Changes in prevalence of periodontitis in two German population-based studies

AimWe aimed to assess changes of periodontal status in Germany. Materials & MethodsThe Studies of Health in Pomerania (SHIP) are two cross-sectional population-based studies conducted during 1997-2001 (SHIP-0, 20-81 years, n=3736) and 2008-2012 (SHIP-Trend, 20-84years, n=3622) in northeast Germany. The German Oral Health Studies (DMS, 35-44 and 65-74years) are national cross-sectional population-based surveys conducted in 1997 (DMS III, n=1454) and 2005 (DMS IV, n=1668), whose results were separately reported for West and East Germany. Prevalences, percentages and numbers of teeth affected were defined. ResultsIn SHIP, prevalence of attachment loss (AL) 3mm decreased from 89.7% (95% confidence interval (CI): 88.6-90.8) to 85.1% (95%CI: 83.9-86.3) (p<0.05) and the mean extent reduced from 62.8% (95%CI: 61.7-63.8) to 55.9% (95%CI: 54.9-56.9) (p<0.05). Probing depth (PD) 4mm and the respective extent remained unchanged. In West Germany, AL 3mm decreased for 35-44-year-olds and increased for 65-74-year-olds (p<0.05). In SHIP and DMS, the number of teeth in dentates increased significantly in all age groups. ConclusionsPrevalences and extents of AL improved almost in all age categories in SHIP and West German adults, whereas PDs remained unchanged. Nonetheless, the improvement of periodontal conditions implies an increase of treatment needs regarding moderately diseased teeth because of simultaneous increases of the number of present teeth.