Oral Health and Dental Management

Abstract

Treatment provided in the Public Dental Service and by private dentists in Finland

Widstrom Eeva, Linden Jari

Aims: Dental treatment measures provided in the public and private sectors in 2009 were compared. Methods: Data on all treatment measures were collected from the municipal Public Dental Service (PDS) databases and the reimbursement register of the Social Insurance Institution, after ethical approval of the study. Registers group the patients by age (<18, 18-64, 65+) and the treatment measures by 12 main categories. Results: Altogether 8.9 million treatment measures were provided for 1.7 million public sector visitors and 5.2 million treatment measures for the one million private visitors in 2009. The young in the PDS received examinations, orthodontics and preventive care. In private sector they received more endodontics and fillings. For the working aged, the private sector provided more periodontal (797), preventive (259) and restorative treatment measures (1,743) per 1000 patients than the PDS (455, 193, 1,457), and fewer examinations (720) and surgery (200) than the PDS (1,142, 308). In both sectors the elderly received more fillings and surgery than the working aged. Conclusions: In the public sector more effort went to examinations and emergency care than in the private sector where more comprehensive care was emphasized. Filling therapy dominated adult care in both sectors and prevention was not common, nor did periodontal treatment correspond to patients' needs.