Report finds COVID-19 rate among dentists is less than 1%

A US-based report suggested that less than one per cent of dentists were found to be COVID-19 positive across the globe.

It was a first-of-its-kind report based on data collected in June 2020.

The result is far below that of other health professionals in the US.

In addition, 99 per cent of dentists are using enhanced infection control procedures such as screening protocols and enhanced disinfection practices when treating patients.

The report, published online ahead of print by The Journal of the American Dental Association, is the first large-scale collection and publication of U.S. dentists' infection rates and infection control practices related to Covid-19.This report focused on nearly 2,200 dentists in June, finding that 82 per cent of dentists were asymptomatic for one month prior to the survey and 16.6 per cent reported getting a COVID-19 test.

Those who tested positive were not clustered in any particular geographic region.

Among those not tested, less than one per cent (0.32) was given a probable COVID-19 diagnosis by a physician.

The authors weighted the results to align with U.S. dentists demographically and geographically and found an estimated prevalence of less than one per cent (0.9) with a margin of error of 0.5 per cent.

This newly-published report, with the extremely low rate of Covid-19 infection among dentists, supports the effectiveness of the recommendations from the CDC and ADA in preventing virus transmission.