Countries With The Most Dentists Per 100 000 Population

Which countries have the most dentists per capita? There are 127 dentists per 100,000 in Greece, 60 dentists per 100,000 in United States and 10 per 100,000 in Mexico, as informs OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) statistic.

Dentists are the main provider of dental care, although some services are also provided by dental hygienists, dental assistants and dental prosthetists.

Most dentists in OECD countries work in their own office or in a group practice (dental clinics), although a small proportion also work in hospitals and other health care facilities.

In most OECD countries, there are between 50 and 80 practising dentists per 100 000 population (2007 year study).

Greece has the highest number of -dentists per capita, followed by Iceland, Norway, -Sweden, Belgium and Luxembourg, with 80 or more dentists per 100 000 population.

The number of -dentists per capita is the lowest in Mexico, although it has increased significantly since 1990.

In countries such as France, the Netherlands and the United States, the number of dentists increased at the same pace as the growth in the population, resulting in a stable number of dentists per capita between 1990 and 2007.

A higher number of dentists per capita generally tends to be associated with a higher number of dentist -consultations. However, for a given number of dentists per capita, there can still be wide differences in the average number of dentist consultations.

For instance, while Japan has slightly fewer dentists per capita than Germany, Finland and Denmark, the average number of dentist consultations is two to three times greater.

As is the case with other health professionals, there tends to be a higher number of dentists per capita in large cities than in rural areas.

The number of dentists includes both salaried and self-employed dentists. In most countries, the data only include dentists providing direct services to clients/patients.

This is not the case however in Canada, Ireland, Portugal and Spain, where the data relate to all dentists licensed to practice, including those who may not be actively practising.