The study of the impact of the introduction of self-isolation and the mandatory wearing of personal protective equipment on oral hygiene

BACKGROUND: The availability of medical facilities, and as a result, the possibility of receiving medical care has decreased due to the announcement of quarantine in several countries. An untimely request for dental care entails a change in the CPI index (the sum of teeth on which caries, a filling or a tooth has been removed), resulting in partial or complete loss of teeth. The complete absence of teeth is accompanied by morphofunctional changes in all elements of the dental system, a significant decrease in chewing ability. Thus, the decrease in public attention to dental hygiene and treatment in dental clinics for examination and treatment negatively affected dental health.

AIM: The aim is to assess the impact of the introduction of self—isolation and mandatory wearing of personal protective equipment on oral hygiene of students of higher educational institutions of Ryazan and the Ryazan region and foreign universities (universities).

MATERIAL AND METHODS: The research materials were the results of a survey conducted among Russian students and students living outside the Russian Federation. A total of 397 students (English speakers – mainly India, Egypt, Canada; French speakers – mainly Morocco, Lebanon, Tunisia), who were divided into several study groups. In total, 397 students took part in our study (42% were girls, 58% were young people), 123 of them were Russian-speaking students, 120 English-speaking students and 154 French-speaking students.

RESULTS: A comparative assessment of the results of the study showed a positive state of oral hygiene in the majority of respondents, and there was an increase in interest in the use of additional personal hygiene products of the oral cavity (chewing gum, irrigators, rinses, single-stick brushes, toothpicks, etc.).

CONCLUSION: In general, oral hygiene, being an integral part of daily care, was not forgotten during self-isolation. Students regularly brushed their teeth, used additional means, but, as the study showed, students went to the dentist less often due to compliance with the self-isolation regime.