Pan-dent-emic: safety considerations for dental surgery in the era of COVID-19

Abstract

The global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic spread has seized the entire world and has created extensive health concerns in the general population. Despite various efforts to prevent the pandemic spread, the flare-up of this disease is still soaring due to the community spread in every area. The droplet spread from the afflicted is of the highest concern because of its rapid spread to uninfected individuals. Dental treatments have to be planned and carried out with extreme caution and dental personnel should take extreme care and follow meticulous guidelines when treating an individual with SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) infection. This article highlights the clinical picture of COVID-19 (coronavirus diseases 2019) and presents a summary of precautionary and prophylactic measures in preventing the cross-infection and the nosocomial spread of the infection in a dental setting.