Analysis of Clinical Oral Medicine Practices at the University of Pennsylvania: A 5-year Retrospective Study

Abstract Objective The aim of this study was to characterize oral medicine (OM) clinical practices at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn), demonstrate importance of OM clinical services, and emphasize aspects of training for OM specialists. Study Design Non-probability sampling of OM resident patient logs for patients receiving clinical care from 2008 to 2013 was conducted. OM resident patient logs included clinical diagnosis, International Classification of Diseases, 9th edition (ICD-9) code, medical history, clinical procedure, Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code, attending physician, and resident participation notes. Results Outpatients in OM medical practices (n=6024) averaged 1.56 diagnoses from OM specialists. Orofacial pain (45.02%) and oral mucosal diseases (34.28%) comprised the majority of OM diagnoses. The most frequent procedures were tissue biopsies (59.34%) and treatments for temporomandibular disorders (29.9%). Inpatients (n=313) comprised 3.46% of Penn OM hospital services and cardiovascular disorders (38.99%) were the most common admitting diagnoses in this group. In the OM dental practice (n=1648), 42.05% of patients had a median of 3 medical comorbidities (range=2-11) in which cardiovascular disorders (27.13%) were most prevalent. Conclusions Analysis of Penn OM clinical practices emphasizes the breadth and multidisciplinary nature of OM services and importance of comprehensive postdoctoral training in all domains of OM.