A six-year appraisal of oral diseases and treatment of children attending a tertiary health institution in Benin-city, Nigeria

Abstract

Good oral health is essential for general health and this also applies to children. Common oral and dental diseases/disorders found in children include: dental caries, periodontal diseases, traumatic dental injuries, oral infectious diseases, oral tumours (benign and malignant), and hereditary lesions. To audit the trend of oral diseases commonly seen among children who presented at a Tertiary Health institution and the types of treatment given over a 6 year period. A retrospective study and audit of oral diseases and treatment carried out on children from birth to 16 years of age who attended the Paediatric Dental clinic of University of Benin Teaching Hospital during the study period (2011-2016). Patient's case notes were retrieved from the Medical Records Department. Data was collected using a data extraction form and included the patient's biodata, parent's occupation and level of education, presenting complaint, diagnosis and treatment done. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS version 22.0. Children, aged 6-10 years made up 44.8% of the study population, 50.3% were females and 73.5% of parents were of the middle socioeconomic class. Dental caries and its sequale (57.6%) made up a large proportion of the oral diseases seen during the study period followed by periodontal diseases (34.0%) and traumatic dental injuries (TDI) 10.3%. Treatment modalities given over the study period ranged from preventive care (23.6%), restorative (23.9%), surgical (19.4%) and rehabilitative care (0.4%).Dental caries, periodontal diseases and TDI were the most common oral conditions seen in the study, Preventive and restorative care were the most important procedures used in managing most common oral conditions afflicting children.Keywords: Oral diseases, treatment, audit, children