The fifth most prevalent disease is being neglected by public health organisations

The progress towards reduction of global mortality has produced an epidemiological transition towards non-fatal diseases, which challenge the ability of the world’s population to live in full health. Although traumatic dental injuries are not lethal, their treatment is more expensive (US$2 000 000–5 000 000 per million inhabitants) and time-consuming than that of all the other bodily injuries, making dental rehabilitation less likely among disadvantaged individuals. Since untreated traumatic dental injuries have a negative social, functional, and emotional effect in children and adolescents, differences in treatment of these injuries between children from different countries and social classes produce disparities in their quality of life

NA0D – The new traumatic dental injury classification of the world health organization

An accurate, clear, and easy-to- use traumatic dental injury (TDI) classification and definition system is a prerequisite for proper diagnosis, study, and treatment. However, more than 50 classifications have been used in the past. The ideal solution would be that TDIs are adequately classified within the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO). TDI classification provided by the 11th Revision of the ICD (ICD-11), released in 2018, and previous Revisions, failed to classify TDIs satisfactorily. Therefore, in December 2018, a proposal was submitted by Dr's Stefano Petti, Jens Ove Andreasen, Ulf Glendor, and Lars Andersson, to the ICD-11, asking for a change of the existing TDI classification. Proposal #2130 highlighted the TDI paradox, the fifth most frequent disease/condition neglected by most public health agencies in the world, and the limits of ICD-11 classification. Namely, injuries of teeth and periodontal tissues were located in two separate blocks that did not mention dental/periodontal tissues; infraction, concussion, and subluxation were not coded; most TDIs lacked description; and tooth fractures were described through bone fracture descriptions (e.g., comminuted, compression, and fissured fractures). These limitations led to TDI mis-reporting, under-reporting, and non-specific reporting by untrained non-dental healthcare providers. In addition, no scientific articles on TDIs, present in PubMed, Scopus, and Web-of- Science, used the ICD classification. Proposal #2130 suggested to adopt the Andreasen classification, the most widely acknowledged classification used in dental traumatology. The Proposal was reviewed by two WHO teams, two scientific Committees, one WHO Collaborating Center, and the Department of Non-Communicable Disease Prevention at WHO headquarters, and it underwent two voting sessions. In March 2022, the Andreasen classification was accepted integrally. A new entity was generated, called NA0D, “Injury of teeth or supporting structures” (https://icd.who.int/brows e11/l-m/ en#/http://id. who.int/icd /ent ity/141 3338122). Hopefully, this will contribute to increasing the public awareness, and the dental profession's management, of TDIs

A geographical population analysis of dental trauma in school-children aged 12 and 15 in the city of Curitiba-Brazil

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The study presents a geographical analysis of dental trauma in a population of 12 and 15 year-old school-children, in the city of Curitiba, Brazil (n = 1581), using a database obtained in the period 2005-2006. The main focus is to analyze dental trauma using a geographic information system as a tool for integrating social, environmental and epidemiological data.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Geostatistical analysis of the database and thematic maps were generated showing the distribution of dental trauma cases according to Curitiba's Health Districts and other variables of interest. Dental trauma spatial variation was assessed using a generalized additive model in order to identify and control the individual risk-factors and thus determine whether spatial variation is constant or not throughout the Health Districts and the place of residence of individuals. In addition, an analysis was made of the coverage of dental trauma cases taking the spatial distribution of Curitiba's primary healthcare centres.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The overall prevalence of dental trauma was 37.1%, with 53.1% in males and 46.7% in females. The spatial analysis confirms the hypothesis that there is significant variation in the occurrence of dental trauma, considering the place of residence in the population studied (Monte Carlo test, p = 0,006). Furthermore, 28.7% of cases had no coverage by the primary healthcare centres.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The effect of the place of residence was highly significant in relation to the response variable. The delimitation of areas, as a basis for case density, enables the qualification of geographical territories where actions can be planned based on priority criteria. Promotion, control and rehabilitation actions, applied in regions of higher prevalence of dental trauma, can be more effective and efficient, thus providing healthcare refinement.</p

Traumatic dental injuries as reported during school hours in Bergen

Aims: To identify existing guidelines for managing traumatic dental injuries (TDIs) in the schools of Bergen, to ascertain the frequency of occurrence of such injuries, and to estimate the need for further information among teachers and school administrators. Material and methods: The study, undertaken among teachers and school administrators of elementary and lower secondary schools in Bergen municipality, was questionnaire-based and included a cross section of staff. The structured short questionnaire included items registering TDIs during 2009, existence of routines or guidelines for managing TDIs, previous relevant training, and request for TDI education or information. The statistical methods included frequency tables and logistic regression analysis. Results: The response rate was 73%. The incidence proportion of TDIs was measured to 0.74% of children at risk, varying according to children's classes (peak at third class: 1.68% of children in the population). No schools had adequate written guidelines for handling TDIs. Previous education on the subject was scarce. In 20 schools, there was no perceived need for TDI-related education or information. The schools’ routines for TDI reporting, who was in charge of the reporting, acquired TDI education and expressed need for TDI information or education, did not influence the number of reported TDI cases. Conclusion: This study has produced reliable information that schools in the municipality of Bergen could improve ways of reporting and managing TDIs. As teachers with skills in handling TDIs could help to improve the prognosis for injured teeth, some types of educational intervention in schools should be launched