Assessment of Inflammatory Scores in Severity Prediction for Elderly Patients with Odontogenic Infections

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Odontogenic infections (OIs) can lead to severe complications, especially in elderly patients due to age-related physiological changes and comorbidities. This study aims to evaluate the predictive accuracy of inflammatory scores—APACHE II, CURB-65, SOFA, and NEWS2—in determining the severity of odontogenic infections among elderly patients (>70 years) compared to younger patients (Materials and Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients diagnosed with an OI at the Maxillofacial Surgery Department between January 2018 and January 2024. Patients were divided into two groups: elderly patients (>70 years, n = 49) and younger patients (Results: Elderly patients exhibited significantly higher SS scores (mean 12.47 ± 2.93) compared to younger patients (mean 7.82 ± 2.17, p p p Conclusions: Inflammatory scores, particularly SOFA, are effective in predicting the severity of odontogenic infections in elderly patients. The integration of these scores into clinical practice may enhance early identification of high-risk patients and improve management strategies.

Keywords

• prediction statistics
• odontogenic infections
• negative outcomes
• elderly