Interruption of Orthodontic Treatment During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

The objective of this study was to critically analyze and discuss the main consequences that occurred due to the interruption of treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic.This review was developed in accordance with the PRISMA Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews. The research question was determined using the PECO strategy. Electronic searches were performed in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Science Direct, SciELO and gray literature for relevant published articles. Observational studies with patients undergoing interrupted orthodontic treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic, containing information on time of treatment interruption, age, sample size, experimental groups, evaluation criteria and study results, were included. The search strategy resulted in the retrieval of 568 publications. After applying the eligibility criteria, 11 articles were selected for qualitative analysis. The results show a decrease in the frequency of patients at the dental office for follow-up appointments during the pandemic and the appearance of symptoms due to the interruption of orthodontic therapy . It is concluded that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, several consequences occurred due to the interruption of orthodontic treatment such as periodontal problems, pain, damage to the appliance, failure to bond the brackets, detachment of the elastic ligature and the appearance of mouth ulcers.

KEY WORDS: COVID-19; orthodontic treatment; orthodontic appliance; treatment interruption; systematic review.

NERI, R.T. A. M.; ALMEIDA E SILVA, L. D.; GUIMARÃES, A. M. T. B.; SANTOS, O. C. C.; FONSECA-SILVA, T. Interruption of orthodontic treatment during the covid-19 pandemic: A systematic review. Int. J. Odontostomat., 19(4):385- 391, 2025.