COVID-19 and orthodontics: An approach for monitoring patients at home

Aim: The aim of this study was to test an experimental approach involving the remote monitoring of orthodontic patients through the use of their smartphones. Background: Due to the COVID-19 emergency, dental offices were asked to stop elective treatments; suddenly orthodontic patients found themselves isolated at home, without the possibility of monitoring by their orthodontists. The use of telemonitoring via smartphones can be a quick way to recover the orthodontist-patient relationship, monitor and continue the treatment. Objective: The purpose of this study was to propose an innovative, simple and reliable approach for the remote management of orthodontic patients. Methods: 137 patients were contacted verbally by phone and via WhatsApp®; they were asked to send a set of photographs taken with their smartphone. They were asked to complete a questionnaire to evaluate the effectiveness of the approach. Descriptive statistics (frequency with percent) of questionnaire results and the presence of procedural errors while taking pictures were calculated. Correlations between different questionnaire answers were analyzed with the Chi-Square test. Variables with p < 0:05 were declared as significant. Results: The majority of patients considered that this approach was positive and they did not feel abandoned. Difficulties emerged from a technical point of view, that is, in terms of photoshoot, and part of the patients expressed perplexity regarding the fact that telemonitoring can replace completely an outpatient visit. Conclusion: The use of telemonitoring managed to recreate a relationship with the orthodontist, especially in emergency periods.