The Effect of Covid-19 on the Presentation and Management of Head and Neck Infections of Dental Origin

Purpose: The Egyptian authorities announced a period of national partial lockdown on 25th March 2020 to reduce disease
burden on the Ministry of Health Hospital Service, the lockdown was eased by the end of June, reopening different facilities,
and places of worship, with some restrictions in place to limit crowding.This study aimed to determine the effect of Sars, Cov2,
during the partial lockdown on the presentation, and management of maxillofacial infections during the pandemic.
Materials and Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed all patients admitted to Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Department from 25th of March 2020 to 25th of June 2020 and compared with other admitted cases over the same period in the
two preceding years.
Results: The results of the study suggest that there has been an overall decrease in the number patients admitted with head and
neck infections of dental origin. The severity of infection was much higher. Patients required more invasive treatment through
extraoral incisions. Local anesthesia was the prevalent method as it decreases the risk of virus transmission to more theater
personals and maxillofacial surgeons.
Conclusion: The performance of incision and drainage under local anesthesia limits the need for anesthetic equipment and
drugs. No change was found regarding the length of hospital stay with a mean of 3 days, this is considered adequate for the
patient management. Larger sample of patients and longer multicenter studies are needed to determine the impact of the novel
virus on head and neck infection of dental origin.