Use of teledentistry tools in Primary Health Care during the covid-19 pandemic

Abstract

This cross-sectional study investigated the adoption of teledentistry tools in Primary Health Care (PHC) during the covid-19 pandemic, as well as the associated variables. Data were collected using an online, semi-structured questionnaire sent to municipal oral health managers in Brazil and analyzed using association tests and multiple logistic regression, with a significance level of 5%. The average age of the participants was 40, the majority of whom were female (69.85%), had a postgraduate degree (68.92%) and worked exclusively in management (63.48%). Around half of the participants held an institutionalized position (50.33%) and 18.73% had received training for the job. The practice of teledentistry was non-existent in almost half of the municipalities (43.03%). Municipalities in the North (OR=0.338) or South (OR=0.405) were significantly less likely to have teledentistry; those that carried out oral health planning activities (OR=2.651), or whose managers had received prior training (OR=1.748), were significantly more likely to adopt teledentistry. We have concluded that the practice of teledentistry was non-existent in almost half of the Brazilian municipalities and was associated with geographical region, prior training of managers and the planning activities of the Oral Health Teams.