Given the dynamic relationship between oral and general health, dental care must not be neglected even during a public health emergency. Nevertheless, the fear of contracting the infection appears to have caused instances of dental treatment avoidance. In these times of uncertainty, regulatory and public health organizations have made numerous and sometimes controversial recommendations to practitioners and to the public about how to secure their oral health care needs. Dentists, as advocates of oral health, should actively maintain their practices while considering local epidemiological reports and recommendations regarding prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Providing appropriate safety measures, accurate triage and prioritization of patients, notice to susceptible communities, remote health care delivery when appropriate, and epidemiological reports of COVID-19 (whenever possible) are all critical considerations for dental practitioners.

Dear Editor, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) corresponds to a new coronavirus subtype, which was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. This virus is the causative agent of the current pandemic, whose associated disease was named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by the World Health Organization (WHO). Thenceforward, SARS-CoV-2 has spread quickly across almost all countries and it has caused various economic and social impacts, affecting globally the health systems and the routine of [...] Dear Editor, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) corresponds to a new coronavirus subtype, which was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. This virus is the causative agent of the current pandemic, whose associated disease was named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) by the World Health Organization (WHO). Thenceforward, SARS-CoV-2 has spread quickly across almost all countries and it has caused various economic and social impacts, affecting globally the health systems and the routine of

Dear Editor, According to recent studies, approximately 33% of patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) should require intensive care, and up to 20% of those admitted to hospital may need invasive mechanical ventilation.() Considering the performance of multidisciplinary teams composed of physicians, nurses, dentists, physical therapists, and other health professionals at intensive care units (ICU) for treatment of COVID-19 patients,(–) and evidence pointing to a decrease in viral load of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in saliva [...] Dear Editor, According to recent studies, approximately 33% of patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) should require intensive care, and up to 20% of those admitted to hospital may need invasive mechanical ventilation.() Considering the performance of multidisciplinary teams composed of physicians, nurses, dentists, physical therapists, and other health professionals at intensive care units (ICU) for treatment of COVID-19 patients,(–) and evidence pointing to a decrease in viral load of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in saliva

Background: Novel coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has impacted populations in many ways worldwide, including access to oral health services. This study aims to assess the association between lockdown due to COVID-19 and online searches for toothache in Iran using Google Trends (GT). Methods: We investigated GT online searches for toothache within the past five years. The time frame for data gathering was considered as the initiation and end dates of the national lockdown in Iran. We performed one-way ANOVA statistical test to compare relative search volumes (RSVs) between the year 2020 and 2016–2019 for the whole country. Then we investigated the possible association of RSVs in provinces with dentists’ density, prevalence of current daily smokers, Human Development Index (HDI), Internet access, and fluoride concentration in water using linear regression. Results: When comparing 2020 with the previous four years, there was a rise of 2020 RSVs versus all previous years combined and each year (P < 0.001 for all of them). In the linear model for the year 2020, HDI (B = − 3.29, 95% CI: (− 5.80, − 0.78), P = 0.012) had a strong negative relationship with provincial RSVs. HDI mostly had strong positive relationship with provincial RSVs in prior years. Fluoride concentration (B = − 0.13, 95% CI: (− 0.24, − 0.03), P = 0.017) and dentists’ density (B = − 0.04, 95% CI: (− 0.25, 0.17), P = 0.669) were also negatively associated with RSVs in 2020. These associations were mostly negative in the previous years as well. Internet access (B = 0.36, 95% CI: (− 0.38, 1.09), P = 0.325) and prevalence of daily smokers (B = 0.33, 95% CI: (0.13, 0.53), P = 0.002) were positively associated with RSVs. Conclusion: The RSVs for toothache in 2020 have increased due to COVID-19-imposed lockdown compared with the same period in the past four years. This increase was related to socioeconomic factors.