Community Dental Health

cover art

Cover Date:
September 2013
Print ISSN:
0265 539X
Vol:
30
Issue:
3

Dental infections increase the likelihood of hospital admissions among adult patients with sickle cell disease

doi:10.1922/CDH_3126Laurence05

The objective: To determine if dental infections increase the likelihood of hospital admission among adult patients with sickle cell disease (SCD). Basic Research Design: Cross-sectional analysis of data from the Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) pooled for the years 2006 through 2008. Prevalence ratios (PR) for the effects of interest were estimated using Poisson regression with robust estimates of the variance. Participants: Adults, aged 18 and over, diagnosed with SCD using ICD-9-CM codes excluding participants discharged with a code for sickle cell trait. Main outcome measure: Emergency department (ED) visit disposition, dichotomised to represent whether or not the ED visit ended in admission versus being treated and released. Results: Among patients having a sickle cell crisis, those with dental infections were 72% more likely to be admitted compared to those not having dental infections (PR=1.72, 95%CI 1.58-1.87). No association was observed among adult SCD patients not having a sickle crisis event. Based on preliminary data from this analysis, prevention of dental infection among patients with SCD could result in an estimated cost saving of $2.5 million dollars per year. Conclusions: Having a dental infection complicated by a sickle cell crisis significantly increases the likelihood of hospital admission among adult SCD patients presenting to the ED.

Key words: sickle cell diseases, emergency treatment, hospital admission, dental care, oral health, sickle cell crisis, resource allocation

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£
Page Start
168
Page End
172
Authors
B. Laurence, C. Haywood Jr, S. Lanzkron

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  1. The origins of BASCD and the Specialty of Dental Public Health: Some personal memories
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  1. Caries prevalence in 12-year-old children from Germany: Results of the 2009 national survey
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  1. The geographic distribution of patients seeking emergency dental care at the Royal Dental Hospital of Melbourne, Australia
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  1. Using GIS to analyse dental practice distribution in Indiana, USA
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  1. Oral health care services utilisation in the adult US population: Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 2006
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