Effect of an herbal mouthwash on periodontal indices in patients with plaque-induced gingivitis: A cross-over clinical trial

Background. Recent advances in alternative medicine have led to the introduction of various new herbal products for treating gingivitis as the most prevalent gingival disease. The present study clinically evaluated the effect of a herbal mouthwash consisting of 5 herbal extracts (Myrtus communis, Quercus brantii, Punica granatum, Portulaca olerace, and Boswellia serrata) on periodontal indices. Methods. Fifty patients with plaque-induced gingivitis were included in this randomized, dou-ble-blinded clinical trial and divided into two groups. Following scaling and root planing (SRP), they were prescribed 0.2% chlorhexidine (CHX) (group 1) and herbal mouthwash (group 2) twice a day for 14 days. Both groups received saline mouthwash for the subsequent 14 days (wash-out time). Then, they used the mouthwashes in a cross-over manner for an additional two weeks. Probing pocket depth (PPD), gingival index (GI), bleeding on probing (BOP), and plaque index (PI) were recorded at baseline and after each period of mouthwash use. The data were analyzed by SPSS software, using generalized estimating equation (GEE) linear regression and paired t-test. P<0.05 was considered sta-tistically significant. Results. Both groups exhibited statistically significant improvements in the periodontal indices compared to the baseline (P<0.05); however, there were no significant differences between the two study groups in this regard. Conclusion. The experimental herbal mouthwash improved the periodontal condition in plaque-induced gingivitis after two weeks, comparable to the effect of %0.2 CHX mouthwash in terms of PPD, BOP, PI, and GI.

Provision of oral hygiene services as a potential method for preventing periodontal disease and control hypertension and diabetes in a community health centre in Korea

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a community-based oral hygiene service on general and periodontal health indicators of patients with hypertension and type 2 diabetes mellitus visiting a community health centre in Korea. The study used a one-group pretest-posttest and interrupted time-series design. A total of 151 participants (45% male), with a mean age of 63 ± 8.4 years, were included in the study; these included patients with hypertension (62%), diabetes (12%) and both hypertension and diabetes (26%). Two dental hygienists dedicated 2 days per week to this project, providing oral hygiene services to 10-13 participants per day. Four oral hygiene service sessions were provided per patient. The objective oral hygiene status and subjective self-reported periodontal status were compared before and after the service. The changes in blood pressure and glycosylated haemoglobin levels were also assessed. A lower frequency of subjective swelling was reported at the fourth session (37.9%) compared to the first (55.6%) session. Further, significantly fewer cases of calculus and bleeding were observed (p < .05), and significantly more patients reported having no gum problems at the fourth session (43.1% vs. 27.2%; p < .05) than at the first session. Finally, the participants maintained stable blood pressures at each of the four sessions, and their glycosylated haemoglobin levels were significantly lower at the fourth session. In conclusion, the findings of this study suggest that community oral hygiene services provided by dental hygienists can promote objective oral hygiene and subjective periodontal status in the local community, and may help in the control of hypertension and diabetes.

Trends in the utilization of dental outpatient services affected by the expansion of health care benefits in South Korea to include scaling: a 6-year interrupted time-series study

Purpose

This study utilized a strong quasi-experimental design to test the hypothesis that the implementation of a policy to expand dental care services resulted in an increase in the usage of dental outpatient services.

Methods

A total of 45,650,000 subjects with diagnoses of gingivitis or advanced periodontitis who received dental scaling were selected and examined, utilizing National Health Insurance claims data from July 2010 through November 2015. We performed a segmented regression analysis of the interrupted time-series to analyze the time-series trend in dental costs before and after the policy implementation, and assessed immediate changes in dental costs.

Results

After the policy change was implemented, a statistically significant 18% increase occurred in the observed total dental cost per patient, after adjustment for age, sex, and residence area. In addition, the dental costs of outpatient gingivitis treatment increased immediately by almost 47%, compared with a 15% increase in treatment costs for advanced periodontitis outpatients. This policy effect appears to be sustainable.

Conclusions

The introduction of the new policy positively impacted the immediate and long-term outpatient utilization of dental scaling treatment in South Korea. While the policy was intended to entice patients to prevent periodontal disease, thus benefiting the insurance system, our results showed that the policy also increased treatment accessibility for potential periodontal disease patients and may improve long-term periodontal health in the South Korean population.

Changes in dental care access upon health care benefit expansion to include scaling

Purpose

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a policy change to expand Korean National Health Insurance (KNHI) benefit coverage to include scaling on access to dental care at the national level.

Methods

A nationally representative sample of 12,794 adults aged 20 to 64 years from Korea National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (2010–2014) was analyzed. To examine the effect of the policy on the outcomes of interest (unmet dental care needs and preventive dental care utilization in the past year), an estimates-based probit model was used, incorporating marginal effects with a complex sampling structure. The effect of the policy on individuals depending on their income and education level was also assessed.

Results

Adjusting for potential covariates, the probability of having unmet needs for dental care decreased by 6.1% and preventative dental care utilization increased by 14% in the post-policy period compared to those in the pre-policy period (2010, 2012). High income and higher education levels were associated with fewer unmet dental care needs and more preventive dental visits.

Conclusions

The expansion of coverage to include scaling demonstrated to have a significant association with decreasing unmet dental care needs and increasing preventive dental care utilization. However, the policy disproportionately benefited certain groups, in contrast with the objective of the policy to benefit all participants in the KNHI system.

National dental policies and socio-demographic factors affecting changes in the incidence of periodontal treatments in Korean: A nationwide population-based retrospective cohort study from 2002-2013

BACKGROUND

Dental insurance coverage has recently expanded in Korea. The number of patients diagnosed with periodontal disease (PD), and the actual number of periodontally compromised patients has increased. However, few studies have investigated the relationships between the prevalence of periodontal disease and the incidence of PD treatment, dental insurance policies, and socio-demographic factors. To determine the incidence of periodontal treatments required, the comprehensive longitudinal data of the National Health Insurance Service were used. This study evaluated changes in the incidence of periodontal treatments, using data from the Korean National Health Insurance Cohort Database.

METHODS

A random stratified sample of 1,025,340 Korean patients was selected from National Health Insurance database, using 1,476 multistage samplings (of sex, age, and income level) for 12 years from 2002 to 2013. Chi-square analysis, and univariate, and multivariate logistic regression were used to evaluate the association of socio-demographic factors with the prevalence of PD and the incidence of periodontal treatment.

RESULTS

The incidence of periodontal treatment steadily and significantly increased, in both male and female participants, from 2002 to 2013. The increase was associated with socio-demographic factors and changes in national dental insurance policies. The incidence of periodontal treatment evaluated by age is influenced by the changes in national dental policies. These results suggest that the increase in patients diagnosed with PD reflects changes in dental policies and insurance benefits.

CONCLUSIONS

This study confirms that national dental policies and socio-demographic factors are related to the incidence of periodontal treatments. The incidence of periodontal treatment is significantly related to the expansion of insurance coverage in South Korea.