The big winner on St. Patrick's Day: Dentists

This St. Patrick's Day the biggest winners in America will be dentists.

It might not come as a surprise that people get drunk and get their teeth knocked out. And yes, the data do in fact support that claim.

Data from 2008-15 suggest that in the day after St. Patrick's, there is a 77 percent jump in emergency visits to the dentist. And in fact, it's almost identical between men and women. Women (between ages 30 and 65) see a 77.4 percent increase in emergency dental visits. And men (again, 30-65 years old) see an increase of 78 percent.

The data come from Sikka Software, which provides applications and tools to more than 10,000 dental practices across the country. As a result, it knows exactly when and where — and why — Americans visit the dentist.

Faceplants, sidewalks, fists

Dr. Page Barden, a dentist in Cumming, Georgia, said his reality matches up with the data.

"Yes, dentists are very busy the day after we celebrate St. Patrick," Barden said. He references patients who "can become clumsy and fall down, doing a faceplant in the sidewalk," and others who become so drunk that it "results in them biting someone they have offended in the fist with their teeth."

The biggest jump in emergency visits were seen in Arkansas, West Virginia, Mississippi, Tennessee, Virginia, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Kansas, and Louisiana. Those states led the way for men visiting the emergency room — and for women. Clearly St. Patrick's Day affects the genders similarly.

Sikka's data show that March 18 is always one of the 10 busiest days of the year, and the spike tends to last two to three days. Company founder Vijay Sikka said there is "absolutely" money to be made on this trend and suggests a smart business practice for this week. "We can see dentists offering a St. Patrick's Day emergency appointments special."

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