Prevalence of medically compromised conditions in dental patients.

OBJECTIVES To study the prevalence of medically compromised conditions in patients seeking dental treatment at the Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University. STUDY DESIGN The files of 58,317 patients seeking dental treatments at the Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University from 2002-2004 were retrieved and reviewed for medically compromised conditions. RESULTS From a total of 58,317 patients, 7,167 patients (12.2%) had medically compromised conditions. The five most prevalent conditions in descending order were allergy, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, heart diseases and thyroid diseases. CONCLUSIONS Even though the prevalence of medically compromised conditions in dental patients is not high, dentists should bear in mind that some of the patients may harbor such conditions which are contraindicated for certain dental procedures or medication or require special attention when treating these patients. Therefore, a thorough history taking and careful clinical examinations are mandatory before commencing any dental treatment.