Patient Management
Kimia Ahmadian, DMD (she/her/hers)
Pediatric Dental Resident
Jacobi Medical Center, New York, NY
Jacobi Medical Center
Manhattan, New York, United States
Farhad Yeroshalmi, DMD, FAAPD, FICD
Program Director
Jacobi Medical Center
Bronx, New York, United States
Keith Margulis, DDS, MPH
Jacobi Medical Center, New York, NY
Victor Badner, DMD
Jacobi Medical Center
Farhad Yeroshalmi, DMD, FAAPD, FICD
Program Director
Jacobi Medical Center
Bronx, New York, United States
Purpose: To investigate the attitude, awareness and behavior of pediatric dentists towards teledentistry.
Methods: A 25 item questionnaire was sent via SurveyMonkey to 6,821 active members of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry practicing in the United States. Respondents were grouped based on their utilization of teledentistry: currently using it, have used it in the past, and never used it.
Results: Four hundred and forty two out of 6,821 members participated in the survey resulting an overall response rate of 6.5%. Forty two percent of the respondents (N=185) never used teledentistry and 58% (N=257) reported some utilization currently or in the past. Respondents who currently utilize teledentistry agreed that teledentistry can be efficiently used for monitor/follow ups and emergency exams (highest mean: 4.1 out of 5; Cronbach’s Alpha= 0.8030). Seventy four percent of the utilizers used teledentistry in treating dental emergencies. Respondents who never utilized teledentistry agreed that teledentistry can be used for education and behavioral instructions (highest mean: 3.854 out of 5; Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.8606). In the groups who used teledentistry in the past, 91% reported Covid-19 pandemic as the main reason for teledentistry utilization in their practice. Participant reported the lack of reimbursement, elimination of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, and difficulty diagnosis as the major reasons for discontinuing teledentistry utilization.
Conclusion: Teledentistry can be a tool in pediatric dental practice, especially in treatment of dental emergencies and follow ups, with main hesitation for utilization being lack of technology resources and reimbursement.