Abstract This exploratory study investigated whether children with dental decay were more likely to have COVID-19 than those without caries. The children underwent dental inspection and blood collection for detection of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Fifty-four children aged 6 to 9 years participated in the survey, which was conducted between March and June 2020 in the municipality of Ipojuca, Pernambuco, Brazil. The diagnosis of caries was performed using the dmft and DMFT indices. Parents reported signs and symptoms of sickness in their children during this period. The serology test aimed to verify the immune response of the children to coronavirus by detecting IgM/IgG antibodies. Statistical analyses were performed at P < 0.05. The majority of the children presented caries (68.5%). Of the nine children who tested positive for COVID-19 (16.7%), eight presented IgG antibodies to the virus, and only one had IgG and IgM antibodies to SARS-CoV2. Children who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 had a higher percentage of caries lesions than those who tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 (77.8% vs 65.9%), but this difference was not statistically significant.

Abstract: The new coronavi rus, which has spread worldwide, has spiraled out of control in Brazil. The number of infected children has increased, and more Infants Special Care Units are needed to prevent deaths. This study aims to report the most common signs and symptoms in children infected by seasonal respiratory viruses and those infected by COVID-19. This knowledge is essential to educate pediatric dentists, who may contribute to identifying the difference in symptoms and notify the cases, thus preventing the spread of COVID-19. This study was carried out in a Family Health Center of Ipojuca, state of Pernambuco, Brazil, and included 54 children seen for dental emergency care. The parents provided information about the signs and symptoms of their children’ s health conditions during the lockdown from March to July 2020. All children had a serological test to detect any exposure to the virus. Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Mann-Whitney tests were used to assess the distribution of the data and compare the quantitative variables between the groups. Among the study participants, 16.7% tested positive for COVID-19. The most prevalent symptoms were headache (38.9%), sneezing (35.2%), and fever (20.4%); six out of nine children with a positive test had symptoms after infection of an adult in the family. Children infected with COVID-19 showed similar clinical signs to those with negative results. Pediatric dentists should acquire knowledge to report on sick children and prevent the spread of the disease.

Abstract As the pandemic progressed, the incidence of viruses among children also increased. This study investigates the presence of oral lesions in hospitalized children by analyzing data collected from medical records of infants seen at the pediatric Infectious disease unit at the General Hospital of the University of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil, from March to August 2020. This study includes children aged 0 to 12 years diagnosed with severe symptoms of COVID-19. The data describe the frequencies and percentages of categorical variables, expressed as mean, median, and standard deviation. The chi-square test evaluated the association of oral manifestations according to the presence of comorbidities. Of 89 children, 20.2% had oral manifestations, and mucositis was the most prevalent lesion (12.4%). Of the 18 children with oral manifestations, 12 did not present comorbidities, but 7.9% had multisystem inflammatory syndrome and 5.6% had Kawasaki disease. Results show that children with oral lesions had longer hospital stays. These findings indicate the need for further studies to clarify the relationship between the oral manifestations of COVID-19 in pediatric patients for screening of the virus by dentists.