Oral health issues will be put in the spotlight with the release of the first-ever Surgeon General's Report on Oral Health. A key goal of the report is to educate the public on the relationship between oral health and general well being. Since 1996, when the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) first began disseminating information to the media and the public on the newly discovered links between periodontal disease and systemic health conditions, this also has been a top AAP priority.
"We hope this Surgeon General's Report will heighten the public and medical community's perception of the importance of oral health, just as past reports on tobacco use and more recently mental health have," said Jack Caton, D.D.S., M.S., president of the AAP. "As research continues to strengthen the links between periodontal disease and heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disease and preterm births, it's important to spread the message that periodontal disease is far from being just an oral health problem. It represents a significant health risk to millions of people."
In addition, the AAP is involved in many other issues highlighted in the report.
The report addresses disparities in oral health status between different ethnic groups. A study published in the January, 1999 issue of the Journal of Periodontology reported that 35 percent of Mexican Americans aged 30 to 54 have periodontitis, compared to 25 percent of whites in the same age group. To address this disparity, the AAP recently launched a Spanish-language media campaign to educate Hispanic Americans on periodontal disease and research linking it to other health problems. "Many of my Hispanic patients are not aware that by not maintaining oral health, they may be jeopardizing more than just their teeth," said Gilbert Barajas, an AAP spokesperson for the campaign. "This is an opportunity to educate them and call attention to the importance of periodontal health." Later this year, the Academy will launch a campaign targeted at African Americans to address the same goal.
In addition to public education outreach, the AAP has looked at ways to improve access to dental care for people who may not be able to afford it. Last year, the AAP endorsed Donated Dental Services, a program in which volunteers donate millions of dollars worth of dental care to needy patients across the United States. According to a 1998 AAP survey, three out of four AAP members have provided free or reduced fee periodontal services to patients who cannot afford treatment.
The AAP provides patient education materials on a variety of other topics touched on in the report, including tobacco use and oral health, oral health issues for women and older people, and treatment and prevention of periodontal disease.
The public is invited to visit the AAP's Web site at http://www.perio.org or call 1-800-FLOSS-EM for more information on these and other topics.
The AAP is a 7,000-member organization of dentists specializing in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of tissues surrounding the teeth and in the placement of dental implants. Periodontics is one of nine dental specialties recognized by the American Dental Association.