Evaluation of Principal Reasons of Tooth Extractions in Turkish Population: A Retrospective Study

Objectives: Aim of this study is to investigate causes of tooth extractions, its association with age and gender amongst patients in Afyonkarahisar
Methods: A record of all tooth extractions complied with the treatment plan performed in Afyon Kocatepe University Faculty of Dentistry Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery for two years period. The analyses of extractions were performed on panoramic x-ray films before and after dental therapy, checked from patient charts retrospectively. The patients' age, gender, number of extracted teeth, and extraction reason(s) were recorded.
Results: A total of 5759 extracted teeth in 2,658 systemic healthy patients were included. Caries were the main reasons (48.6%) of tooth extractions, followed by periodontal disease, failures in endodontic treatment, patient request, trauma, orthodontic and other reasons (32.3-6.5-5.9-3.3-3.1-0.3%) respectively
Conclusions: Dental caries are the principal cause for extractions in overall population, while periodontal disease accounts for the majority of tooth loss in patients older than 50 years. This study indicates that excessive carious lesions and difficultness of the restorations are no longer reasons for the decision of extraction.