Visits to US emergency departments by 20- to 29-year-olds with toothache during 2001-2010

Abstract

Background Visits to emergency departments (EDs) for dental complaints are on the rise, yet reliance on EDs for dental care is far from ideal. ED toothache visits represent opportunities to improve access to professional dental care. Methods This research focuses on 20–29 year-olds, who account for more ED toothache visits than other age groups. We analyzed publicly available ED visits data from the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS). We assessed trends in ED toothache visit rates compared with back pain and all-cause ED visits during the past decade. We used 2009–2010 NHAMCS to characterize the more recent magnitude, relative frequency, and independent risk factors for ED toothache visits. Statistical analyses accounted for the complex sampling design. Results The average annual increase in ED visit rates among 20–29 year-olds during 2001–2010 was 6.1% for toothache; 0.3% for back pain; and 0.8% for all-causes ED visits. In 2009–2010, 20–29 year-olds made an estimated 1.27 million ED visits for toothaches and accounted for 42% of all ED toothache visits. Toothache was the fifth most common reason for any ED visit and third most common for uninsured ED visits in 20–29 year-olds. Independent risk factors for ED toothache visits were being uninsured or Medicaid-insured. Conclusions Younger adults increasingly rely on EDs for toothaches—likely because of barriers to accessing professional dental care. Expanding dental coverage and access to affordable dental care could increase options for timely dental care and decrease ED use for dental complaints.

Trends in dental‐related use of hospital emergency departments in Florida

“…The findings of this study are consistent with earlier reports indicating increasing use of EDs for dental problems in the United States (11,12). Surprisingly, however, few national studies calculate population-based rates (30,31). Calculating population-based rates is critical in interpreting trends in ED visits for dental problems, particularly in states with rapidly growing populations such as Florida.…”

Socioeconomic gradients in toothache experience among Australian adults: A time trend analysis from 1994 to 2013

“…Time trends in toothache have barely been investigated in the literature, with the few existing studies supporting our findings. The only two related studies indexed in PubMed show an increase in the prevalence of toothache from 1977 to 1997 in Finnish adolescents and a significant increase of over 6.0% per year in the visits to the emergency departments due to toothache from 2000 to 2010 among young adults in the USA . However, they investigated populations younger than those in the current study.…”

Association between pulp and periapical conditions and dental emergency visits involving pain relief: epidemiological profile and risk indicators in private practice in Australia

“…Uninsured subjects may not have regular access to preventive and maintenance dental services, thus leading to poor oral health, including caries progression and subsequent pulp demise and eventually periapical disease. A similar situation occurs in emergency departments in hospitals, where the search for this service to relieve odontogenic pain by uninsured individuals is even greater when compared to patients with insurance (Lewis et al 2015). However, different results may be observed depending on the type and scope of health insurance (Ranade et al 2019).…”

“…Several previous studies have evaluated the characteristics of patients seeking care in emergency departments due to dental reasons (Quiñonez et al 2009, Anderson et al 2011, Hong et al 2011, Lewis et al 2015, Figueiredo et al 2017). Pulpal and periapical pain are also responsible for more than half of the cases of emergency dental care in emergency departments in hospitals (Quiñonez et al 2009).…”