DT News - UK - Irish Dental Association calls for reintroduction of free treatment

Dental Tribune International

Tue. 3 February 2015

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DUBLIN, Ireland: The Irish Dental Association (IDA) has called on the government to tackle the high incidence of periodontal disease in this country by reintroducing the scale and polish procedure that was previously available free of charge on the Medical Card and Pay Related Social Insurance dental schemes. The IDA has based its claim on a major US study that found that patients with chronic conditions and pregnant women who underwent periodontal treatment cut their medical bills by thousands of dollars. According to the most recent national oral health survey, 80 per cent of Irish people have some form of periodontal disease.

The US study, titled “The mouth—The missing piece to overall wellness and lower medical costs”, was presented at a meeting of the American Association of Dental Research. It examined the data from over 300,000 patients with chronic conditions like stroke, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes who also had periodontal disease. Also included in the study were women who were pregnant during the study period.

The study by Dr Marjorie Jeffcoat, Professor of Periodontology and Dean Emeritus at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Dental Medicine, found impressive medical cost savings and significant reductions in hospitalisations for those patients who completed treatment for periodontal disease versus those who did not.

For those patients with cerebrovascular disease (stroke) who completed periodontal treatment and maintenance, the annual medical cost saving was US$5,681 (€5,010), while the reduction in the level of hospitalisation for this group was 21 per cent. The reduction in costs for patients with diabetes was US$2,840 (€2,505) with a corresponding fall in hospitalisations of 39 per cent. For pregnant women, the reduction in medical costs was US$2,433 (€2,146).

President of the IDA Dr Peter Gannon said the study was highly significant, as it was the first one to quantify the benefit of periodontal treatment.

“Signs of gum disease include tender swollen gums, red or bleeding gums, loosening of teeth or bad breath. Routine oral care helps prevent and tackle these problems early on before they develop into complex and more expensive ones. Given the high incidence of gum disease in Ireland it’s important that everyone brushes their teeth twice a day and visit their dentist on a regular basis,” he said.

Gannon warned that this is especially important for people in susceptible groups, for example people with diabetes, who are much more prone to periodontal disease and tooth loss.

“This study shows the folly of doing away with the scale and polish procedure and treatment of periodontal (gum) disease. When this was available on the Medical Card and PRSI schemes dentists were able to treat patients with the condition in a very cost effective way. In fact both schemes provided an early warning system which saved lots of money for patients and our health system. The government should reintroduce these treatments immediately. As the study above shows it will be money well spent,” Gannon concluded.

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