Health: surge in periodontal disease in Italy, with smog and heat among the threats

Rome, 20 March (LaPresse) – According to the Global Burden of Disease 2023 report, which analysed data from 1990 across 204 countries, cases of severe periodontitis worldwide have doubled in three decades, rising from 559 million to 1.1 billion, equivalent to 14% of the global population. In Italy, the number of people affected by the most severe form of gum disease has risen from over 6 million 30 years ago to around 9 million today, accounting for 15.7% of the adult population, compared to 4% in Spain, 8.5% in the UK, 11% in France and 24% in Germany, which has one of the highest rates in Europe. “These alarming figures demonstrate how severe periodontitis continues to represent a growing burden on public health. A growing burden recently recognised by the United Nations General Assembly which, in a document on non-communicable diseases, included oral health for the first time among global priorities for general health, alongside childhood cancers, mental, liver and kidney diseases, highlighting the need for an equitable and sustainable approach to tackle the excessively high rates of oral diseases,” reports Leonardo Trombelli, President of the SIdP and Full Professor of Periodontology at the University of Ferrara. In response to this challenge, which is also linked to population growth and ageing, with an alarming projection of over 1.5 billion cases of severe periodontitis by 2040, SIdP experts propose a more streamlined clinical model based on the principle of ‘doing more with less’, which prioritises less invasive treatments, ideally with a reduced environmental impact.