Prevalence of periodontitis in Chilean Adults

Objectives: In Chile, there are no reports about the prevalence of periodontitis according to CDC Periodontal Disease Surveillance Initiative. The aim of this study was to provide for the first time the prevalence of periodontitis in the adult Chilean population.
Methods: Using data from the First Chilean National Examination Survey 2007-2008 which included a complete evaluation of periodontal status in 1094 subjects aged 35-44 years and 467 subjects aged 65-74 years, estimates were determined according to suggested standard case definitions for population-based surveillance of periodontitis described by the CDC–AAP. Periodontal data included the prevalence and extent of clinical attachment loss (CAL) and probing depth (PD) on site according to specific thresholds, mean CAL/PD, the CDC/AAP case definition, and bleeding on probing.
Results: Over 57% of the sample had periodontitis, distribuited as 8.78%, 37.41% and 11.47% with mild, moderate, and severe periodontitis, respectively. For adults aged 35-44 years the prevalence of periodontitis was 85.2% with a mean number of teeth present of 20.4 ± 6.3, 0.7% of the subjects were edentulous. In senior adults (65-74 years) the prevalence of periodontitis was 91.7% although the mean number of teeth present in this group was 9.2 ± 7.5 and 20.7% were edentulous. Almost all of these findings were more prevalent in men than in women.
Conclusions: Periodontitis was highly prevalent in the Chilean population. The present data will enable development of appropriate public health programs and allocation of resources.