Oral health care is very low among Indians and, as a result, problems like gum disease and dental decay seem to hit Indians at a relatively younger age. A survey conduced in June across major Indian cities among doctors and patients revealed that Edentulism (a condition of being toothless) starts before the age of 45 years, giving rise to several other problems, and have an impact on the self-esteem of patients as well.’
The study was conducted by Swiss-based Nobel Biocare in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Hyderabad covering 200 patients and 50 doctors. The study also revealed that Edentulism had an impact on the quality of life of patients. “From each of these cities, we had taken into consideration a sample size of 45-50 patients for our survey. The patients were picked from city-based dentists who had been seeing these patients for long”, said a dentist from Nobel Biocare who was involved in the survey.
Tooth loss comes to the fore mainly after the age of 45-50. However, during the survey, about 23 per cent of respondents said they noticed tooth loss before the age of 45-50, 34 per cent between 50-55 and 42 per cent after crossing 55 years. The condition also leads to physical embarrassment for people who have lost teeth (56 per cent) and lack of social life (36 per cent).
According to World Health Organisation criteria, edentulous patients are physically impaired. So what is the solution? Dentists from Nobel Biocare told Deccan Chronicle: “Studies have shown that conventional dentures restore only 10 per cent of functionality of the teeth. As against the conventional dentures, dental implants have been more advantageous. It can restore up to 90 per cent of normal functionality of the teeth. It improves chewing capability by about 60-70 per cent, thereby improving the quality of life.”