Abstract
With the aim of understanding the actual status of dentistry for children and disabled persons at Hokkaido University Hospital as an advanced treatment hospital, and the changes that have occurred over time, we investigated the actual status of new patients visiting our clinic over a five-year period from 2016 to 2020 and reached the following conclusions.
The average number of new patients per year was 338, with slight differences observed from year to year. Male and female patients accounted for 57.1％ and 42.9％ of the total, respectively, showing a gender difference. The age at the first visit peaked between 4 and 7 years old. The most common chief complaint was tooth decay and toothache (46.8％), with a wide range of other complaints. The total number of new patients living in Sapporo City accounted for 74.2％, but some came from neighboring areas and some from more than 100 km away. The patients with pre-existing medical conditions accounted for 41.1 ％ of the total. The most common diseases were mental and behavioral disorders, but there was a wide range of other diseases as well. The patients treated as usual were 71.9％; the rest required restraints or general anesthesia. Referred patients accounted for 80.3％ of the total. Most patients were referred from dental clinics, but there were also referrals from medical departments and other medical facilities.
The results suggest the necessity of having specialized knowledge and skills to deal with various cases, as well as to respond to the changing medical systems and needs of pediatric and disabled dentistry over time, in dentistry for children and disabled patients in higher medical institutions.
