An Effect of Covid Treatment on Oral Cavity

Abstract

Covid-19 means Corona Virus Disease which is an emergency disease declared by World Health Organization. Its first case was reported on December, 2019 in a city of China name Wuhan. Responsible virus for Covid-19 is SARS-CoV-2. Disease can be transmitted by Sneezing, Coughing, Close Contact etc. Patient of Covid-19 advise to isolate themselves for minimum 14 days either in Home or Hospital setup.

Introduction

I. INTRODUCTION

There are no any proven treatment guidelines for  Covid-19 but Government from different nations issue some guidelines for treatment according to their Health scientists and WHO.  India which has diversity in environment, immunity from region to region so GOI issues a uniform guidelines for treatment of Covid-19 which include Antiviral drugs, Antibiotics , Vitamins & Steroids.

Irrational use of Steroids can harm our organs by decreasing immune system. One of the major site which is highly affected by irrational use of steroids is Oral cavity which is reservoir of many types of bacterias which include mainly Anaerobes namely Actinomyces, Arachina, Bacteriodes, Lactobacillus, Treponema, Selenomonas etc. In addition, there are also a number of fungi found in the oral cavity name as Candida, Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Fusarium, Glomus, Alternaria, Penicillium, and Cryptococcus.

II. MECHANISM OF ACTION OF STERIODS

Exogenous androgenic anabolic steroids produce two effects on the immune system :

1. A direct early effect on immune function which is suppressive.
2. An indirect delayed stimulatory effect mediated through the negative feedback on the pituitary.

III. EFFECT OF STEROIDS IN ORAL CAVITY

After reducing immunity, Steroids can be cause of following -

A. Dental Plaque

The dental plaque is made up of the microbial community that is adhered to the tooth surface, this plaque is also recognized as a biofilm. While it is said that this plaque is adhered to the tooth surface, the microbial community of the plaque is not directly in contact with the enamel of the tooth. Instead, bacteria with the ability to form attachments to the acquired pellicle, which is contains certain salivary proteins, on the surface of the teeth begin the establishment of the biofilm. Upon dental plaque maturation, in which the microbial community grows and diversifies, the plaque is covered in an interbacterial matrix.

B. Dental Calculus

The calculus of the oral cavity is the result of mineralization of and around dead microorganisms; this calculus can then be colonized by living bacteria. Dental calculus can be present on supragingival and subgingival surfaces.

C. Oral Mucosa

The mucosa of the oral cavity provides a unique ecological site for microbiota to inhabit. Unlike the teeth, the mucosa of the oral cavity is frequently shedding and thus its microbial inhabitants are both kept at lower relative abundance than those of the teeth but also must be able to overcome the obstacle of the shedding epithelia.

Conclusion

In the treatment of Covid-19, irrational use of steroids must be stop otherwise person who was recover from Covid-19 will definitely affect Oral cavity hardly. Post covid followup should include Dental care also which is highly neglected now a days.

Copyright

Copyright © 2022 Milan Sikarwar, Pravesh Singh Bhadoria. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.