Proposed criteria for classifying potential dental emergencies in department of defense military personnel

Dental emergencies have been well documented and evaluated. The results of dental emergencies have been lost duty time, decreased unit effectiveness, disruption of routine care, and hindrance to the military mission. The potential of dental emergencies to reduce combat effectiveness is still a major concern. The current U.S. Army and Department of Defense (DOD) military personnel dental classification system, as regulated by DOD Instruction 6410.1, places certain patients broadly into the potential emergency, class 3 category. Changes are needed to make this system more effective and predictive. In addition to various acute conditions, more emphasis should be focused on caries- and surgery-related problems to identify the majority of individuals at high risk for emergencies. Based on an extensive literature review, changes in the current system of classification are proposed.