Acute Dental Pain in the Emergency Department: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objectives: Patients with acute dental pain (ADP) can present to a number of different health care professionals on an emergency basis, including medical professionals. In the US patients can often present to the emergency department (ED) with ADP, however within the UK little is known regarding dental attendance at EDs. The objective of the this study was to establish the number of patients, and the typical sociodemographic, attending a UK ED with ADP and other dental related complaints over a three year period.
Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out at the ED at the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle Upon Tyne, a Type 1 Major Trauma Centre ED. Data were collected via a database search of patient attendances using free text and ICD-10 for oral and dental diagnoses. Results were analysed using descriptive statistics, T-Test and Chi-Squared tests.
Results: Over the three-year period there were 2504 visits to the ED for dental complaints, equating to 0.7% of all ED attendances. Ten percent of these attendances were repeat attendances by the same patients. With regards to sociodemographic, the majority of patients were male (53.9%). Males tended to be in the third decade of life (mean age 29 years, SD 19), whereas female patients were in the fourth decade (32 years, SD 20), with a significant difference in presenting age noted between genders (t(2502)=3.0869, p=0.002, 95% CI difference 0.9, 4.0 years). Patient were typically from the more deprived areas, with the mean Index of Multiple Deprivation percent rank being 35.0%. The most common dental diagnoses were non-specific.
Conclusions: 0.7% of all attendances at a UK ED were for dental complaints over a three year period. This may not be the most appropriate place for dental patients to attend, and the reasons for attendance here clearly warrants further research.