Provision of treatment for periodontitis in Norway in 2013 - a national profile

Epidemiological studies have reported high levels of periodontal diseases worldwide. Over the last 40 years, Norway has introduced several measures including major financial support to reduce periodontal diseases. The aims of this study were to establish the present level of periodontal treatment, the treatment profiles for the nation, and to assess if long-term clinical data support the findings.

The database of the Norwegian Health Economic Administration for 2013 was analysed to establish the prevalence of treated periodontitis in a cross-sectional register-based study. Treatment profiles including patients' ages, gender, geographic distributions, treatment types, prosthetic tooth replacements and the treatment distributions between the dental health professionals were assessed.

4.4% of the 20 years and older age group was treated for periodontitis. More females (55%) than males (45%) were treated with predominance in the 60-69 year age group. Private general dental practitioners performed 43.8% of the total periodontal treatment, while dental hygienists performed 22.5%. Periodontists performed 32.8% of the non-surgical and 74.6% of the surgical treatment. Tooth replacements for teeth lost due to periodontal diseases were provided for 0.57% of the population. Clinical studies from Norway showed marked improvements in the periodontal parameters examined over the last 40 years.

The frequency of periodontal treatments in Norway was low, but sufficient to maintain major tooth retention for the population. Long-term external clinical data supported these findings. The treatments were well distributed between private general dental practitioners, hygienists and periodontists.