Periodontal treatment needs in Central and Eastern Europe

The aim of the present review is to evaluate the periodontal conditions and treatment needs in Central and Eastern Europe and to compare these data to the epidemiological data from the industrialised and developing countries. The recent prevalence and severity data provided by national surveys based on the CPITN methods are summarised. The periodontal conditions in the age groups 15-19 and 35-44 are discussed in detail. The CPITN data show no major differences in the extent and severity of destructive periodontal disease in different countries. In the age group 15-19 just a few European surveys reported 'score 4 sextant' and the prevalence of 'score 3' sextants was also below 10% in each survey. However calculus formation and bleeding on probing were very frequent findings both in Western and Eastern Europe. In the age group 35-44 the average prevalence of 'score 4 sextant' in Western and Eastern Europe were comparable while the proportion of periodontally absolutely healthy individuals was lower in Eastern Europe than in the Western part of the Continent. Five to 20% of the populations are affected by destructive periodontitis at the age of 40. This indicates the magnitude of the disease as a public health problem both in the industrialised West and the Eastern European countries. The same 10-15% prevalence rate of destructive periodontitis imposes a great challenge to the health authorities of these post-communist countries amid social and economic transition, because the nationwide preventive and basic periodontal therapeutic measures should be managed and financed from a substantially lower GDP than in the industrialised West.