The ADA recently released a policy that supports point-of-care testing to screen patients for a variety of chronic diseases and medical conditions, including COVID-19, that could complicate dental care or put patients and staff at risk. Currently, however, reliable and fast COVID-19 tests are not available for dentists to use in-office.
“It is well within dentists’ scope of practice to screen not just for COVID-19 infection but also other medical conditions that may affect dental care such as glucose levels, which help screen for diabetes, and blood pressure, which help screen for hypertension,” said ADA President Dr. Daniel Klemmedson, who holds degrees in both dentistry and medicine, according to a press release. “Patients with abnormal test results would be referred to a physician, other qualified medical professional or medical facility for diagnosis and follow-up care.”
According to 2013-2016 data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 7.7 percent of people, or 10.2 million, reported seeing a dentist in the previous 12 months but no other medical professional. Since re-opening their offices after the COVID-19 shut down, dentists have strengthened their infection prevention protocols and personal protective equipment (PPE) guidelines to safely see millions of patients.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) includes dentists among professionals who can test for COVID-19. The CDC recommends dental facilities consider implementing pre-procedure testing for COVID-19, particularly during PPE shortages.
The ADA and state dental societies are actively advocating state and federal regulatory authorities to publicly recognize that point-of-care testing for COVID-19 is within dentists’ existing scope of practice and to make COVID-19 tests available for use in dental practices.
“With dental practices reopened across the country, dentists are already screening patients for signs and symptoms of COVID-19, and referring patients for appropriate medical follow-up when indicated,” Dr. Klemmedson said, according to the release. “Unfortunately, such screening alone will not identify all individuals who are infected. Identifying infected patients is key to being able to protect both patients and dental team members from exposure to the virus.”
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