Is periodontal disease on the increase in Kenya? A review.

During a recent scientific meeting held in Botswana (16th-19th October 1991), it was reported that the oral health situation in developing countries was typified by an increase in the prevalence of dental diseases. Kenya was cited as one of the typical examples of this worrying trend. For there to be an increase in dental diseases, there must be a concomitant increase or an upward shift in the main aetiological factor(s) or factors associated with dental diseases. This paper looks at these factors in relation to periodontal disease and reviews some of the major prevalence studies of periodontal disease that have been carried out in Kenya. It also presents some arguments to show that there is no unequivocal evidence that periodontal disease is on the increase in Kenya.