ORAL HEALTH AND DENTAL TREATMENT NEEDS IN NIGERIAN PATIENTS WITH EPILEPSY

Purpose: We determined the prevalence of oral disorders and the dental treatment needs of outpatients with epilepsy. Methods: A questionnair e was administered to 56 consecutive patients (35 males, 21 females) p resenting to an outpatient clinic. All patients underwent dental exami nations. The clinical and diagnostic features of each patient's epilep sy were also obtained. Results.-The mean age (+/-SD) of the patients w as 25.1 +/- 12.1 years (range; 12-56 years). Of 9 patients receiving p henytoin (PHT) monotherapy, 3 (33.3%) had gingival hypertrophy; 15 of 18 (83.3%) patients receiving PHT in combination with phenobarbital (P B) manifested the disorder. Traumatized anterior teeth were found in 2 6 (46.4%) patients with the males significantly more affected than fem ales (p = 0.02). When the dental treatment needs were considered, 24 ( 42.9%) patients required dental prophylaxis with oral hygiene instruct ion, and an equal number required various types of restorative treatme nts. Only 13 patients (23.2%) had previously visited a dental clinic; the 43 (76.8%) who had never sought dental treatment claimed they did not see any need for it. Conclusions: Our study showed an increased pr edilection to anterior dental injuries in patients with epilepsy as co mpared with the prevalence earlier reported for those without epilepsy in Nigeria (p = 0.00). There is a clear need for effective interactio n between medical and dental practitioners in the management of epilep sy.