A social movement to reduce caries prevalence in the world

Abstract

A social movement to reduce caries prevalence in the world * D espite the fact that it is preventable, dental caries remains a global public health problem-even with fluoride intervention-and it is the most common chronic disease on the planet. Moreover, researchers have already shown for some years that caries is a disease continuum that at the early stages is reversible, yet many Ministries of Health and dental professionals misunderstand this. We believe it's important to address these issues and to drive broader understanding and action. As such, a public health program, the Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future (http://www.allianceforacavityfreefuture.org/en/us/aboutus), was developed. In the history of dentistry we have never yet had effective engagement between healthcare professionals, the government and other stakeholders to contain this widespread problem of dental caries in the world. The Alliance is a social movement, which convenes a worldwide group of experts who have joined together to work towards the goal of a Cavity-Free Future for all age groups. It acknowledges the global problem of caries, promotes an understanding of caries as a disease continuum, which is reversible, and will drive action to move communities and individuals to make the changes necessary to achieve the goal of a Cavity-Free Future. Overall, the group believes that global collaborative action is needed to challenge global leaders and other regional and local stakeholders to learn the importance of caries as a disease continuum and to participate in action toward the delivery of comprehensive caries prevention and management that can positively influence the continuing problem of caries. At the global level, the Alliance was launched on September 3, 2011 at the FDI World Dental Federation Congress in Salvador, Brazil. Since then the Expert Panel and Co-directors have been working hard to develop this initiative and have already received a tremendous amount of positive feedback from the global dental and public health community. The Alliance has identified the following long-term goals:

Changes in Oral Health-related Behavior of Infants following a Preventive Program of Continuing Education Directed to their Parents

“…These data are in agreement with those of this present study. The rationale behind these results is the paradigm shift in Dentistry from curative treatment to the inclusion and disclosure of preventive programs [18]. Still regarding to the reason for the first appointment, a greater demand was observed related to tooth trauma over caries lesion treatment.…”

Factors associated with caries: a survey of students from southern Brazil

“…In Brazil, the prevalence in children is 53.4% and in adolescents, 56.5% 2. Dental caries is one of the most researched oral diseases3 , 4 and results from a chronic process that occurs after a certain amount of exposure to a cariogenic diet and to tooth-susceptible microorganisms. Caries is considered a multifactorial condition that is transmitted locally and is one of the most prevalent pathologies in childhood 5…”

Oral Health-related Knowledge of Nursing School Students in Zanzibar

“…Dental caries is a multifactorial chronic disease resulting from an association between factors, such as accumulation of dental biofilm (plaque), time, and exposure to sugars. 10,11 In this study, more than half of the participants had knowledge on causation of dental caries, despite the fact that health behavior and lifestyle are identified as the main factors affecting human health. 12 Knowing about the causes of a disease and subsequent ability to use knowledge to promote health depends on access to or awareness of reliable health information.…”