Elk Grove Village, IL—(ENEWSPF)—June 29, 2015. A retrospective study of 29,173 kindergarten students examined whether preventive oral health services provided by physicians in the medical setting had any impact on the oral health of children. The study, “Effects of Physician-Based Preventive Oral Health Services on Dental Caries,” appearing in the July issue of Pediatrics (published online June 29), found that comprehensive preventive oral health services, including application of fluoride varnish, delivered in the medical primary care setting helped reduce the number of decayed, missing and filled primary teeth in children under age three. Children enrolled in kindergarten who had four or more medical visits that included preventive oral health services had fewer cavities than those who did not receive these services.
The authors conclude that offering preventive oral health services through primary care physicians, particularly in communities with limited access to dentists, can lead to overall improved oral health for children.
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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 64,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.
Source: www.aap.org
