Scientometric and Content Analysis on Teledentistry

Abstract

Introduction: Evidence on the use of teledentistry is valid in the provision of oral care and assists policy makers and dental professionals in decision-making. Objective: To investigate the teledentistry services offered by dentists and describe their experiences through scientometric and content analysis. Methodology: A scientometric survey was carried out in 2023 in the Web of Science (WoS) database, followed by content analysis of the main areas where teledentistry is being used. The guiding question of the research was: How has teledentistry been used by dentists? Relational and content techniques were used for scientometric analysis, and VOSviewer software was used to construct bibliometric networks. Results: The period of greatest publication on the topic corresponded to the years 2021-2023, with the majority of articles published in 2022 (n = 112; 23.15%). The main countries identified were the USA (n=86; 24.64%), Australia (n=46; 13.18%), and Brazil (n=32; 9.16%). The use of teledentistry has increased due to the COVID-19 pandemic, being used in preventive and educational actions to promote oral health, in prescribing medications, in monitoring treatments already initiated, in pediatric dentistry and geriatric dentistry, among several others. Limitations and challenges in the use of teledentistry also stand out regarding access to technology and the internet, unfamiliarity with technological tools, protection of patient data, and professional resistance. Conclusions: Teledentistry has been used and researched in several countries; its practice has helped dentists through teleassistance, telemonitoring, and teleeducation.

Keywords: Dentistry; Oral Health; Teledentistry; Telehealth; Bibliometrics.