Dental trauma in adults in Switzerland

Most epidemiologic studies of dental trauma are restricted to children and sports. The goal of the present study was to collect information on dental trauma in as many Swiss adults as possible. For that purpose data of the largest insurance company of Switzerland (SUVA) were evaluated and compared for the years 1992 and 2002. In these 2 years 23 000 dental injuries were reported to all insurance companies in Switzerland. Most often the upper central incisors were injured. However, in 20% posterior teeth were also affected. In 1992 most of the dental trauma was experienced by 30-39 year olds, in 2002 by 40-49 year olds. Regardless of the year, most of the injuries occurred at home; more than one-fifth of the injuries were sports related. Most common injuries were crown fractures without pulp involvement. In less than 10% of all cases more complicated injuries like avulsions or crown-root fractures occurred. Most traumatic injuries were treated by direct fillings and custom-made crowns; more involved treatments were required less often. Comparison of the years 1992 and 2002 showed that the numbers of and causes for injuries had hardly changed in these 10 years. However, the choice of therapy was related to the general development of dental medicine, which became especially apparent in the fields of adhesive dentistry and implantology.