Analysis of Hospital-Based Dental Procedures Under General Anesthesia in Uncooperative Patients: a Retrospective Study

General anesthesia is a well-documented therapeutic option for the provision of dental treatment, particularly in patients with special healthcare needs and uncooperative pediatric patients. Objec-tives: This retrospective study aimed to analyze the characteristics of dental general anesthesia (DGA) procedures for uncooperative patients of all ages in a tertiary healthcare facility, Clinical Hos-pital Dubrava, in Zagreb, Croatia. Material and methods: The hospital records for the patients treat-ed for various dental reasons under GA were obtained at the Clinical Hospital Dubrava in Zagreb, Croatia. Results: Between 2014 and 2019, a total of 810 DGA procedures were performed including 697 patients. The median age was 18 years. Almost half of the patients referred to undergo DGA pro-cedures were from the City of Zagreb and Zagreb County, 27.8% (N=225) and 21.0% (N=170), re-spectively. More than 90% of patients undergoing DGA procedures were referred with 1 to 3 medi-cal conditions. 47.9% of patients had 1 to 3 dental conditions, of which caries was the most common condition (95.7%). The mean waiting time (+/- SD) was 113.06 (+/- 62.62) days. 90 patients (14.8%) were referred for dental procedures under GA more than once, accounting for 203 procedures (25.1%). Conclusions: DGA remains a single dental treatment option for specific individuals. There is an insti-tutional and, also, an organizational need to address the long waiting times and high repeated DGA rates.