National Oral Health Plan 2015–2024: performance monitoring report

Definition

Proportion of adults with moderate or severe periodontitis
Numerator

Total number of individuals (aged 15+ years) examined in the reporting period with a moderate or severe periodontitis

Denominator
Total number of dentate individuals (aged 15+ years) examined in the reporting period

Desirable rate

Low

Data sources

NSAOH
National Study of Adult Oral Health*
*National population estimates presented in NSAOH have been derived from weighted data

Inclusions

Age group
Includes all periodontal status data captured for individuals aged 15+ years examined in the reporting period. Age is calculated from the date of birth in years (rounded down) as at the date of examination of the client when the periodontal status is captured. Data to be presented in age groups 15–24, 25–44, 45–64, 65+ and 15+ years.

Sites
Measurements are made with a periodontal probe at the mesio-buccal, mid-buccal, and disto-buccal aspects of all teeth present, except for third molars.

Moderate or severe periodontitis⁽¹⁾
Presence of two or more sites (not on the same tooth) for all teeth examined where either:
(a) The gum has lost its attachment to the tooth for 4mm or more (distance from cemento-enamel junction to the bottom of the periodontal crevice/pocket), OR
(b) The periodontal pocket (distance from free gingival margin to the bottom of the periodontal crevice/pocket) is 5mm or more.

Exclusions

Edentulous individuals
Individuals with no natural teeth present are to be excluded from the denominator count

Proportion of adults with moderate or severe periodontitis

Numerator
Total number of individuals (aged 15+ years) interviewed in the reporting period who provided self-reported responses indicating the person to have moderate or severe periodontitis

Denominator
Total number of dentate individuals (aged 15+ years) interviewed in the reporting period

Desirable rate

Low

Data sources

NDTIS
National Dental Telephone Interview Survey*
*National population estimates presented in NDTIS have been derived from weighted data

Inclusions

Age group
Includes all periodontal status data captured for individuals aged 15+ years interviewed in the reporting period. Age is calculated from the date of birth in years (rounded down) as at the date of the interview of the client when the responses to periodontal status questions are captured. Data to be presented in age groups 15–24, 25–44, 45–64, 65+ and 15+ years.

Survey response (NDTIS)
Response combinations to the following series of periodontal status questions in NDTIS represent a validated instrument⁽²⁾ for predicting periodontal disease:
- Do you think you might have gum disease?

- Overall, how would you rate the health of your teeth and gums?

- Have you ever had treatment for gum disease such as scaling and root planning, sometimes called 'deep cleaning'?

- Have you ever had any teeth become loose on their own, without an injury?

- During the last three months, have you noticed a tooth that doesn’t look right?

Exclusions

Edentulous individuals
Individuals with no natural teeth present are to be excluded from the denominator count.

Proportion of adults with moderate or severe periodontitis

Numerator
Total number of individuals (aged 15+ years) examined in the reporting period with a moderate or severe periodontitis using the Community Periodontal Index (CPI)

Denominator
Total number of dentate individuals (aged 15+ years) examined in the reporting period

Desirable rate

Low

Data sources

Public dental
State/territory public dental service data for adults presenting to public dental clinics

Inclusions

Age group
Includes all periodontal status data captured for individuals aged 15+ years examined in the reporting period. Age is calculated from the date of birth in years (rounded down) as at the date of examination of the client when the periodontal status is captured. Data to be presented in age groups 15–24, 25–44, 45–64, 65+ and 15+ years.

Sites⁽³⁾ (under CPI)
The mouth is divided into sextants defined by tooth numbers: 18–14, 13–23, 24–28, 38–34, 33–43, and 44–48. A sextant should be examined only if there are two or more teeth present and not indicated for extraction. The index teeth to be examined are:

The two molars in each posterior sextant are paired for recording, and if one is missing, there is no replacement. If no index teeth or tooth is present in a sextant qualifying for examination, all the remaining teeth in that sextant are examined and the highest score is recorded as the score for the sextant. In this case, distal surfaces of third molars should not be scored.

Coding⁽³⁾ (under CPI)
The highest score for the following codes is recorded for teeth examined in each sextant:
0: Healthy
1: Bleeding observed, directly or by using mouth mirror, after probing
2: Calculus detected during probing, but pocket 3mm or under
3: Pocket 4 — 5 mm
4: Pocket 6 mm or more
X: Excluded sextant (less than two teeth present)

Moderate or severe periodontitis
Presence of two or more sextants with a CPI score = 3 or 4

Exclusions

Edentulous Individuals
Individuals with no natural teeth present are to be excluded from the denominator count.