patients, and also the level of
awareness about WHO guidelines among Orthodontists.
The third section contained some questions related to
mediclaim and life insurance they have if accidentally
they get exposed. The fourth Section includes the
involvements and mental condition during the outbreak
and most importantly what they are expecting about
post-pandemic economic crisis.
The online link of the questionnaire was distributed
by e-mail via personal invitation, posted on Facebook,
Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

WhatsApp, and Instagram. Moreover, the authors asked

the respondents to share the questionnaire link with their
colleagues and contacts in the field of Orthodontics.

Results
The Questions and their responses to the Survey are
illustrated in the tables and the figures (1-5).

Fig.1: Percentage Distribution of Respondents by their opinion

on impact of COVID-19 on routine orthodontic practice and on
Awareness level of Patients on this emergency situation

Fig.3: Percentage Distribution of opinion of Respondents by

appliance system required maximum assistance during the lockdown
and Percentage Distribution of opinion of Respondents by no. of
Orthodontic patients have attended in this lockdown.

Fig.4: How quickly you feel the need to open your clinic?

Fig.2: Percentage distribution of opinion of Respondents by getting

calls on a daily basis for Orthodontic emergencies during lockdown
and Percentage Distribution of Opinion of Respondents by expecting
a decline in orthodontic requirement in the World

Fig.5: Sequence of Removal of PPE and Sequence of Putting on PPE (Source- CDC)

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

A total of 226 responses to the study were acquired
from all over India and 3 other countries. The invitation
was mainly sent to different WhatsApp groups of both
clinicians and PG students. The response rate was good.
Only complete responses were received, as most of the
questions were mandatory.
Table 1 shows that most of the respondents (38.94%)
were PG students. And 96.46% of all respondents believe
that this Pandemic has affected their routine Orthodontic
practice. As 37.17% of respondents have rented clinics,
50% of them opined that they are unable to pay the rent
of their clinic. Almost 47.79% of respondents opined
that more than 80% of their patients are well aware
of this emergency and 46.02% have opined that they
receive only less than 2 calls a day from their patients for
orthodontic emergencies.
The majority of the respondents (56.64%) expressed
their opinion that they have not attended a single patient

Table 1
Govt Combination
Q. No/ Type of Academician Consultancy PG Student Private Total
Responses hospital/ of any of the
Respondents (4) (14) (88) clinic (44) (226)
college(12) above(64)
Percentage
Q1. What is your
of 1.77 6.19 5.31 38.94 19.47 28.32 100.00
area of work?
Respondents
Q2. Do you think Yes 75.00 100.00 100.00 97.73 95.45 95.31 96.46
Covid-19 has No 25.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 4.69 1.77
affected your
routine orthodontic Can’t Say 0.00 0.000 0.00 2.27 4.55 0.00 1.77
practice?
Q3. What is your Own 25.00 0.00 0.00 9.10 36.37 53.13 26.10
practice type if Rented 25.00 71.43 25.00 20.45 52.27 45.31 37.17
you are a private Not
practitioner? 50.00 28.57 75.00 70.45 11.36 1.56 36.73
Applicable
Q4. Are you able Able 100.00 40.00 0.00 16.67 26.09 20.69 27.38
to pay the rent of Not Able 0.00 40.00 66.67 66.67 69.57 77.33 50.00
your clinic, if you
practice in a rented May Be 0.00 20.00 33.33 16.67 30.43 9.05 22.62
clinic?
Q5. What <20% 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.14 4.55 4.69 2.65
percentage of your <25% 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.56 0.44
patients are aware 20%-40% 0.00 14.29 33.33 15.91 31.82 7.81 17.26
of the emergency
40%-80% 0.00 14.29 16.67 39.77 25.00 34.38 31.86
situation and
understand that
their treatment will >80% 100.00 71.42 50.00 43.18 38.64 51.56 47.79
be delayed due to
this pandemic?
0 0.00 7.14 0.00 3.41 4.55 4.69 3.98
Q6. From how
many patients <2 25.00 21.43 33.33 50.00 38.64 54.69 46.02
you get calls 2-5 75.00 28.57 58.34 34.09 43.18 21.88 34.07
on a daily basis 6-10 0.00 35.71 8.33 9.09 4.55 12.50 10.62
for Orthodontic 11-20 0.00 7.14 0.00 3.41 9.09 3.13 4.42
emergencies?
>20 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 3.13 0.89

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

during this lockdown (Table 2) and 65.7% complaints
from patients in an emergency are with Broken brackets
and molar tube or bands.
Table 3 shows that 59.29% of assistance is being required
for the conventional Labial Bracket system. The majority
of respondents believe that it would take 3-6 months
for Orthodontic practice to be normalized. 91.59 % of
respondents are aware of WHO guidelines for health
workers regarding COVID-19 but only 34.96% of
respondents are certified for any online course by WHO.
38.50% of respondents do not want to burden the extra
cost of PPE to patients.
Table 4 tells that, 95.13% of respondents feel the need
for PPE for their assistants. About 63% of respondents
want to imply every possible method for protecting their
clinical practices from COVID-19. Maximum responses
were for updating knowledge by watching Webinars and
reading books when they were asked about how they
were engaging themselves during this lockdown. There
was a short answer type question in Q. no. 17 that,
what are you going to do if you come across a COVID 19
susceptible case accidentally? And Majority have replied
that they will refer the patient to the COVID hospital
immediately and quarantine himself for 14 days.
From Table 5 we could know that majority of respondents
don’t know the dosage of Hydroxychloroquine. The
majority of respondents want a financial package from
Govt. and Major Orthodontists are scared of the situation.

Table 2
Combination
Q. No/ Type of Academician Govt hospital/ PG Private
Responses Consultancy of any of the Total
Respondents (4) college Student clinic
above
0 75.00 42.86 25.00 69.32 38.64 59.38 56.64
Q7. How many
emergency <5 25.00 28.57 66.67 23.86 27.27 26.56 27.88
Orthodontic 6-10 0.00 14.29 8.33 4.55 27.27 7.81 10.62
patients have 11-15 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
you attended in 16-20 0.00 14.29 0.00 2.27 2.27 4.69 3.54
this lockdown?
>20 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 4.55 1.56 1.33
Q8. Select the Loose Ligatures
options for (Elastomeric or 27.5%
which you are Metallic)
receiving most
number of Broken/loose
calls from your brackets, bands 65.7%
Orthodontic or molar t…
patients in this
Lockdown. Impinging wire 52.2%
(multiple
Loose TADS
options can be
or any such 2.8%
selected)
auxiliary
Loose
Functional 6.7%
Appliance
Loose Retainers 12.4%
Swelling or
11.2%
trauma
Soft tissue
24.2%
soreness
None 9%

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

Table 3
Combination
Q. No/ Type of Academician Govt hospital/ PG Private
Responses Consultancy of any of the Total
Respondents (4) college Student clinic
above
Aligners 0.00 0.00 0.00 50.00 0.00 50.00 100.00
Conventional
Q9. What 1.49 6.72 2.99 41.04 23.13 24.63 100.00
labial braces
appliance system
Functional
is requiring 0.00 4.55 22.73 27.27 27.27 18.18 100.00
Appliances
maximum
Lingual braces 7.69 3.85 3.85 50.00 3.85 30.77 100.00
assistance during
the lockdown? Removable
0.00 0.00 25.00 50.00 25.00 0.00 100.00
Appliances
None 0.00 9.38 3.13 25.00 15.63 46.88 100.00
0-1 Month 0.0 14.29 16.67 3.41 13.64 3.13 6.64
Q10. According
1-3 Month 25.00 35.71 16.67 38.64 18.18 29.69 30.53
to you how much
time will it take 3-6 Month 75.00 14.29 58.33 28.41 29.55 42.19 34.07
to normalize >6 Month 0.00 35.71 0.00 25.00 36.36 21.88 25.22
orthodontic Can’t Say 0.00 0.00 8.33 4.55 2.27 3.13 3.54
practice once the
pandemic COVID
19 is over?

Q11. Are you

Aware 100.00 100.00 100.00 89.77 86.36 93.75 91.59
aware of WHO
guidelines for Somewhat
0.00 0.00 0.00 7.95 2.27 3.12 4.42
Healthcare Aware
professionals
about
COVID-19? Not Aware 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.27 11.36 2.00 3.98

Q12. Have you

certified yourself Yes 0.00 21.43 50.00 31.82 34.09 42.19 34.96
for any of the
online courses
by the WHO
No 100.00 78.57 50.00 68.18 65.91 57.81 65.04
regarding COVID
19?

Q13. Do you think

Yes 50.00 57.14 16.67 32.95 29.55 34.38 33.63
it will be feasible
to transfer the No 50.00 21.43 33.33 35.23 43.18 43.75 38.50
cost of extra safety
requirement (PPE
kit) to the patient? Can’t Say 0.00 21.43 50.00 31.82 27.27 21.88 27.87

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

Table 4
Combination
Q. No/ Type of Academician Govt hospital/ PG Private
Responses Consultancy of any of the Total
Respondents (4) college Student clinic
above
Q14. Do you Yes 100.00 92.86 100.00 93.18 95.45 96.88 95.13
feel need of No 0.00 0.00 0.00 3.41 4.55 0.00 2.21
PPE for your
Assistant? Can’t Say 0.00 7.14 0.00 3.41 0.00 3.13 2.65
Q15. What Aerosol aspirator 10.1%
are other PPE 18.5%
modifications
Fumigation 11.8%
you are going to
apply for your HEPA Filter 5.1%
practice in post Ultraviolet
COVID era? Germicidal 6.2%
Irradiation

Infrared
7.9%
thermometer

Face Shield 18%

Disinfection
12.4%
spray

Disinfect
waterlines using 9.6%
0.01% NaOCL
All of the Above 63.5%
None of above 2.8%
Q22. How
Updating
did you keep
Knowledge
yourself 78.7 %
by attending
occupied during
webinar…
this lockdown
period?
Exploring old
(Multiple 44.4%
hobbies
options can be
selected) Doing Yoga or
42.1%
home fitness

Watching movies
49.4%
online

Totally Stressed
8.4%
out or depressed

Learning a new
technique or 33.1%
hobby

Other 15.7%

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study

Table 5
Govt Combination
Q. No/ Type of Academician PG Private
Responses Consultancy hospital/ of any of the Total
Respondents (4) Student clinic
college above
Q16. Do you Yes 25.00 35.71 8.33 31.82 36.36 20.31 28.32
think that the No 25.00 28.58 33.33 29.55 29.55 32.81 30.53
prophylactic
dose of hydroxyl-
chloroquine
applicable to Can’t Say 50.00 35.71 58.33 38.64 34.09 46.88 41.15
Orthodontists
treating a
susceptible case?
Q18. Do you feel Yes 25.00 42.86 50.00 69.32 63.64 68.75 64.60
that the Govt. No 0.00 21.43 8.33 11.36 13.64 17.19 13.72
should give a
package for May Be 75.00 35.71 41.67 19.32 22.73 14.06 21.68
Orthodontists to
come out of this
crisis situation?
Q19. Do you feel
Yes 100.00 100.00 83.33 93.18 72.73 82.81 86.28
scared for you and
your family with No 0.00 0.00 8.33 2.27 15.91 7.81 6.64
regards to COVID
19? Can’t Say 0.00 0.00 8.33 4.55 11.36 9.38 7.08
Q20. Do you Yes 50.00 35.71 16.67 25.00 25.00 39.06 29.65
have sufficient
Mediclaim No 0.00 57.14 50.00 62.50 54.55 43.75 53.54
insurance to cover
yourself for any
unwanted health
Can’t Say 50.00 7.14 33.33 12.50 20.45 17.19 16.81
situation including
COVID-19?
Q21. Do you have
Yes 100.00 50.00 41.67 44.32 68.18 65.63 56.19
any Life insurance
for yourself to
No 0.00 50.00 33.33 50.00 29.55 32.81 39.38
safeguard and
cover your family? Can’t Say 0.00 0.00 25.00 5.68 2.27 1.56 4.42
Q23. How quickly Open clinic as
you feel the need soon as this 25.00 21.43 8.33 2.27 31.82 23.44 15.93
to open your Lockdown ends
clinic? Take all the risks
and open clinic
0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.27 3.13 1.33
very soon even if
lockdown extends
Can't take any
risk and will wait
till the situation
75.00 71.43 41.67 57.95 52.27 67.19 59.73
goes to normal
and then open
my clinic
CAN'T SAY 0.00 7.14 50.00 39.77 13.64 6.25 23.01

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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study
Q24. With the Yes 50.00
decline in income
of the people No 0.00
and fall of Global
economy, do you
expect a decline
in orthodontic Can’t Say 50.00
requirement in the
World?
Although a major portion of respondents (53.54%) don’t
have any Mediclaim and but 56.19% have life insurance
to safeguard their family from any unwanted condition.
Most of the respondents (59.73%) don’t want to take
any risk and wanted to open a clinic when the situation
goes to normal. Maximum respondents (69.03%) believe
that there will be a decline in Orthodontic treatment need
around the world, with a decline in the global economy.
Discussion
Anticipating the situation that how this lockdown has
affected the Orthodontic practice, the results revealed
that most Orthodontists are bearing the repression
and repercussions together at the same time. To our
knowledge, so many studies have been addressed
regarding newer protocols for Orthodontic practice and
the risk of the pandemic to our specialty. But there are
no or very few studies that surveyed the difficulties faced
by orthodontists and their mental status in such testing
times. The pandemic has caused a huge change in the
work environment of orthodontists, and it is essential to
adapt to the change in the world of orthodontic practice
and adopt the newer protocols.
As 50% of the respondents who have rented clinics
opined that they are not able to pay the rent. 64.60%
of respondents believe that Govt. should give a financial
package to the orthodontists to battle the situation
because a major portion of respondents (53.54%) don’t
have any Mediclaim. Moreover, most of the respondents
(69.03%) believe that there will be a decline in Orthodontic
treatment need around the world, with a decline in the
global economy. So financial impact upon Orthodontists
to a great extent led them towards a psychologically
stressed-out condition. The new orthodontists who have
less than 10 years of experience are facing the economic
crisis most as they are bearing EMIs for clinical setup
J I D A - Jou rn al of I n d i an D ent al Asso ciatio n - Vo l 15 - Issue 6 - June 2021
66.67 66.67 63.64 75.00 76.56 69.03
41.67 8.33 14.77 6.82 14.06 13.72
8.33 25.00 21.59 18.18 9.38 17.25
and equipment, rent of clinics, salary to staffs, the bill
for water, phone, electricity, internet, etc. And now this
Pandemic added some extra expenditure that includes
newer personal protective equipment (PPE), N95 masks,
face shields, head, and shoe covers, alcohol-based hand
rubs, additional disinfectants, chemomechanical agents,
aerosol reduction measures such as HEPA filter, HVAC,
and newer antiretraction hand-pieces.
The majority of respondents opined that awareness of
this emergency is quite high among patients and calls
per day for assistance are also very low and maximum
respondents have not treated any patients during
this lockdown. This suggests that the patients are also
understanding the condition of their doctors through this
lockdown and cooperating by keeping patience though
they have not got appointments for a long time.
Rajesh Gyawali et al7 studied that the most common cause
for orthodontic emergencies was the debonded brackets
or bondable buccal tubes, followed by the loosening of
bands. The other reasons for frequent appointments were
loosening of ligature ties, impinging of the mucosa by the
overextension of the wire distally, detachment of buccal
tubes from the molar band, breakage of acrylic plates, and
tearing of elastomeric chains. This study also suggests the
same. The procedure that is needed the most care in this
pandemic is Bracket breakages and it is most prevalent
with PG students.
And also a major portion of respondents are aware of
WHO guidelines. So the majority of respondents are well
aware and taking proper precautions and following all
Govt. measures. Although they are not pretty much aware
of Hydroxychloriquine dosage but if they come across
COVID positive patients, the majority of them opined
that they will refer them to hospital and will quarantine
themselves.
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Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study
Most of the respondents want to imply every possible
method for protecting their clinical practices from
COVID-19 because a majority of them are scared of the
situation according to this study and for this, they don’t
want to open their clinic until all situation goes normal.
Universal precautions are crucial to minimize the spread
of this virus and its associated disease. That includes 1)
Taking of proper History of the patient before starting
treatment, 2) Use of PPE, Face mask or N95 respirators,
face shield, Goggles, 3) Must use of HVAC, 4) Keeping air
in and air out system in clinics whether its AC or combined
with exhaust. 5) Using Disposable covering for chairs and
panels, 6) Proper donning and doffing of PPE, face mask
and face shield, 7) Proper Hand sanitization[8,9].
Proper hand hygiene practices play an important role
in preventing the spread of infection. “Five Moments
of hand hygiene” by WHO, defines key moments that
Orthodontists must carry out before and after each
procedure. The CDC recommended alcohol-based hand
rub or handwashing with soap and water for at least 20
seconds.
All respondents were well aware of using personal
protective equipment (PPE) for post-COVID-19
Orthodontic practice. The CDC has provided Interim
Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations
and sequence for “donning and doffing” PPE10(Fig. 5).
The N95 respirator should be preferred over a normal
surgical face mask while performing aerosol-generating
procedures on patients, otherwise, a normal Surgical face
mask is enough. Disposable face shields and gloves must
be used while performing clinical procedures. Proper
disposal of the used masks and gloves must be learned
and maintained.
A special Thanks to the Indian Orthodontic Society,
Dental Council of India and so many Dental colleges for
conducting a lot of webinars and keeping all Orthodontists
occupied in this lockdown period as told by the majority
of respondents. Physical and mental health improvement
by doing yoga, meditation, and consuming fresh air
is essential for the Orthodontists in this testing time to
relieve the psychological stress.
Although a ray of hope is seen as a team of scientists
at Oxford Vaccine Group (Department of Paediatrics) and
Oxford University’s Jenner Institute are at the doorstep
for the discovery of a safe, effective, and accessible
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vaccine against coronavirus among several other Vaccine
candidates those are in trials, as it goes for phase III. And
Phase I & II had shown commendable results as claimed
by the co-authors. Serum Institute of India (SII), which
had a partnership with AstraZeneca for manufacturing
the University of Oxford vaccine candidate, has got
permission from the Drugs Controller General of India
(DCGI) for conducting Phase II and III human clinical trials,
which will be named as Covishield in India.
Covaxin, which is Developed by Bharat Biotech in
collaboration with ICMR and the National Institute of
Virology (NIV), has started its Phase I trial in AIIMS and
PGI Rohtak recently.
Conclusion
Collected data of the survey shows that COVID-19 has
affected Orthodontic practice in various aspects. We
need to modify and adapt ourselves for each and every
orthodontic procedure to be done in the future. From
Diagnosis and treatment planning to Leveling &Alignment,
Space closure, Finishing & detailing, Debonding, and
Retention phase we need to update all our practice
procedures. We need to implement a huge modification
in the clinical setup, sterilization protocols, personal
hygiene & safety, safety for staff and receptionists.
Several challenging situations may arise constantly for
the Orthodontists regarding economic constrain, treating
patients, and many more. But there is a phrase: “Even the
darkest night will end and the sun will rise.” So we must
keep in our mind that this period is not the end, it is just
a pause, which is to reform ourselves with positivity and
wisdom.
Acknowledgments
We are really grateful to all 226 Orthodontists who
responded to the survey. We respect the valuable time
paid for the questionnaire by all of them. We salute them.
A special Thanks to Dr. Asesh Chakrabarti who have
done the statistical analysis and helped us in every step
for this article to be framed.
Ethical Apology
The episode of this pandemic & this Lockdown is totally
new for our generation and society, so, there might be
a biasedness or intuition among the respondents while
responding and so, a scientific logical analysis might not
justify the results.
Impact of COVID 19 upon Orthodontists: An Opinion Study
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