Recent research has sought to find out how dental clinic closures during the Covid-19 pandemic affected hospitals – in terms of emergency room visits from children. While oral pain should be treated at a dentist, the pandemic meant that some families resorted to visiting an emergency room. This had a significant impact on hospitals.
The Covid-19 pandemic caused chaos around the world. Virtually every industry was impacted. The healthcare industry was certainly the most affected.
This included oral healthcare. Dental clinics operated purely on an emergency-only basis. Therefore, some people resorted to visiting the hospital in order to seek treatment.
Hospitals were already overwhelmed due to the pandemic, so having additional visits from patients needing emergency dental care added to their workload.
Now, new research has looked at the impact that dental emergencies had on hospital visits in the United States. Specifically, the focus of the research was on children [1].
Background
The Covid-19 pandemic caused mass disruption as it rapidly spread around the world in early 2020. The oral health industry was particularly affected.
At the time of writing, the World Health Organization (WHO) have reported that around the world there have been over 7 million deaths from Covid-19 [2].
In 2020, the WHO announced that all non-emergency and routine dentistry should be suspended. Therefore, only patients needing urgent dental care received treatment [3].
But many people found it difficult to get an emergency appointment. When in intense pain, some people decided to go to a hospital in a desperate attempt to receive treatment.
However, emergency departments are not equipped to treat dental pain. Instead, they are able to treat physical health issues and in cases of oral pain – refer patients to a dental clinic.
The Research
The research was carried out by a team of researchers from the New York University (NYU) College of Dentistry. Their findings have been published in the Journal of the American College of Emergency Physicians Open [1].
The researchers were looking to find out how the impact of dental clinic closures affected emergency visits for children’s dental conditions [1].
To find this out, the researchers examined Medicaid claims data from 2018 to 2020 for children aged below 19 in the state of New York [1].
They looked to see how many claims were made through hospitals during the above time period. Then, this was compared to pre-pandemic data [1].
The researchers found that dental practice closures from March through May 2020 resulted in a 62% increase in children’s emergency room visits for dental issues [1]. This represents a huge rise and underlines the scale of the issue.
Moreover, the proportion of emergency room visits related to dental issues rose from 3.7% in 2019 to 6% in 2020 [1]. This again is a marked increase, with the proportion almost doubling in one year.
This is rather alarming given that dental complaints in the years prior to the pandemic accounted for 1% to 2% of emergency department visits – although this does count adults [1]. But even so, it shows the increase due to the pandemic.
The researchers argued that visiting an emergency department for oral pain can potentially be a waste of healthcare system resources, especially at a time when such resources were in short supply (the pandemic) [1].
Overall, it is clear that dental office closures had a significant knock-on effect on hospitals. The percentage increases outlined above are substantial.
Due to hospitals already being overstretched during the pandemic, this added issue contributed to further strain.
Learning from errors
The team are encouraging health systems to consider ways that patients in need of emergency dental care can be diverted from the emergency department [1].
Moreover, the researchers emphasized that ensuring children covered by Medicaid have access to a dental clinic in their community can help to prevent oral pain. Instead, they can receive emergency dental care there [1].
The research team have used the findings to urge the healthcare community to learn from past mistakes in the case that future pandemics happen.
Shulamite Huang of NYU College of Dentistry commented on this recommendation. Huang said that “the sizable changes in the emergency department dental care of very young children suggest that this population was likely to fall through holes in the dental safety net” [4].
Continuing, Huang said that “although dentists were allowed to treat dental emergencies, Medicaid-insured children may have had difficulty accessing care during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic” [4].
Therefore, it is important that hospitals plan ahead to avoid such a scenario in the future. Furthermore, health policy makers may also need to reconsider their stance on dental clinics, should another pandemic occur.
Hopefully, by planning ahead for the future, if another pandemic happens, we will be able to avoid a situation where the world’s oral health suffers significantly.
Instead, strong planning can contribute towards a better and healthier approach that balances physical and oral health, with the aim of improving treatment outcomes and general wellbeing.
Thinking points…
[1] None of us saw Covid-19 coming. It led to millions of dental appointments being cancelled. Therefore, we need to make sure we visit a dental clinic regularly, as we don’t know what is around the corner! Make sure you visit the dentist for a check-up at least once every six months. We recommend booking an appointment now!
[2] As mentioned above, Covid-19 led to many dental appointments being cancelled. If you haven’t yet attended a clinic since Covid, it is crucial that you do so soon! If you avoid the dentist, then problems will not be treated, and will inevitably worsen. Also, dental clinics have engaged in more stringent cleaning procedures since the pandemic, making it a safe and hygienic place to be. Make sure you go to a clinic soon!
What we offer at Taradale Dental
Taradale Dental is a dental clinic based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. At our Calgary dental clinic, we provide a range of services for our patients.
We advise our patients to attend our Calgary dental clinic at least twice per year for a regular dental check-up. At these check-ups, we provide a comprehensive review of a patient’s oral health. If any problems are detected, we have many treatments available. For example, these include cavity fillings and root canals. To strengthen your oral health, we recommend brushing your teeth at least twice a day and flossing regularly.
Here at Taradale Dental, we also have some cosmetic treatments available! These include dental implants, teeth whitening and Invisalign™! Our patients find that these treatments have a positive impact on their appearance, confidence and self-esteem.
Moreover, the fees of our treatments at our Calgary dental clinic Taradale Dental are set in line with the Alberta Dental Fee Guide. This ensures transparent and fair pricing, with no hidden costs.
We hope to see you soon at our Taradale Dental clinic in Calgary! You can find out more about us by visiting our website https://taradaledental.ca/!
References
[1] Huang, S. S., Wang, S., & Gold, H. T. (2025). Pandemic-Associated Dental Office Closures Associated With Increased Use of Emergency Departments for Dental Conditions in Publicly Insured Children In New York State. JACEP Open. 6 (2): 100094. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acepjo.2025.100094.
[2] World Health Organization. (2025). WHO COVID-19 Dashboard. Available: https://data.who.int/dashboards/covid19/deaths?n=c. Last accessed: 15th March 2025.
[3] Rivas, K. (2020). Amid coronavirus, avoid nonessential dental care, WHO says. Available: https://www.foxnews.com/health/who-coronavirus-avoid-nonessential-dental-care. Last accessed: 15th March 2025.
[4] Oral Health. (2025). During the pandemic, U.S. hospitals saw a 62% surge in emergency visits for kids’ dental conditions. Available: https://www.oralhealthgroup.com/dental-governance-regulations/during-the-pandemic-u-s-hospitals-saw-a-62-surge-in-emergency-visits-for-childrens-dental-conditions-1003984969/. Last accessed: 15th March 2025.
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