Social deprivation and severe cervicofacial abscess: A retrospective review of patients presenting to a tertiary oral and maxillofacial surgery unit

Background

Severe cervicofacial abscesses require emergency incision and drainage under general anaesthetic to avoid life-threatening sequelae. There is a well-described association between dental disease and socioeconomic status (SES), and most cervicofacial abscesses are odontogenic.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the relationship between severe cervicofacial infection and SES in patients presenting to a tertiary Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS) unit.

Results

There were 96 patients with severe cervicofacial abscess in 2019–20, increasing by 11.5 %–107 patients in 2021–22 (t-test = −0.665, p = 0.513). Patients were disproportionately from the most deprived areas, with a majority of patients living in the three most deprived deciles in both datasets (71.9 % and 64.7 % respectively). There was no statistical difference in deprivation indices between the two time periods (X² = 7.44, p = 0.591). While the cohorts had high indices of deprivation, these were not significantly different to the areas served by the hospital (X² = 11.42, p = 0.248).

Conclusions

This dataset demonstrates a high incidence of severe cervicofacial abscess in a deprived population. This relationship is likely to reflect a number of factors including access to primary dental care, lifestyle factors including smoking, and background medical comorbidities. Further iterations of data collection and multi-centre collaboration will improve our understanding of the relationship between social deprivation and severe cervicofacial abscess.