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Community
Preventive Services-
Promoting Oral Health-
Promoting
Oral Health
___________________________________
Despite
substantial improvements in oral health, the
United States spends more than $ 60 Billion
annually on sental services.Dental caries in
easily preventable & yet remains the
most common diseases of children &
adults resulting in substantial burden
specially among low income children,
adolescents & adults.
The
independent Task Force on Community
Preventive Services conducted a systematic
review of studies of community water
fluoridation & school based or school
linked pit & fissure sealant delivery
programs & found that these
interventions are efffective & should be
included as part of a comprehensive
population based strategy to control dental
caries in the community.
Intervention
Strategies for Preventing Dental Caries
|
School
based sealant delivery programs |
Recommended
( strong evidence) |
Most
decay is found in pits & fissures
of molar teeth.use of sealants can
prevent decay on these surfaces
Application
of sealants on school based/school
linked programs was found to be
effective in children of varying
socioeconomic status & risk of
decay |
|
Community
wide sealant promotion intervention |
Insufficient
evidence |
|
|
Community
water fluoridation |
Recommended
( Strong evidence) |
National
health objectives call for 75% of
population served by community water
systems to be drinking optimally
fluoridated water by 2010.
In
studies measuring decay rates before
& after fluoridation, median
decrease in tooth decay among children
was 29.1% |
Intervention
Strategies for Preventing Oral &
Pharyngeal Cancers
|
Population
based interventions for early
detection |
Insufficient
evidence |
Intervention
Strategies for Preventing Oral & Facial
Injuries
|
Population
based interventions to encourage use
of helmets, facemasks & mouth
guards in contact sports |
Insufficient
evidence |
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