Examining Hospitalization for the Removal of Wisdom Teeth in Australia
A recent study titled “Hospitalisation for the surgical removal of impacted teeth: Has Australia followed the international trends?” by George RP, Kruger E, Tennant M., appears in the Australasian Medical Journal (AMJ) vol. 4, issue 8, pp. 425-430, 2011. The study looks at a period of six years between 1999 and 2005 in which patients had impacted teeth removed under general anesthesia in a hospital in Australia. The authors state that the vast majority of teeth that are impacted are wisdom teeth (third molars). A total of 37.6% of all oral health hospitalizations over the six years were for hospitalizations. Most of the patients were females with an average age of 21.6. The majority of patients were hospitalized at a private hospital and privately insured. A total of 47,411 patients were hospitalized in Western Australia for the oral condition ‘Impacted/embedded … Read more