Variables affecting dental health changes in long-term patients attending three selected private practices

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Very little information is available on the long-term effect of restorative treatments on dental health changes, and of the variables that might affect such changes. Therefore, the present study investigated the effects of six variables or factors on the long-term dental health of patients who received restorative treatments from private general practitioners. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The casenote records of 100 adult patients treated by 20 dentists in three selected city practices were examined, and the dental health at each course of restorative treatment was recorded using DMF and T-Health indices. The dental health of the patients deteriorated slowly over a mean of 24.8'8.7 [SD] years. Patient age, practice location, and the number of changes of dentist had very significant effects on the rates of change of the DMFT and the T-Health indices, P < 0.01. Deterioration rates were higher for younger patients and when patients were treated by only one dentist or, conversely, by more than 10 dentists. Gender difference, change of dentist, and frequency of patient attendance [< 1 year, > 1 year] had no significant effects. CONCLUSIONS: These mainly, regularly attending patients showed a slow deterioration in their long-term dental health. The rates of deterioration slowed with increasing age and when treatments were generally provided by relatively few dentists