Specificities of oral surgical rehabilitation of patients with special needs under general anesthesia

Introduction: People with special needs have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments that can hinder their full and effective participation in society. A high frequency of oral diseases is very common in this population and they visit the dentist when it is necessary to provide urgent treatment. Aim: This study aimed to perform an analysis of the dental treatments among people with special needs provided under general anesthesia at the Clinic for Dental Medicine in Niš within three years, with special reference to their oral surgical treatment. Materials and methods: The retrospective study involved patients with special needs who underwent a tooth restoration under general anesthesia at the Clinic for Dental Medicine in Niš within three years from December 1, 2021 to December 1, 2024. Demographic data on patients as well as the ones on their health status along with the date of dental intervention, type and reference number of dental services provided under general anesthesia were collected. Results: During the given period, 124 patients with special needs, within the age range 29.31 ± 5.59 and both genders nearly equally represented were treated under general anesthesia. In 74.2% of them, both conservative restoration and oral surgical restoration of teeth were performed at the same time, 4.03% underwent only conservative restoration and 21.77% only oral surgical treatment. Each patient had an average of 9.04 ± 5.56 repaired teeth with rate which is significantly higher for extracted than conservatively repaired teeth (p = 0.007). Results: Dental treatment of patients with special needs is mainly provided in health care institutions at the tertiary level, under general anesthesia and is accompanied by multiple tooth extractions. Conclusion: The inclusion of these patients in dental monitoring systems would make it much easier to manage their dental problems and decrease the number of urgent dental treatments as well as general anesthesia rehabilitation.