Geriatric Dental Management and Education Due to the Covid-19 Crisis; Challenges and Solutions

Objectives: Physical and mental disabilities, the existence of financial restrictions, insufficient familial support, transportation problems, and confined access to dental services can have harmful effects on the oral health and overall quality of life of the elderly. Moreover, the incidence of the Covid-19 epidemic has created an additional concern in providing appropriate dental care. Therefore, in this article, geriatric dental education and management due to the Covid-19 pandemic in both developing and developed countries are precisely discussed and compared. Methods: A complete query was carried out on PubMed, PubMed Central, Medline, EBSCO, Google Scholar, and Embase databases, and the studies published during 2010-2022 were collected using the keywords "Geriatric Dentistry," "Covid-19," "Education," "Artificial Intelligence," and "Mobile Dentistry." Ultimately, 41 relevant articles and 2 textbooks were selected and evaluated. Results: The existing crisis can be properly managed by preparing an accurate curriculum emphasizing practical preventive care and effective communication skills, holding domestic or international conferences for dental students, organizing mandatory practical dental courses in nursing homes, and evolving new theories including artificial intelligence and mobile dentistry. Conclusion: It is essential to have a multidisciplinary approach including dentistry, medicine, education, engineering, and legislation to achieve the best treatment plan for the elderly.