ABSTRACT Objective:

To determine the relationship of transmission of COVID-19 virus knowledge with dental care during a pandemic.

Material and Methods:

Online questionnaire using Google forms distributed through social media (WhatsApp groups, Facebook, line groups) using a combination of convenience and snowball sampling. The level of knowledge about coronavirus transmission was measured using a questionnaire consisting of 5 statement items. This questionnaire uses the Guttman scale with 3 response and anxiety categories for dental care as measured using a modified questionnaire from the Dental Fear Survey. This questionnaire consisted of 9 question items using a Likert scale.

Results:

285 respondents came from WhatsApp media users (89.9%) with an average age of 29.91 years. Respondents who experienced "dental health problems" during the pandemic were 44.7%. The knowledge of respondents about the transmission of the COVID-19 virus in dental care was 79.9% and the knowledge of the fear of caring during the pandemic period was 31.85% afraid. Statistical analysis showed a significant relationship between knowledge about transmission of the COVID-19 virus and fear of dental care (rs=0.388, p<0.001).

Conclusion:

The results obtained have a significant relationship between knowledge about transmission and fear for dental care during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Sulawesi Province.