Dental public health

Dental Public Health (DPH) is a non-clinical specialty of dentistry that deals with the prevention of oral disease and promotion of oral health. Dental public health is involved in the assessment of key dental health needs and coming up with effective solutions to improve the dental health of populations rather than individuals. Dental Public Health (DPH) is a non-clinical specialty of dentistry that deals with the prevention of oral disease and promotion of oral health. Dental public health is involved in the assessment of key dental health needs and coming up with effective solutions to improve the dental health of populations rather than individuals. Prevention is becoming increasingly important. Dental related diseases are largely preventable and there is a growing burden on health care systems for cure. Dental public health looks beyond the role of a dental practitioner in treating dental disease, and seeks to reduce demand on health care systems by redirection of resources to priority areas. Countries around the world all face similar issues in relation to dental disease. Implementation of policies and principles vary due to available of resources. Similar to public health, an understanding of the many factors that influence health will assist the implementation of effective strategies. Public health dentistry, is practiced generally through government sponsored programs, which are for the most part directed toward public-school children in the belief that their education in oral hygiene is the best way to reach the general public. The pattern for such programs in the past was a dental practitioners annual visit to a school to lecture and to demonstrate proper tooth-brushing techniques. The 1970s saw the emergence of a more elaborate program that included a week of one-hour sessions of instruction, demonstration, and questions and answers, conducted by a dentist and a dental assistant and aided by a teacher who had previously been given several hours of instruction. Use was also made of televised dental health education programs, which parents were encouraged to observe. There seems to be a lot more that can be done to help individuals prevent tooth decay and gum disease based on what is already known. Even with fluoridation and oral hygiene, tooth decay is still the most common diet–related disease affecting many people. Tooth decay has the economic impact of heart disease, obesity and diabetes. Dental decay is however easily prevented by reducing acid demineralisation caused by the remaining dental plaque left on teeth after brushing. Risk factors for tooth decay include physical, biological, environmental, behavioural, and lifestyle-related factors such as high numbers of cariogenic bacteria, inadequate salivary flow, insufficient fluoride exposure, poor oral hygiene, inappropriate methods of feeding infants, and poverty.' Neutralising acids after eating and at least twice a day brushing with fluoridated toothpaste will assist prevention. Cavities can develop on any surface of a tooth, but are most common inside the pits and fissures in grooves on chewing surfaces. This is where the toothbrush bristles and fluoride toothpaste cannot reach effectively. Gum diseases gingivitis and periodontitis are caused by certain types of bacteria that accumulate in remaining dental plaque. The extent of gum disease depends a lot on host susceptibility. Daily brushing must include brushing of both the teeth and gums. Effective brushing itself, will prevent progression of both dental decay and gum diseases. Neutralising acids after eating and at least twice a day brushing with fluoridated toothpaste will assist preventing dental decay. Stimulating saliva flow assists in the remineralisation process of teeth, this can be done by chewing sugar free gum. Using an interdental device once daily will assist prevention of gum diseases.