Estimating the Economic Burden of Dental Caries in 6-Year-Old Children and Adult Population: A Study of Households in Ardabil City

Tooth decay directly and indirectly affects the national economy of some countries. These diseases reduce the number and productivity of the workforce. Medical expenses eat up savings and investments. All these factors reduce the earning power of individuals and households and affect the national economy, so an important part of the social and economic consequences of dental caries is the impact on savings at the household level and national income or gross domestic product at the national level.

The present study was descriptive, analytical and cross-sectional. The study sample was 260 6-year-old children and 260 adults who were referred to dental centers in 1401, and were randomly selected. The patients with tooth decay received services from the health and treatment centers of Ardabil city.

The total cost of dental services related to tooth decay in 6-year-old children of Ardabil city was equal to 22543323 rials for one tooth, of which 94.23% of these costs are related to direct medical costs, 2.2% to indirect medical costs and 3.57% is related to non-medical indirect costs. The total cost of dental services related to tooth decay in the adult population of Ardabil city was estimated as 3,227,897 rials for one tooth, of which 95.93% of costs are direct medical costs, 2.43% of costs are direct non-medical costs, and 1.65% of costs are indirect costs.

Considering the high prevalence of tooth decay in 6-year-old children and adults in Ardabil city, its treatment imposes a significant part of the costs on Ardabil households, and the limited supply of dental services in the public health sector and the lack of insurance support in paying the costs have caused that families often pay for private services out of their own pockets.