Many people are experiencing tooth discoloration, which may indicate more serious issues, such as decay or infection, as patients neglect their oral health amid the pandemic, John Pawlowicz, DMD, a Pittsburgh-based dentist, told CBS affiliate KDKA-TV.
Many people with discolored teeth turn to self-whitening products, Dr. Pawlowicz said, which can mask real issues.
"I've had patients that have really tried to do a lot of home whitening and it turned out that the stain was there for a reason: it was actually decay," Dr. Pawlowicz told KDKA-TV.
"We call them COVID teeth," Dr. Pawlowicz said. "You know a lot of excessive decay and infection that's occurring. We're seeing a lot of kind of gingivitis, where the gums are slightly inflamed because of the plaque buildup on the teeth that's been occurring. Most people hate to floss, so they're missing in between their teeth, and if they're only brushing once or twice and they already had some preexisting problems prior to the pandemic, what we're seeing now is a lot more infection, and a lot more broken teeth."
Dr. Pawlowicz said more intense dental treatment has been required lately.
"We're having to do a lot more tooth removal extractions, and a little bit more gum surgery than we've had to do in the past because of these gum infections and tooth infections," he said.