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Oral health

Oral health care needs among poor communities are significant. While oral health is improving rapidly in industrialized countries, dental decay and gum disease have risen to near epidemic proportions in many developing countries.

This is due in part to greatly increased sugar consumption; in addition, many countries lack preventive oral health programs. There are all too few dentists in poor countries; many of them work only in cities, and their services are too expensive for the majority to afford. Most people never see a dentist, and those who do are often suffering from very severe and often irreparable problems by the time they decide to seek out care.

In this context, community-based dentistry programs and oral health care education programs can play a significant role in serving the primary care needs of poor families. Unfortunately, there is very little accessible information available about these types of programs. And while many of the general health promoters are also called upon to provide oral health care advice, they often lack the educational resources required to fully respond to their patients' needs.

Where there is no dentist teaches village health workers how to recognize and treat problems of pain and infection, including toothache, swollen face, sore gums, or a loose or broken tooth. As important, health workers learn what and how to teach children and adults in order to prevent common tooth and gum problems.

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