Disease burden of edentulism – Dental Clinic of Vojvodina, Serbia, 2008-2019

Abstract

Background Although there is a decline in the global prevalence of edentulism over the past decade, the tendency is opposite in Serbia. The aim of this study was to estimate the disease burden of edentulism at the Dental Clinic of Vojvodina, tertiary referral public health institution of the northern province of Serbia. Methods Disease burden was expressed in disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). Prevalence (P) was calculated on the database of all patients from 2008 to 2019 at the Dental Clinic of Vojvodina using IBM SPSS Statistics. The number of diagnosed cases rehabilitated by complete dentures was an indicator of edentate people. A total sample of 76287 patients was examined, including 1620 patients restored with complete dentures (44.94% male, 55.06% female). Disability weight (DW) for severe tooth loss was taken from the “Disability weight for the Global Burden of Disease 2013 study”. The prevalence-based years lived with disability (YLD) were calculated as YLD = P x DW. Due to the non-fatal outcome of edentulism, DALY estimates were based on YLDs only (YLL=0). Results For the observed period, the total disease burden (per 1000) was 1.42 DALYs (0.64 for men and 0.78 for women). During observed years, DALYs increased (from 1.66 in 2008 to 1.73 in 2019), in association with population aging, and insufficient support from public health insurance for oral prevention and treatments. For both sexes, DALYs increased gradually with age. The results for age-stratified DALYs (per 1000) were: 0.005 (age 0-24), 0.049 (age 25-34), 0.55 (age 35-44), 2.66 (age 45-54), 4.41 (age 55-64), 7.89 (age 65-74), 8.04 (age 75-84) and 9.05 (age 85-94). Conclusions Considering the calculated disease burden, edentulism has been posing an increasing challenge for the health system in Serbia over the past decade. The quantified burden could contribute to the improvement of evidence-informed policymaking in public oral health in Serbia. Acknowledgment Supported by “Burden-EU” COST Action Key messages The calculated DALYs show an increase in burden of edentulism in Vojvodina, Serbia. DALYs calculations could improve the insufficient monitoring of oral health status in Serbia.