Emergency dental injuries presented at the Beijing Stomatological Hospital in China.

BACKGROUND/AIM: There is a lack of epidemiologic studies of traumatic dental injuries (TDI) in China. The aim of this paper was to study TDI of patients visiting the Stomatological Hospital in Beijing China over a 12-month period.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The study includes 644 patients, age 1-78, who were admitted to the Beijing Stomatological Hospital between July 2008 and June 2009 for TDI. Dental records and radiographs were reviewed. Age, gender, date, type of TDI, etiology, and tooth and number of teeth injured were recorded.

RESULTS

Men represented 60.3% of all patients. The highest frequency of dental trauma was found in schoolchildren 7-12years of age (22.8%), followed by adolescents 13-18years of age (15.2%) and young adults 19-24years of age (15.2%). Hospital visits occurred most frequently from the afternoon to late evening in 74.7% of all patients. Most cases occurred on weekends (50.8%). The most common causes of dental trauma were falls (39.6%) and violence (16.9%). Dental trauma caused by motor vehicle was seen in 6.1%. Maxillary central incisors were the most commonly affected teeth (59%). The main types of injury to permanent teeth were uncomplicated crown fractures (20.8%) and subluxations (20.4%) The least common tooth injuries were intrusions (1.4%). Among primary teeth, subluxations (32.1%) were the most common and uncomplicated crown fractures and crown-root fractures comprised 2.5% each.

CONCLUSION

TDI in Beijing, China not only shows epidemiologic characteristics in common with many other studies in the world, but also shows different characteristics that should be further studied and taken into consideration when planning for preventive programs and emergency resources.