IADR Abstract Archives
Validation of a Partial Extent and Severity Index
Objectives: We investigated the external validity of a published Partial Extent and Severity Index (PESI) based on clinical assessments of interproximal attachment loss (Commun Dent Oral Epidemiol 1993 21:181-4), in the setting of a specialty private practice for Periodontology/Dental Implant Surgery in Medellin, Colombia.
Methods: As single periodontist carried out assessments of clinical attachment loss (CAL) at four sites/tooth, at all present teeth, in consecutively referred patients between June 2002 and October 2014 (N= 1,227, age range 16-92 years; 32% in ages 45-54 years, 43% >55 years). A full-mouth Extent and Severity Index (FESI) was computed based on assessments of interproximal attachment loss and provided estimates of Extent (FE) and Severity (FS) which were subsequently compared to partial estimates (PE and PS, respectively), based on the 10 interproximal sites (FDI teeth #16 mesial and distal, 11 mesial, 23 mesial, 25 distal, 34 distal, 35 mesial, 41 mesial, 43 mesial and distal) that were earlier shown to provide optimal correlation with full-mouth scores. A CAL threshold value of >1mm was used in all computations, as in the original publication.
Results: The FESI estimates in the entire sample were 37.6% for FE (SD 24.0) and 2.0 mm (SD 0.9) for FS. Corresponding figures for the PESI estimates were 37.9% (SD 24.1) for PE, and 2.0 mm (SD 1.1) for PS. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) between FE and PE suggested excellent concordance between partial and full-mouth Extent scores (ICC=0.935, 95%CI 0.927-0.947 in the entire sample, range 0.891-0.947 in different age groups). High ICC was also noted between FS and PS (ICC=0.811, 95%CI 0.769-0.831 in the entire sample), but was weaker in certain age groups (range 0.754-0.871, lowest among 65-92 year olds).
Conclusions: The findings demonstrate a high external validity of the PESI in an independent sample of patients attending a private specialist practice.
Methods: As single periodontist carried out assessments of clinical attachment loss (CAL) at four sites/tooth, at all present teeth, in consecutively referred patients between June 2002 and October 2014 (N= 1,227, age range 16-92 years; 32% in ages 45-54 years, 43% >55 years). A full-mouth Extent and Severity Index (FESI) was computed based on assessments of interproximal attachment loss and provided estimates of Extent (FE) and Severity (FS) which were subsequently compared to partial estimates (PE and PS, respectively), based on the 10 interproximal sites (FDI teeth #16 mesial and distal, 11 mesial, 23 mesial, 25 distal, 34 distal, 35 mesial, 41 mesial, 43 mesial and distal) that were earlier shown to provide optimal correlation with full-mouth scores. A CAL threshold value of >1mm was used in all computations, as in the original publication.
Results: The FESI estimates in the entire sample were 37.6% for FE (SD 24.0) and 2.0 mm (SD 0.9) for FS. Corresponding figures for the PESI estimates were 37.9% (SD 24.1) for PE, and 2.0 mm (SD 1.1) for PS. Intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) between FE and PE suggested excellent concordance between partial and full-mouth Extent scores (ICC=0.935, 95%CI 0.927-0.947 in the entire sample, range 0.891-0.947 in different age groups). High ICC was also noted between FS and PS (ICC=0.811, 95%CI 0.769-0.831 in the entire sample), but was weaker in certain age groups (range 0.754-0.871, lowest among 65-92 year olds).
Conclusions: The findings demonstrate a high external validity of the PESI in an independent sample of patients attending a private specialist practice.