The Main Decisional Factors That Influence the Decision of the Patients Suffering from Diabetes to Have Dental Implants Using New Technologies after the COVID-19 Pandemic Period

Abstract

The problems that have arisen in recent years in Romania (the financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, the accelerated growth of inflation and unemployment) have led many people to give less and less importance to dental hygiene, which has led to an increase in the number of people with dental medical problems. In addition, poor information about the need for regular visits to the dentist, the low importance given to this field, and insufficient financial resources led people to turn to dental medical services less often. Moreover, the two-month closure of medical practices during the COVID-19 pandemic made individuals more reluctant to make appointments with dentists for fear of coming into contact with a person infected with the new SARS-CoV-2 virus. All this led to the occurrence of dental complications among patients, which made the number of dental implants increase. Patients suffering from diabetes mellitus present a series of particularities due to a series of risks generated by this condition that may appear in their case. The aim of this research is to identify the main factors that can influence the decision of patients with diabetes mellitus to have a dental implant. The data collection was performed with the help of a questionnaire, and the analysis of the database was performed with the help of IBM SPSS software. Following the analysis, it was noted that this decision is largely influenced by the reputation of the medical practice, the perceived risks, the quality of the materials used, the warranty of the dental implant, the quality of the services provided, and the costs.