More than 3 billion people had some type of oral disease in 2021

Worldwide, 3.69 billion people had an oral disease in 2021, according to a study published recently in the Lancet.

The main oral conditions affecting people were untreated cavities, inflammatory gum disease (periodontitis), and tooth loss (edentulism). Untreated cavities affected an estimated 27,500 per 100,000 people, whereas periodontitis affected around 12,500 per 100,000 people. The researchers analyzed data from the 2021 Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study. (The global population is just over 8.1 billion people, according to Census.gov.)

The report found relatively small changes in prevalence or burden of oral diseases from 1990 to 2021. However, there were “substantial variations” across regions as defined by the World Health Organization. The African and Eastern Mediterranean regions showed the largest increases in prevalent cases and disability-adjusted life years for most oral conditions. Countries in the European region showed the smallest increases or no change, and Europe was the only region with a decreasing prevalence of cavities. The burden of lip and oral cancer also decreased in both the European and American regions.

According to the WHO, oral health is a key indicator of overall health and quality of life. The study argues that past and current efforts to control oral conditions have not been successful, and more needs to be done to curb the burden of disease worldwide.

“The burden of oral conditions has remained largely unchanged and at a high level over the past 30 years,” the authors write. “Without any sizable and impactful action there will be little change in the burden of oral conditions at a global, regional and national level.”