Postmortem dental health in a Swiss population: a 10-year retrospective cross-sectional computed tomography study

Abstract Background Population-based studies have reported improved oral health and tooth retention in Switzerland over recent decades, yet little is known about dental status at the end of life and how it can be assessed using postmortem imaging. This study used postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) to describe dental health in a body donor cohort and to explore associations with age, sex, and time. Methods In this retrospective cross-sectional study, craniofacial PMCT datasets of 440 body donors from the Anatomical Institute of the University of Basel (2016–2025) were evaluated. Recorded variables included age at death, sex, number of missing teeth, number of implants, tooth-loss categories (0 missing, 1–2, 3–8, 9–27, edentulous), Eichner classification (A–C), and presence of removable dental prostheses (RDP). Descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests were applied. Results Mean age at death was 83.1 ± 9.8 years (range 40–104) and the mean number of remaining teeth was 9.6 ± 9.6 (median 7). Severe tooth loss was common: 41.4% had 9–27 missing teeth and 35.2% were edentulous, while 23.4% met the definition of functional dentition (≤ 8 missing teeth). Eichner class C was predominant (68.2%) and was strongly age dependent. Dental implants were present in 12.5% of donors (mean 0.4, median 0), and RDPs were found in 38.4%. Edentulism declined over the study period from 38.3% in 2016 to 17.7% in 2025, while presence of a functional dentition increased from 8.5% to 23.5%. Conclusion PMCT enables standardized, non-invasive assessment of tooth loss, implants, prosthetic status, and functional occlusal support in body donors, providing valuable data to characterize oral health patterns at the time of death.