Kennedy Classification of Edentulous Arches in Patients Treated at a University Clinic in Cartagena

Abstract

Introduction: Edentulism is a public health problem caused by the accumulation of oral pathologies, affecting both the elderly population and the young population in unfavourable social conditions, causing negative effects on facial appearance, nutrition, and the abilities to eat, speak and socialise. Partial edentulism implies the absence of one or more teeth; this is classified according to the Kennedy method which is the most accepted among the dental community. Objective: To characterise partially edentulous dental arches in patients treated at a university dental clinic in Cartagena from 2015 to 2018. Material and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out using medical records. The sample was obtained using selection criteria. The current regulations for Colombia and the Declaration of Helsinki were considered; requests were made for ethics approval and for permission to access the clinical archives. To collect the information, a registration form was designed and validated, used by four previously trained students. The descriptive analysis and the chi–square test, were developed using ibm^® spss^® Statistics software, version 11. Results: A total of 130 medical records were reviewed, of which 111 met the selection criteria. The female sex predominated with almost 75% of the clinical histories included. The most frequent reason for consultation was aesthetics, approaching 80%. Edentulism occurred in 47% in the mandible (95% CI: 37.31-56.55), followed by Bimaxillary edentulism. A statistically significant relationship was found with age, for the group of 46 to 63 years old with mandibular Class I according to Kennedy classification. Conclusion: The predominant type of partially edentulous dental arch was Class III in the maxilla and Class I in the mandible, according to Kennedy classification. There was no association between gender, the type of partial edentulism and the classification of the dental arches.