Prevalence of Apical Periodontitis in Different Communities: A Meta-Analysis

The aim of this study was to perform a meta-analysis on the prevalence of apical periodontitis (AP) in different communities to obtain accurate data on its prevalence.

The prevalence of AP in different communities based on the number of individuals, teeth and root-filled teeth was searched using electronic databases of ISI Web of Knowledge, PubMed, Scopus and also ProQuest and Springer. The Metaprop meta-analysis was done using the software R version 3.3.0 with Meta package. The Logit transformation method and random-effects model were used to calculate the pooled prevalence. Heterogeneity was tested by the Q-test (P<0.1 represented statistical significance), I² statistics (25%, 50% and 75% represented low, medium and high heterogeneity, respectively) and 2τ (2τ was calculated by DerSimonian-Laird estimator method).

A total of 77 studies were identified to qualify for inclusion into this meta-analysis. The prevalence of AP based on the number of individuals, teeth and root-filled teeth with the pooled prevalence was 0.519, 0.0498 and 0.3828, respectively.

The results of the present study can be helpful for policy makers to monitor the dental public health demographically and compare it to other communities; they may be able find the strengths and drawbacks of their oral and dental health program.