Prevalence of Periodontal Abscess among Patients Visiting A Private Dental College and Hospital in Chennai, India

Abstract

Periodontal abscess is a frequently occurring condition in the oral cavity in which periodontal tissue such as
bone, cementum, periodontal ligament and gingival are destroyed. It is more often than not associated with
periodontal pockets and periodontitis and is a marker of active bone destruction in the periodontal region.
It is the third most frequent dental emergency and its treatment has been a challenge for many years. The
aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of periodontal abscess among patients reporting to a Dental
University Hospital, Chennai. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted after reviewing patient
records and analysing the data of 86000 patients between June 2019 and March 2020. Microsoft Excel®
Data spreadsheet was used to tabulate the data. The variables involved were gender, age group, site and
chief complaint. Data was then exported to the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows
(Version 19, 2010) for further analysis. The age groups were 11-20 years, 21-30 years, 31-40 years, 41-50
years, 51-60 years, 61-70 years and 71-80 years. From the data analysed through the Statistical Package
for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows (Version 19, 2010), it was observed that the overall incidence of
periodontal abscess was higher in males (68.2%) than females (31.8%). 31-40 year olds had the highest
incidence at 39.4%. The most common site was sextant 4 (22.7%). Pain was the most observed complaint
(45.5%). Most common site of occurrence was sextant 1 in males and sextant 4 in females. (Chi square =
0.832 < expected value of 2.55, data is statistically significant) Within the limitations of the current study,
periodontal abscess has a male predilection between age group 31-40 years with most common site being
sextant 4. Pain was the most common symptom reported.