A need for health services for children with disabilities in Europe. A commentary.

e-mail: [email protected] palsy [Mitsea et al., 2001]. 2) Children with special needs in Denmark, when receiving dental services, are older when treated and have fewer teeth treated than patients without special needs [Haubek, 2006]. 3) The number of pediatric dentists in Sweden has remained constant for the last 20 years, but the number of children referred to paediatric practitioners has increased by 28% since 1983. The number of medically compromised children and children with disabilities increased from 6% to 22% in 2003. There is an urgent need to increase the number of pediatric specialists to ensure the quality of care for children and adolescents, especially those with special needs [Klingberg et al., 2006].