Impact of the absence of dental support on cancer patients during COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study.
Support Care Cancer 2022;
30:9403-9410. [PMID:
36180754 PMCID:
PMC9525222 DOI:
10.1007/s00520-022-07375-x]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Purpose
This study identifies the impact of the absence of dental support for patients with cancer whose clinical dental care was interrupted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Methods
Individuals with oncologic diseases were selected from a telephone list of a Clinical Research Center (CRC) that specialized in the care of patients with cancer at the Bauru School of Dentistry, University of São Paulo (FOB/USP). The convenience sample comprised 280 patients (aged > 18 years) with a history of cancer that underwent dental treatment at the FOB/USP CRC in 2019 and did not receive care in 2020 owing to the pandemic. The participants completed a questionnaire sent via email or a text messaging application. Individuals receiving treatment or who were already treated for cancer were divided into two groups for data tabulation. Statistical analyses were performed using Fisher’s and chi-square tests.
Results
Of the 280 patients, 104 answered the questionnaire, and 75 (72.1%) were women. Among the women, 45 (60.0%) were receiving antineoplastic treatment, and 30 (40.0%) had already been treated. Among the men, 15 (51.7%) were receiving antineoplastic treatment, and 14 (48.3%) had already been treated. Regarding oral problems that arose during the pandemic, dental pain when eating hot or cold food or drinks (57.0%), muscle pain (53.8%), and difficulties when chewing (51.0%) were the most common reported among patients. Furthermore, most individuals reported not having received any type of remote dental follow-up, before being contacted by our team, which could contribute to reducing these oral problems.
Conclusion
It is impossible to say whether the absence of dental support in cancer patients during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic had a negative impact on oral issue rates.
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