Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39119790›Full record

ArticleAmerican journal of industrial medicine2024

COVID-19 deaths in dental occupations and other healthcare occupations among U.S. decedents in 2020.

Brie Hawley Blackley, Ethan D Fechter-Leggett, Talia Alexander, Fotinos Panagakos, Tammy Chipps, Jean M Cox-Ganser

Abstract read
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Article in American journal of industrial medicine, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Brie Hawley BlackleyCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Respiratory Health Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Ethan D Fechter-LeggettCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Respiratory Health Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-9230-0857
Talia AlexanderCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Respiratory Health Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Fotinos PanagakosSchool of Dental Medicine, Pacific Northwest University, Yakima, Washington, USA.
Tammy ChippsDepartment of Restorative Dentistry, School of Dentistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Jean M Cox-GanserCenters for Disease Control and Prevention, Respiratory Health Division, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.

Funding

Intramural CDC HHS CC999999
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEarly studies during the COVID-19 pandemic suggested dental occupations were among the highest risk for exposure to SARs-CoV-2 because of multiple factors increasing exposure, including close proximity to unmasked patients and performance of aerosol-generating procedures. However, to date, few studies have investigated COVID-19 deaths in United States dental occupations, and compared COVID-19 deaths among healthcare occupations.

methodsWe analyzed 2020 mortality data collected by the National Center for Health Statistics' National Vital Statistics System. Multivariable logistic regression was used to generate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals for COVID-19 as the underlying cause of death in relation to occupation in working-age decedents (≤65 years), after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, and medical conditions associated with severe COVID-19.

resultsDental occupations did not have significantly higher risk for COVID-19 death when compared to all other occupations combined. Among healthcare occupations with frequent, direct patient- or client interactions, LPNs and LVNs, and speech and language pathologists had significantly elevated adjusted ORs for COVID-19 death when compared to dentists, dental hygienists, or dental assistants. Similarly, nurse practitioners had significantly higher ORs for COVID-19 mortality than dentists or dental hygienists, and approached significance when compared to dental assistants. Conversely, massage therapists and other health diagnosing and treating practitioners had significantly lower adjusted ORs for COVID-19 death compared with dental occupations.

conclusionOur study highlights potential differences in work-related transmission of SARs-CoV-2 and subsequent COVID-19 deaths in healthcare occupations, and furthers a previously limited understanding of COVID-19 deaths in healthcare occupations in 2020, before COVID-19 vaccine availability. Our results indicate that dental occupations were not among the highest, nor lowest risk, healthcare occupations for COVID-19 deaths in 2020, despite their known risks of direct exposure.

Indexed as

COVID-19AdultAgedCause of DeathDentistryDentistsFemaleHealth OccupationsHumansMaleMiddle AgedOccupational DiseasesOccupational ExposureSARS-CoV-2United StatesYoung AdultCOVID‐19COVID‐19 mortalitydental occupationshealthcare occupations

Identifiers

PMID39119790
PMCPMC11651365

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.