Datasets:
license: cc-by-4.0
task_categories:
- tabular-classification
language:
- en
tags:
- healthcare
- oral-health
- dental-caries
- periodontal
- noma
- dentistry
- sub-saharan-africa
- lmic
pretty_name: Oral Health & Dental Disease (Caries, Periodontal, Noma, Treatment Access)
size_categories:
- 10K<n<100K
configs:
- config_name: dental_clinic
data_files: data/oral_dental_clinic.csv
- config_name: district_hospital
data_files: data/oral_district_hospital.csv
default: true
- config_name: rural_health_centre
data_files: data/oral_rural_health_centre.csv
Oral Health & Dental Disease Dataset
Abstract
This dataset provides 30,000 simulated oral health records (10,000 per scenario) from sub-Saharan Africa. Each record contains 40+ variables including dental caries, DMFT score, periodontal disease, noma, oral cancer, treatment access, barriers, and outcomes. Three settings: dental clinic (23% care-seeking), district hospital (16%), and rural health centre (8%).
1. Introduction
Africa bears the largest global increase in oral diseases (WHO 2024). The six major conditions are dental caries, periodontal disease, oral cancer, oral HIV manifestations, noma, and cleft lip/palate. DMFT scores average ~4 in SSA adults. Untreated caries is the most prevalent condition. The dentist-to-population ratio is <1:100,000 in many SSA countries. Noma (cancrum oris) persists in extreme poverty with 70-90% CFR if untreated.
This dataset is entirely simulated. It must not be used for clinical decision-making.
2. Methodology
2.1 Parameterization
| Parameter | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Dental caries prevalence | ~55% | WHO 2022 |
| Untreated caries | ~80% of caries | WHO Africa 2024 |
| DMFT (age 12) | ~2.6 | PubMed 2021 |
| Periodontal disease | ~17% | WHO 2022 |
| Dentist ratio | <1:100K | WHO Africa |
| Noma in malnourished children | ~0.5% | WHO Africa |
| Extraction dominates treatment | ~50% | BMC PH 2021 |
2.2 Scenario Design
| Scenario | Dentist | Restorative | X-ray | Care-Seeking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dental clinic | Yes | Yes | Yes | 23% |
| District hospital | Yes | No | No | 16% |
| Rural health centre | No | No | No | 8% |
3. Schema
| Column | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| id | int | Unique identifier |
| age_years | int | Age |
| sex | categorical | M / F |
| dental_caries | binary | Dental caries |
| dmft_score | int | DMFT score |
| untreated_caries | binary | Untreated caries |
| periodontal_disease | binary | Periodontal disease |
| periodontal_severity | categorical | mild / moderate / severe |
| tooth_loss | int | Teeth lost |
| oral_cancer | binary | Oral cancer |
| noma | binary | Noma (cancrum oris) |
| dental_pain | binary | Dental pain |
| dental_abscess | binary | Abscess |
| sugary_diet | binary | High sugar diet |
| fluoride_toothpaste | binary | Fluoride paste use |
| brushing_frequency | categorical | never / occasional / once / twice daily |
| sought_dental_care | binary | Sought care |
| treatment_received | categorical | extraction / filling / scaling / antibiotics / pain_relief / traditional |
| barrier_to_care | categorical | cost / distance / no_dentist / fear / not_severe / traditional |
| pain_resolved | binary | Pain resolved |
4. Validation
Key validation checks:
- Caries: ~55% prevalence ✓
- Untreated: ~80% of caries ✓
- Care-seeking gradient: 23% → 16% → 8% ✓
- Extraction dominates treatment ✓
- DMFT mean ~4 ✓
- Barriers: Cost and distance dominant ✓
5. Usage
from datasets import load_dataset
dataset = load_dataset("electricsheepafrica/oral-health-dental-disease", "district_hospital")
df = dataset["train"].to_pandas()
6. Limitations
- Simulated: Not from real dental registries.
- No imaging: No radiographic data.
- No clinical exam: No periodontal probing depths.
- Simplified: No detailed orthodontic data.
- No fluoride levels: No water fluoride concentrations.
7. References
- WHO Africa (2024). Oral health in the African Region.
- WHO (2022). Global Oral Health Status Report.
- PubMed (2021). DMFT in East Africa.
- BMC Public Health (2021). Dental caries in adults SSA.
- WHO Africa. Noma (cancrum oris).
- PubMed (2015). Oral health South Africa.
- PubMed (2021). Dental caries prevalence East Africa.
Citation
@dataset{esa_oral_health_2025,
title={Oral Health and Dental Disease Dataset},
author={Electric Sheep Africa},
year={2025},
publisher={Hugging Face},
url={https://huggingface.co/datasets/electricsheepafrica/oral-health-dental-disease}
}