Method: We analyzed data from the 1st Chilean National Examination Survey 2007-2008, which included an evaluation of periodontal and dental status in 1090 adults (35-44 years). The dental status of the subjects was determined by the number of teeth, and as the number of decayed teeth (DT). Prevalence of caries was defined with percentages of those subjects with one or more teeth with caries (DT>0), and with mean values of DT. The periodontal status of the subjects was described according to the maximum record of PPD per subject, and with numbers of teeth with a PPD of at least 4 or 6mm. Teeth with a PPD of 4mm and deeper indicated periodontal disease, and teeth with a PPD of 6 mm and deeper indicated a severe periodontal disease. Those subjects having both dental caries and periodontal disease were divided into quintiles, separately according the proportional number of their teeth with these diseases.
Result: 96.3% of the Chilean Adults had periodontal disease, 95.3% had a severe periodontal disease and 71% had dental caries. All of these findings were significantly more prevalent in men than in women (P<0.05). The greater the number of teeth with dental caries was, the greater was the number of teeth with a PPD of at least 4 mm and 6 mm with significant differences between the subgroups according to the number of teeth (P<0.0025).
Conclusion: This study indicates that there is a major need for treatment of periodontal disease and dental caries in Chilean adults, and that the occurrence of periodontal disease and dental caries tends to accumulate in the same individuals.