Purpose Dental fear is associated with the avoidance of dental visits and negative oral health outcomes. It is important to assess distribution of dental fear and preference for emergency dental treatment among adult population during COVID-19. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate dental fear and emergency dental treatment among adults in COVID-19 quarantine centers in Greater Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Materials and Methods Male and female adults (N=606) in quarantine centers for COVID-19 participated in this cross-sectional study (June–July 2020). Dental Fear Survey was used to collect data on dental fear. The participants also provided their responses about emergency dental treatment/dental attendance patterns in addition to demographic information. Results The mean DFS score of the sample was 39.08 ± 19.47, and 23.1% of the participants were a little fearful and 22.6% were highly fearful. About 36.8% reported that they would prefer to visit a dental office in case of dental emergency mostly for dental pain and fractured tooth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Only 10.4% of the participants reported visiting a dentist in less than 3 months, 35.8% in less than 6 months, 52.5% between 6 and 12 months and more, and 1.3% never visited the dentist. DFS scores significantly differed among participants who visited the dentist in less than 3 months (31.86 ± 14.57), less than 6 months (37.70 ± 18.57), between 6 and 12 months and more (40.78 ± 20.23), and never visited the dentist (65.75 ± 14.74) (P < 0.001). The timing of last dental visit (P < 0.001), female gender (P 0.039), and dental pain (P < 0.001) were the significant predictors of dental fear. Conclusion Dental fear was common among adults with a predilection for the female gender. Increased dental fear was significantly related to dental pain and reduced dental attendance. Only one-third of adults were willing to perform emergency dental visits.

Background The burden of oral disease requires collaboration between health care professionals. Nurses are frequently exposed to patients and can play a vital role in prevention of oral diseases. This study aimed to investigate nurses’ attitudes towards their role in dental care and its associated factors. Methods This cross-sectional, survey-based study recruited a total of 525 nurses in Eastern Saudi Arabia, using a snow-ball sampling technique. Data was collected using an online, pre-validated 40-item questionnaire with four domains (attitudes, knowledge, practices, and demographic data). Results Nurses showed satisfactory attitudes (52.8 ± 8.2) and average knowledge (13.4 ±3.9). More than two thirds (70.3%) reported responding to patients’ questions about oral health conditions, 47.1% and 19.7% conducted oral health screening and education respectively. Referral practices were reported by 266 (50.7%) of the participants with pain being the main reason for referrals. Attending lectures/ trainings on oral health and having a formal education about oral health were significantly associated with nurses’ positive attitudes towards their role in dental care (P<0.001). Conducting oral health screening or education were also significantly associated with positive attitudes (P = 0.001). Conclusion Positive attitudes were observed among those with undergraduate oral health backgrounds, in continuous education, and those who were involved in oral health screenings. There is a need for under and postgraduate inclusion of oral health training in nurses’ education.