The prevalence of dental caries in Saudi children is estimated to be 80% for primary dentition and 70% for permanent dentition. Dental treatment under general anesthesia (GA) might be recommended for children with uncooperative behavior or complicated dental treatment requirements. Despite its advantages, some parents have concerns regarding this approach. Nonetheless, little is known about Saudi parents’ perceptions and concerns regarding pediatric dental treatment under GA. The main objective of this study was to determine parents’ concerns and perceptions on pediatric dental treatment under GA in Saudi Arabia. It is a cross-sectional survey study. The inclusion criteria were: Arabic-speaking parents of healthy children aged 1–14 years referred to GA screening for dental treatment in a hospital. The final study cohort comprised 319 participants. The first part of the questionnaire included the children’s and parents’ demographic and clinical input, while the second part comprised the parents’ perceptions and concerns. The survey was distributed in the dental office during GA screening visits. Our findings revealed that most parents were concerned about possible GA-related complications (78%), followed by postoperative pain (51%), intravenous line and cannula (49%) and coma or death (46%). This study highlights that most Saudi parents were concerned about the use of GA in pediatric dental treatment and the need for more awareness regarding the risks, benefits and expected outcomes of pediatric dental care under GA.

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) announced COVID-19 a public health emergency of global concern. The most vulnerable populations are elderly and/or medically compromised people. it is recommended that non-emergency and elective procedures be postponed while dental clinics remain open to patients with urgent needs. Providing oral-health instruction is important to limit the needs of patients to leave their homes for treatment. The aim of this study is to evaluate the knowledge and behaviour of residents in Saudi Arabia towards their oral health during the COVID-19 outbreak.Methods: This study was a cross-sectional descriptive survey. Data was collected through online self-administration of the questionnaire on the Google forms platform. Any relationships between the variables were analysed using Pearson’s chi-squared test. A p value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: This study included 1000 participants. 70.7% reported that their oral-health care practices became worse during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants’ medical histories revealed that 17.8% had multiple chronic illnesses. Of all respondents, 48.2% believed that COVID-19 is a serious health problem and only 33.4% of respondents were aware that only emergency treatment is being offered at dental clinics during the COVID-19 pandemic.Conclusions: An alarming percentage of participants do not see COVID-19 as threatening to their health. A number of people needed urgent treatment but preferred to stay home because of fear and anxiety connected to the pandemic. The lack of information can lead to the exacerbation of such fear, which in turn causes individuals to neglect their oral health.