Dental Treatment under General Anesthesia in Pre-School Children and Schoolchildren with Special Healthcare Needs: A Comparative Retrospective Study

Abstract

The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the dental treatments received under general anesthesia (GA) in pre-school children and school children with special healthcare needs (n = 263) compared with healthy controls (n = 62). In order to analyze the impact of pre-existing cofactors on oral health, children were divided into the following groups: heart disease, cancer, syndromic disease, and other diseases as well as in- and outpatient healthy children. Caries experience (dmf-t/DMF-T) before GA (impulse 1), waiting time, and dental treatment under GA (impulse 2) were determined. Pre-school children showed a higher caries experience (mean ± standard deviation; 8.3 ± 4.8) compared to schoolchildren (6.9 ± 4.3). Predominantly, early childhood caries (ECC) of type 1 were detected. From all groups with special healthcare needs, children with cancer revealed the highest Significant Caries Index (17.0 ± 2.0), followed by other diseases (14.6 ± 2.6), syndromic disease (14.3 ± 1.8), and heart disease (13.8 ± 2.7). Overall, 2607 dental procedures were performed under GA with a mean of 8.0 ± 6.5 dental measures per child. Within the limitations of this study, the data exhibited independent of pre-existing cofactors and age high caries risk in all patient groups showing a high need for treatment.

Caries-related hospital morbidity in the Brazilian Unified Health System from 2008 to 2022

“…DC treatment and oral health services are primarily provided on an outpatient level. However, there are instances when dentists recommend hospitalization to access resources unavailable in outpatient dental services, 5,6 such as general anesthesia and medical support for previous comorbidities. This healthcare modality is often chosen when dealing with medically compromised or uncooperative patients at an outpatient level, both for elective and urgent dental treatments.…”