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Levy DH, Sgan-Cohen H, Solomonov M, Shemesh A, Ziv E, Glassberg E, Yavnai N. Association of Nationwide Water Fluoridation, Changes in Dental Care Legislation, and Caries-Related Treatment Needs: A 9-Year Record-Based Cross-Sectional Study. J Dent 2023; 134:104550. [PMID: 37196687 DOI: 10.1016/j.jdent.2023.104550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2023] [Revised: 05/06/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The implementation of nationwide water fluoridation in Israel in 2002 led to a significant reduction in caries among children. However, this practice was discontinued in 2014 due to a change in legislation. In 2010, as part of the Israeli National Health Insurance Law, free dental care for children under 10 years of age was legislated. This policy was gradually extended to include adolescents under 18 years of age in 2018. We examined the association between these efforts and changes in the caries-related treatment needs of young adults over the course of two decades. METHODS This cross-sectional study analyzed data on the need for dental restorations, root canal therapy, and extractions that were retrieved from dental records of 34,450 soldiers recruited into military service between 2012-2021. These data were cross-matched with the subjects' year of birth to determine whether the implementation of water fluoridation, dental care legislation, or both were associated with changes in the need for and provision of dental care. Sociodemographic data, including sex, age, socioeconomic cluster (SEC), intellectual capability score (ICS), body mass index, and place of birth, were also extracted. RESULTS A multivariate generalized linear model (GLM) revealed that male sex, older age, low ICS, and low SEC were significant predictors for greater caries-related treatment needs (P < 0.001). Our findings indicated that subjects exposed to fluoridated water during their childhood had significantly lower rates of caries-related treatment, regardless of access to free dental care. CONCLUSION Mandatory water fluoridation was associated with significantly lower caries-related treatment needs while national dental health legislation providing free dental care to children and adolescents was not. Therefore, we suggest that water fluoridation should be continued to maintain the observed reduction in treatment needs. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE Our findings provide support for the effectiveness of water fluoridation in preventing caries, whereas the impact of free dental care programs focused on clinical intervention remains to be determined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan Henry Levy
- Department of Endodontics, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Medical corps, Sheba Hospital at Tel Hashomer, Israel; "Bina" Program, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel.
| | - Harold Sgan-Cohen
- Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Michael Solomonov
- Department of Endodontics, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Medical corps, Sheba Hospital at Tel Hashomer, Israel; "Bina" Program, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Avi Shemesh
- Department of Endodontics, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Medical corps, Sheba Hospital at Tel Hashomer, Israel; "Bina" Program, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Eran Ziv
- Department of Endodontics, Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Medical corps, Sheba Hospital at Tel Hashomer, Israel; "Bina" Program, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | | | - Nirit Yavnai
- Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
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Abramovitz I, Zini A, Kessler Baruch O, Kedem R, Protter NE, Shay B, Yavnai N, Zur D, Mijiritsky E, Almoznino G. SOS teeth with advanced caries and sociodemographic indicators, health-related habits and dental attendance patterns: data from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) nationwide records-based study. BMC Oral Health 2021; 21:389. [PMID: 34372843 PMCID: PMC8351153 DOI: 10.1186/s12903-021-01751-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2021] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Background "SOS teeth" are teeth that need to be treated first, and represent dental teeth with deep caries seen clinically and radiographically which may require root canal treatment or extraction. The aims of the present research were to study the associations of SOS teeth with: socio-demographic parameters, dental attendance patterns, health-related habits among young to middle-aged adults. Methods This cross-sectional records-based research analyzed data from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) repository that captures comprehensive socio-demographic, medical, and dental databases of a nationwide sample of 132,529 records of dental attendees to military dental clinics for 1 year aged 18 to 50 years.
Results SOS teeth had a significant positive association in the multivariate analysis with male sex [OR 1.137, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.079–1.199], rural versus urban Jewish locality [OR 1.748 (1.082–2.825)], and consumption of sweetened beverages [OR 1.415 (1.337–1.496)]. SOS teeth retained significant negative associations (protective parameter) with academic [OR 0.647 (0.592–0.708)] and technicians (OR 0.616 (0.556–0.682)] compared to high school education, high [OR 0.437 (0.401–0.476)], and medium (OR 0.648 (0.598–0.702)] versus low socio-economic status, urban non-Jewish versus urban Jewish locality [OR 0.746 (0.693–0.802)], Asia (OR 0.658 (0.452–0.959)], North America (OR 0.539 (0.442–0.658)] and Israel [OR 0.735 (0.686–0.788)] versus western Europe birth countries.
Conclusions Health authorities should be familiar with this profile of the patient who is vulnerable to SOS teeth and formulate policies and allow the appropriate implementation of strategies in those in high-risk populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Itzhak Abramovitz
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Endodontics, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Avraham Zini
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Community Dentistry, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ortal Kessler Baruch
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Endodontics, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ron Kedem
- Medical Information Department, General Surgeon Headquarter, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Noam E Protter
- Chief Dental Surgeon & Head of Forensic Unit, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Boaz Shay
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Endodontics, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Nirit Yavnai
- Medical Research & Academy Section, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Dorit Zur
- Medical Information Department, General Surgeon Headquarter, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Eitan Mijiritsky
- Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck and Maxillofacial Surgery, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv, Israel.,The Maurice and Gabriela Goldschleger School of Dental Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Galit Almoznino
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel. .,Department of Endodontics, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. .,Head, Big Biomedical Data Research Laboratory, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, P.O. Box 12272, 91120, Jerusalem, Israel. .,Dean's Office, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel. .,Department of Oral Medicine, Sedation & Maxillofacial Imaging, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
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Abramovitz I, Zini A, Pribluda P, Kedem R, Zur D, Protter NE, Almoznino G. "Dental Cluster" Versus "Metabolic Cluster": Analyzing the Associations of Planned and Delivered Dental Procedures with Metabolic Syndrome, Utilizing Data from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) Cross-Sectional Record-Based Nationwide Study. BIOLOGY 2021; 10:biology10070608. [PMID: 34209432 PMCID: PMC8301031 DOI: 10.3390/biology10070608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2021] [Revised: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary There are conflicting results existing regarding the association between dental status and metabolic syndrome (MetS). This study aimed to analyze the association between the sum of the standard dental unit (SDU) scores of planned (SDU-P) and delivered (SDU-D) dental procedures per patient with MetS. Included were data from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemi-ological (DOME) study records-based research, which integrated large socio-demographic, medical, and dental databases of a nationally representative sample of young to middle-aged military personnel (N = 131,927). The present study demonstrated that SDU-P, but not SDU-D, is a better predictor of systemic morbidities related to MetS. In other words, MetS is associated with a higher dental treatment needs burden, rather than with dental treatments performed de facto. The study concludes that dental and general health authorities should collaborate and share in-formation and focus on reducing common health-related risk factors, such as smoking and sugar consumption, in particular among high-risk populations, such as immigrants and those with lower SES and rural locality. Abstract There are conflicting results existing regarding the association between dental status and metabolic syndrome (MetS). The present research analyzed the associations of the sum of the standard dental unit (SDU) scores of planned (SDU-P) and delivered (SDU-D) dental procedures per patient with MetS components, consequences, and related conditions. The SDU score of each dental procedure represents the time and complexity of the executed procedure. This cross-sectional study analyzed data from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) repository, which includes comprehensive socio-demographic, medical, and dental databases of a nationally representative sample of 132,529 military personnel. Univariate analyses revealed that SDU-P had statistically significant positive associations with all systemic morbidities related to MetS, while the SDU-D exhibited positive associations with some of the systemic morbidities and with lower ORs. SDU-P and SDU-D were associated with worse scores of auxiliary examinations used in the assessment of MetS components. SDU-P retained significant positive associations in the multivariate analysis with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) (OR = 7.40 (1.91–28.57)), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) (OR = 5.61 (1.53–20.83)), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) (OR = 5.05 (2.40–10.63)), and fatty liver (OR = 1.82 (1.17–2.84)). In contrast, obesity was the only systemic parameter retaining a significant association with SDU-D following multivariate analysis (OR = 1.47 (1.23–1.76)). It can be concluded that SDU-P, but not SDU-D, is a better predictor of systemic morbidities related to MetS. In other words, MetS is associated with a higher dental treatment needs burden, rather than with dental treatments performed de facto. Dental and general health authorities should collaborate and share information and focus on reducing common health-related risk factors, such as smoking and sugar consumption, in particular among high-risk populations, such as immigrants and those with lower SES and rural locality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Itzhak Abramovitz
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; (I.A.); (A.Z.); (P.P.)
- Hadassah Medical Center, Department of Endodontics, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Avraham Zini
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; (I.A.); (A.Z.); (P.P.)
- Hadassah Medical Center, Department of Community Dentistry, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Pablo Pribluda
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; (I.A.); (A.Z.); (P.P.)
- Hadassah Medical Center, Department of Endodontics, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Ron Kedem
- Medical Information Department, General Surgeon Headquarter, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer 02149, Israel; (R.K.); (D.Z.)
| | - Dorit Zur
- Medical Information Department, General Surgeon Headquarter, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer 02149, Israel; (R.K.); (D.Z.)
| | - Noam E. Protter
- Chief Dental Surgeon & Head of Forensic Unit, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer 02149, Israel;
| | - Galit Almoznino
- Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; (I.A.); (A.Z.); (P.P.)
- Hadassah Medical Center, Department of Endodontics, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
- Hadassah Medical Center, Department of Oral Medicine, Sedation & Maxillofacial Imaging, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
- Big Biomedical Data Research Laboratory, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +972-2-677-6194; Fax: +972-2-644-7919
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Cognitive Performance and Its Associations with Dental Caries: Results from the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) Records-Based Nationwide Study. BIOLOGY 2021; 10:biology10030178. [PMID: 33670936 PMCID: PMC7997282 DOI: 10.3390/biology10030178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Relatively few studies have analyzed the association between cognitive performance and dental status. This study aimed to analyze the association between cognitive performance and dental caries. Included were data from the dental, oral, medical epidemiological (DOME) study; cross-sectional records-based research, which integrated large socio-demographic, medical, and dental databases of a nationally representative sample of young to middle-aged military personnel (N = 131,927, mean age: 21.8 ± 5.9 years, age range: 18-50). The cognitive function of draftees is routinely measured at age 17 years using a battery of psychometric tests termed general intelligence score (GIS). The mean number of decayed teeth exhibited a gradient trend from the lowest (3.14 ± 3.58) to the highest GIS category (1.45 ± 2.19) (odds ratio (OR) lowest versus highest = 5.36 (5.06-5.68), p < 0.001). A similar trend was noted for the other dental parameters. The associations between GIS and decayed teeth persisted even after adjusting for socio-demographic parameters and health-related habits. The adjustments attenuated the OR but did not eliminate it (OR lowest versus highest = 3.75 (3.38-4.16)). The study demonstrates an association between cognitive performance and caries, independent of the socio-demographic and health-related habits that were analyzed. Better allocation of resources is recommended, focusing on populations with impaired cognitive performance in need of dental care.
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Almoznino G, Kedem R, Turgeman R, Bader T, Yavnai N, Zur D, Shay B. The Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) Study: Protocol and Study Methods. Methods Inf Med 2020; 59:119-130. [PMID: 33080627 DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1718582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To develop and present the methods utilized for the Dental, Oral, Medical Epidemiological (DOME) study. METHODS The DOME is an electronic record-based cross-sectional study, that was conducted to measure the dental, periodontal, and oral morbidities and their associations with systemic morbidities, among a nationally representative sample of young to middle-aged adults military personnel from the IDF (Israel Defense Forces). To that end, we developed a strict protocol including standardized terminology, data collection, and handling. RESULTS Data for the DOME study was derived simultaneously from three electronic records of the IDF: (1) a central demographic database, (2) the dental patient record (DPR), and (3) the medical computerized patient record (CPR). The established DOME repository includes socio-demographic, dental and medical records of 132,354 young to middle-age military personnel from the IDF, who attended the dental clinics during the year 2015. Records of general military personnel (N > 50,000), with no recorded dental visits during the study period, served as a control group regarding all other parameters except dental. The DOME study continues and is currently collecting longitudinal data from the year 2010 until 2020. The IDF employs a standardized uniform administrative and clinical work-up and treatment protocols as well as uniform computerized codes. We describe the standardized definitions for all the parameters that were included: socio-demographics, health-related habits, medical and dental attendance patterns, and general and dental health status. Multicollinearity analysis results of the sociodemographic and medical study parameters are presented. CONCLUSION Standardized work-up and definitions are essential to establish the centralized DOME data repository to study the extent of dental and systemic morbidities and their associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Galit Almoznino
- Big Biomedical Data Research Laboratory, Hebrew University, Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Oral Medicine, Sedation and Maxillofacial Imaging, Hebrew University, Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Endodontics, Hebrew University, Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Ron Kedem
- Medical Information Department, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Ronit Turgeman
- Chief Dental Surgeon Headquarters, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Tarif Bader
- Surgeon General's Headquarters, Israel Defense Forces, Ramat Gan and Department of Military Medicine, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Nirit Yavnai
- Medical Research and Academy Section, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Israel
| | - Dorit Zur
- Medical Information Department, Medical Corps, Israel Defense Forces, Tel-Hashomer, Israel
| | - Boaz Shay
- Department of Endodontics, Hebrew University, Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Jerusalem, Israel
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SOS Teeth: First Priority Teeth with Advanced Caries and Its Associations with Metabolic Syndrome among a National Representative Sample of Young and Middle-Aged Adults. J Clin Med 2020; 9:jcm9103170. [PMID: 33007919 PMCID: PMC7599956 DOI: 10.3390/jcm9103170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2020] [Revised: 09/27/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
“SOS teeth” are defined as the first priority teeth for treatment, that have distinct cavitation reaching the pulp chamber or only root fragments are present. These are teeth with severe morbidity, that may require pulp capping, root canal treatment, or extraction, and therefore should be treated first. The study aims to explore whether or not a metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with SOS teeth. To that end, we performed across-sectional records-based study of a nationally representative sample of 132,529 military personnel aged 18–50 years, who attended the military dental clinics for one year. The mean number of SOS had no statistically significant association with: smoking (p = 0.858), alcohol consumption (p = 0.878), hypertension (p = 0.429), diabetes mellitus (p = 0.866), impaired glucose tolerance (p = 0.909), hyperlipidemia (p = 0.246), ischemic heart disease (p = 0.694), S/P myocardial infarction (p = 0.957), obstructive sleep apnea (p = 0.395), fatty liver (p = 0.074), S/P stroke (p = 0.589), and S/P transient ischemic attack (p = 0.095) and with parental history of: diabetes (p = 0.396)], cardiovascular disease (p = 0.360), stroke (p = 0.368), and sudden death (p = 0.063) as well as with any of the medical auxiliary examinations (p > 0.05). Cariogenic diet was positively associated with SOS teeth (p < 0.001). We conclude that SOS teeth had no statistically significant association with MetS components or with conditions that are consequences or associated with MetS. The only statistically significant parameter was a cariogenic diet, a well-known risk factor for caries and MetS.
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Yavnai N, Mazor S, Vered Y, Shavit I, Zini A. Caries prevalence among 18 years old, an epidemiological survey in Israel. Isr J Health Policy Res 2020; 9:45. [PMID: 32867853 PMCID: PMC7457478 DOI: 10.1186/s13584-020-00402-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is a lack of evidence on caries prevalence among 18 years old Israeli young adults with only a scarce evidence regarding this index age group. In the last few years dental care policy in Israel underwent substantial changes and a major reform in dental services was led by the Israeli Ministry of Health, including coverage of dental care for children by the state. In addition, a cessation of community water fluoridation was in a debate. The objective of the current study was to describe prevalence of caries among 18 years old Israeli young adults and to evaluate possible associations with personal and demographic variables. METHODS The study was a cross sectional clustered survey. Participants were recruited to the study at their first day of military service. Participants completed a questionnaire for personal and demographic data, including: age, country of birth, education, and current smoking status. Then participants underwent clinical evaluation included DMFT and caries free rates. No radiographic evaluation was included in the current study. Univariate and multivariate statistical analysis were performed. RESULTS A total of 702 participants were included in the study, 58.4% were males. Their mean age was 19.03 ± 0.65 years, 91.3% of the participants were born in Israel. Mean DMFT was 1.95 ± 2.67, and 46.7% (n = 328) were caries free. Higher DMFT score was significantly associated with participant's parents' education, country of birth, and smoking status. Lower caries free rates were significantly associated with participant's parents' education, and smoking status. After linear regression for total DMFT, all variables were significant predictors to higher DMFT, except father's education, while logistic regression for caries free, only mother's education was found to be a significant predictor. CONCLUSIONS The current study presents encouraging low DMFT levels. Participants in this study were not included in the dental care services reform, and did enjoy the benefits of water fluoridation, enabling the results to play an important baseline data for future reference. Additionally, results should be considered when planning intervention programs for at risk groups. TRIAL REGISTRATION This study was registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (Identifier No. NCT02958891 , November 8th, 2016) and was approved by the IDF Institutional Review Board (#1524-2015).
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Affiliation(s)
- Nirit Yavnai
- IDF Medical Corps Headquarters, Military Post #02149, IDF, Tel Hashomer, Ramat Gan, Israel.
| | - Sigal Mazor
- Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Hadassah Ein Kerem Campus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Yuval Vered
- Department of Community Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Hebrew University, Hadassah Ein Kerem Campus, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Idan Shavit
- IDF Medical Corps Headquarters, Military Post #02149, IDF, Tel Hashomer, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Avraham Zini
- Vice Dean and the Department of Community Dentistry, Hebrew University-Hadassah School of Dental Medicine, Hadassah Ein Kerem Campus, Jerusalem, Israel
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SOS Teeth: Age and Sex Differences in the Prevalence of First Priority Teeth among a National Representative Sample of Young and Middle-Aged Adults. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 17:ijerph17134847. [PMID: 32640510 PMCID: PMC7370026 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17134847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2020] [Revised: 06/26/2020] [Accepted: 06/28/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND "SOS teeth" are defined as the first priority teeth for treatment, that have distinct cavitation reaching the pulp chamber or only root fragments are present. OBJECTIVES To assess the prevalence and distribution of SOS teeth with regard to age and sex difference among young to middle-aged adults. METHODS This is a cross-sectional records-based study of a nationally representative sample, consisting of young to middle-aged military personnel, who attended the military dental clinics of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) for one year. SOS teeth definition corresponds to code number 6 of the "Caries Assessment Spectrum and Treatment (CAST)" as an instrument to assess dental caries. Data pertaining to age and sex were drawn from the central demographic database and that of SOS teeth were obtained from the Dental Patient Record (DPR). RESULTS The study included 132,529 dental records. The prevalence of patients with SOS teeth was 9.18 % (12,146/132,323). The number of teeth that were found to be SOS teeth was 18,300, i.e., 1.5 SOS teeth per "diseased" patient (18,300/12,146). The mean number of SOS teeth per the whole study population was 0.14 ± 0.52 and the range was 0-20. The mean number of SOS teeth per patient had a statistically significant negative correlation with age (p < 0.001; Odds Ratio (OR) = 0.997; 95% confidence interval: 0.997-0.998) and with male sex compared to females (p < 0.001; OR = 1.029 confidence interval: 1.023-1.036). CONCLUSION Assessment of first priority SOS teeth may be part of the dentist's work-up. It provides dentists and health authorities with useful information regarding urgent dental care needs to plan dental services.
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Zusman SP. Prevention, prevention and prevention. Isr J Health Policy Res 2019; 8:40. [PMID: 31046811 PMCID: PMC6498556 DOI: 10.1186/s13584-019-0310-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2019] [Accepted: 04/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A recent study by Levy et al. presents the dental treatment needs of a large sample of combat soldiers. They found that 80% need some dental care. It is unfortunate that so many, educated, otherwise healthy young adults are in need of dental care and it indicates that more prevention of dental disease is needed. In last years, the Ministry of Health started two projects to prevent dental disease among the very young: In Mother and Child Health Centers and in kindergartens. In a couple of years, these projects will be widely implemented. With the School Dental Service, these two projects will cover all ages from birth to 18. In the future, with these programs implemented, soldiers should need less dental treatment.
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