Dentistry for a Rapidly Increasing Population with Disabilities in India (American Academy of Developmental Medicine and Dentistry: Developmental Medicine and Dentistry Reviews & Reports) (Report‪)‬

INTRODUCTION Individuals with disabilities are a major global public health concern. Great numbers of youngsters and middle aged persons with a wide range of disabilities increasingly are surviving with conditions, which in the past, would have resulted in markedly foreshortened lives. As a result, in this century, increasing numbers of individuals will reach their eighties, nineties and beyond--the decades of life with the highest proportion of individuals with disabilities, associated dependency and increasing costs for health and social services. For example, in India in 2000, there were approximately 340 million youngsters less than fifteen years of age and 47.5 million individuals 65 years and over. It is estimated that by 2020, the older population cohort will increase to 93.5 million individuals and reach more than 230 million by 2050. [1, 2]