Gozitan dental healthcare leaves much to be desired, according to a recent study, with over three-quarters of patients visiting dentists found to have “a high level of unmet needs”.
The report, compiled by the University of Malta Medical School and published in the Journal of the Malta Chamber of Scientists, looked at 332 Gozitans who attended a Mobile Dental Unit over a three-month period.
Of the 332 patients, 76.8 per cent had plaque deposits while 78 per cent required restorative treatment in their gums. Signs of erosive wear were present in 28 per cent of the patients, the report noted.
Most of the people over 50 had less than 10 remaining functional units, defined in the study as “pairs of teeth in contact”. Two thirds of those over 20 had missing teeth.
Gozitans' oral healthcare was found to be a far cry from the 2020 targets Malta is trying to achieve, the researchers said.
The Maltese population in general also found to have decaying oral hygiene, with the researchers noting preschool and schoolchildren had a significant increase in tooth erosion. This erosive wear was significantly associated with an increased consumption of carbonated drinks, flavoured water and packaged juices.
What the research highlights
The research results underscore “the need for provision of better dental services in Gozo, re-orientation of existing services to focus on prevention, and introduction of evidence-based preventive strategies in school-children,” the researchers said.
“The idea is to change the environment surrounding people making it conducive to the awareness surrounding the importance of oral hygiene,” the report noted. Improvements in economic and educational status, accompanied by policies that promote oral health, all bring about long-term improvements in health in general, it added.
It also noted that high obesity and diabetes prevalence rates in Malta were associated with a higher risk of dental caries, since they indicated higher sugar consumption. The report recommended working with other professionals such as doctors, nutritionists and teachers to bring about a decline in obesity and diabetes along with dental caries.
“It is prime time that the Gozitan community is provided with a targeted and enduring oral health programme with the aim of mitigating the findings of this study,” the report said.
It recommended health services give more importance to early screening and prevention, and that more hygienists were employed in Gozo to promote preventive interventions.
More awareness of the accessibility and availability of dental health services in the population should also be increased, the report said.
The research was conducted by Anne-Marie Agius, Ethel Vento Zahra, Emad Alzoubi, Maria Luisa Gainza-Cirauqui, Gabriella Gatt and Nikolai Attard.