Is Teledentistry as Effective as Clinical Dental Diagnosis in Pediatric Patients?

Background: Teledentistry integrates telecommunications with dental practice, facilitating the exchange of clinical information and images for remote dental consultation and treatment planning. This approach enables dental care access across long distances, addressing the need for flexible healthcare solutions.

Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of teledentistry compared to clinical in-person dental diagnosis in pediatric patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design: The study sample consisted of 200 children aged 3-13 years, each undergoing both teledentistry-based and in-person clinical dental diagnosis. Caries index scores, including DMFT/dmft and DMFS/dmfs, as well as the identification of specific dental conditions such as molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH), black tooth staining, periodontal disease, dental trauma, and orthodontic anomalies, were recorded in both diagnostic settings. Statistical analysis was conducted using chi-square, Wilcoxon, and Fisher's Exact tests.

Results: The mean age of participants was 7.86 ± 2.40 years. Caries index scores (DMFT/dmft, DMFS/dmfs) showed compatibility between teledentistry and clinical diagnoses. While "d/D, f/F, ds/DS, fs/FS" scores were observed to be higher in clinical diagnoses compared to teledentistry, the difference was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). Scores for "m/M" and "ms/MS" were identical in both diagnostic methods. Additionally, the prevalence of dental anomalies, including MIH, black tooth staining, periodontal disease, dental trauma, and orthodontic anomalies, was comparable across both diagnostic approaches.

Conclusion: Findings suggest that teledentistry serves as an effective alternative to clinical in-person diagnosis for pediatric dental consultations and treatment planning, demonstrating comparable accuracy in identifying caries and dental anomalies in children.