Psychological and financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic during the first stages of the pandemic: Brazilian orthodontists´ perspective.

INTRODUCTION

Brazil faced a catastrophic situation in the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the high risk of contamination and spread of COVID-19, dentist have been attending only urgency and emergency services in Brazil at the beginning of the pandemic.

OBJECTIVE

This research aimed to evaluate the psychological and financial impacts caused by the coronavirus pandemic in Brazilian orthodontists.

METHODS

This population-based cross-sectional study collected demographic data and mental health measurements from 404 orthodontists. Depression, anxiety, insomnia, and distress were evaluated through Brazilian versions of the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (9-PHQ), the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale and Mini-Tracking (GAD), the 7-item Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), and the 22-item Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), respectively. The demographic data of the sample was described using descriptive statistics. The data was analyzed according to sex, professional status, and economic income. Comparisons were performed using Chi-square tests, Mann-Whitney U tests, and Kruskal-Wallis followed by post-hoc tests.

RESULTS

Females, graduate students, and lower incomes subgroups showed higher levels of depression, anxiety, insomnia, and distress. Most orthodontists showed moderate to extreme financial and professional concerns during the pandemic.

CONCLUSION

The coronavirus pandemic negatively affected the psychological health and increased the financial concerns of the Brazilian orthodontists, mainly female, graduate students, and with income below 10k participants.