Using the chief complaint field from our established syndromic ED system, we developed definitions for potentially preventable oral health visits (OHV) and examined patterns in 2009-2011 data. Under the widest definition, OHV comprised about 1% of ED visits. Adults ages 18 to 29 had markedly higher OHV than other ages, as did certain neighborhoods/EDs. We found more than half of OHV occurred during daytime hours, suggesting opportunities for targeted outreach and education. With some caveats, syndromic ED data provide a useful complement to other oral health surveillance strategies.
Objective
To utilize an established syndromic reporting system for surveil- lance of potentially preventable emergency department (ED) oral health visits (OHV) in New York City (NYC).