Psychosocial impact of COVID-19 among adolescent orthodontic patients: A multicenter cross-sectional study

Abstract

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the COVID-19 anxiety and fear levels of adolescent patients undergoing orthodontic treatment in terms of their demographic variables, treatment location, COVID-19 status, and various clinical conditions (hospitalization and psychological support), as well as to evaluate their associations with age and treatment duration.

Methodology: A multicenter descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted in four different private clinics and a public hospital during the pandemic. Descriptive data included information on demographics, orthodontic treatment, and COVID-19 status. Anxiety and fear were assessed using the COVID-19 Anxiety Scale (CAS) and Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FC-19S), respectively. The collected data was statistically analyzed with the Shapiro-Wilk, Student’s t, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis (Dunn post hoc) tests (p<0.05).

Results: A total of 231 adolescent patients (133 female and 98 male) with a mean age of 15.06 ± 1.61 years were examined. Higher anxiety scores were observed in patients from high-income families. In addition, patients receiving orthodontic treatment in private clinics reported significantly higher anxiety scores (p<0.05). Patients were more anxious and experienced fear when they had COVID-19-related symptoms or were exposed to COVID-19-positive patients (p<0.05). A positive correlation was found between the CAS and FC-19S scores (r =0.425; p=0.001) and between the treatment duration and FC-19S scores (r = 0.252; p=0.025).

Conclusion: In the presence of COVID-19-like pandemic disease, private clinicians should be aware of delayed appointments to reduce the anxiety level of their patients, taking into account their income level and exposure to infection.