Outlining the economic burden of oral diseases is fundamental to examine the societal relevance of preventing and rectifying oral diseases. Besides the treatment costs, there are indirect costs to think about, primarily in relation to productivity losses due to absenteeism from work. The objective of the current study was to determine the direct and indirect costs of dental diseases globally to estimate the global economic impact. Approximation of direct treatment costs was dependent on a systematic approach. For measurement on indirect costs, a proposed method pointed out by the World Health Organization’s Commission on Macroeconomics and Health was implemented, which took into account the 2010 values of gross domestic product per capita as furnished by the International Monetary Fund and oral burden of disease estimates, according to the 2010 Global Burden of Disease Study. Direct treatment costs in relation to dental diseases worldwide were at approximately US$298 billion annually, translating to an estimate of 4.6% of global health expenses. Indirect costs due to dental diseases worldwide reached a total of US$144 billion annually, equivalent to economic losses within the range of the 10 most common global factors of death. Currently, with the amount of data sources and methodologies available, these findings reveal that the global economic impact of dental diseases lead up to US$442 billion in 2010. Enhancements in population oral health may result in significant economic benefits in terms of decreased treatment costs and lower productivity losses in the workforce.
Participate in the upcoming QS Subject Focus Summit – Dentistry under the theme of “Changing Paradigm in Dental Education for Future Excellence” from 4-6 April 2019 in Seoul, South Korea.