Orthodontics at Times of National Emergency: Past and Current Crises Part 1: Past Crises and Lessons Learnt

A crisis is ‘a decisive moment, a time of danger or great difficulty, the turning point especially of a disease.’¹

The world has endured several recent crises and will certainly experience more in the future. Crises include the events related to natural disasters and uncontrollable spread of a disease, which have not only impacted on daily life in general, but also on the ability to deliver orthodontic services. Although previous disaster reports relating to dentistry have largely focused on forensic and emergency dental services, there is limited reporting on the impact on orthodontic services. However, recent natural disaster reports that have commented on orthodontics are Hurricane Katrina (USA), the Great East Japan and Christchurch (New Zealand) Earthquakes, as well as the HIV and SARS pandemics.

Part 1, of this two part article, will discuss the management of the above crises with an emphasis on the impact on the delivery of orthodontic services, the lessons learnt and the long-term changes made as a result. In Part 2, the new disease, COVID-19, will be discussed, the changes that should be made to clinical practice and what the future may entail for orthodontics.