Changes of the Dental Service Delivered to Patients with Intellectual Disability under General Anaesthesia in Dental Polyclinic Split, Croatia, during the Years 1985-2009

People with intellectual disability (ID) usually have a poor quality of oral health, which include poor oral hygiene, untreated caries and high proportion of missing teeth. Due to their fear and repulsive attitude towards medical staff, general anesthesia is often a useful method for dental treatment. One thousand and fifty four intellectual disability patients for the period of 1985-2009 who received dental treatment under general anesthesia in Dental Polyclinic Split, were included in the study. Patients were divided into five groups based upon the period when a specific dental treatment had been received. Each period was analyzed for the number of ID patients treated and the type of dental treatment. The results showed that the most services provided were 4006 fillings, followed by 3225 extracted teeth and finally 274 endodontic treatments. Significantly the lowest number of fillings and endodontic treatments were found among patients in group II (1990-1994), with significantly the highest number of extracted teeth. In Conclusion, the types of dental treatment have changed during twenty five years. Number of extracted teeth decreased while the number of fillings and endodontic treatment increased. However, dental status of people with intellectual disability should be improved with more restorative treatments and with better oral health prevention program.