Conception of public health was firstly put forward by American professor Winslow. Ensuring and promoting the health of general population is the key connotation for the definition of public health. Oral disease has become a public health problem. Caries which preventable and curable is the most common oral disease and the etiology is also clear. Oral health comprehensive intervention program for children in central and western regions was set up in 2008 by Chinese government. The program included sealing on the first permanent molar and oral health education towards primary school children covering mid-west area. This was the first oral health program invested by government and managed by Chinese Stomatological Association. Six years later, the program was popularized to the whole nation, and renamed as national oral health comprehensive intervention program for children in China. The program had made deep impact on development of oral health service in China. The study tries to analyze the challenges of oral health service through reviewing the background, content, organization and effectiveness of the program, aiming to provide suggestions on policy, financing, system, ability and technology for the future development.
Child ; Humans ; China ; Dental Caries/epidemiology* ; Oral Health ; Public Health ; Dental Health Services

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to estimate the financial budget of light-curing composite resin fillings based on the expanded coverage of the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS), called “Moon Care.” METHODS: The estimated population with dental caries and the amount of light-curing composite resins used were determined. The fees for the resin fillings per tooth were considered for the calculations. The expected budget for the next five years for children and adolescents aged 5–12 and 5–19 years were calculated. RESULTS: During the first year of the coverage, the budget for children and adolescents aged <19 years was estimated to be 201.8 billion South Korean won (5–9 years, 17.9 billion South Korean won; 10–14 years, 76.6 billion South Korean won; and 15–19 years, 107.3 billion South Korean won). The total budget for the next five years for children and adolescents aged <19 years was estimated at 946.4 billion South Korean won. Likewise, the budget for children aged <12 years during the first year of the coverage was estimated at 63.9 billion South Korean won (5–9 years, 17.9 billion South Korean won and 10–12 years, 46 billion South Korean won), and the total budget for the next five years was estimated at 315.9 billion South Korean won. CONCLUSIONS: Government healthcare plans should be established based on treatment needs and financial estimations. All the items in the NHIS, including the light-curing composite resin filling, should be considered based on their contribution to oral health promotion. Furthermore, in the long term, the coverage for preventive health services should be included in the health insurance.
Adolescent ; Budgets ; Child ; Composite Resins ; Delivery of Health Care ; Dental Caries ; Fees and Charges ; Humans ; Insurance, Health ; National Health Programs ; Oral Health ; Preventive Health Services ; Tooth

PURPOSE: The purpose of this retrospective study was to investigate the relationships of types of dental insurance coverage in Korea with sociodemographic characteristics and the prevalence of systemic and oral diseases, as well as to evaluate the socioeconomic impact of Korean dental insurance policies. METHODS: Sample cohort data from 2006 to 2015 were obtained from the National Health Insurance Service. Patients were divided into 2 groups. The exposed group comprised patients who received insurance benefits for complete dentures, removable partial dentures, and implant care, while the control group comprised patients who did not receive these benefits. The type of insurance coverage and the prevalence of systemic and oral diseases were compared between the 2 groups. RESULTS: Patients who received benefits in the form of complete dentures, removable partial dentures, and implants had similar sociodemographic characteristics in terms of sex, age, income quintile, and type of insurance coverage to the control group. The prevalence of hypertension, anemia, renal disease, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, asthma, and cerebral infarction was higher in the exposed group than in the control group (P<0.05). The prevalence of periodontal diseases and dental caries was also higher in the exposed group. CONCLUSIONS: Korean dental health insurance policy has been beneficial for the medical expenses of low-income and elderly people suffering from a cost burden due to systemic diseases. However, since there is a tendency to avoid invasive interventions in older patients due to the high risk of systemic diseases, insurance coverage of dentures may be more helpful from a socioeconomic perspective than coverage of dental implant treatments.
Aged ; Anemia ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid ; Asthma ; Cerebral Infarction ; Cohort Studies ; Dental Caries ; Dental Implants ; Denture, Complete ; Denture, Partial, Removable ; Dentures ; Health Services for the Aged ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Insurance Benefits ; Insurance Coverage ; Insurance, Dental ; Insurance, Health ; Korea ; National Health Programs ; Osteoporosis ; Periodontal Diseases ; Prevalence ; Retrospective Studies

PURPOSE: This study was to identify health behavior, health service use, and health related quality of life of adult women in one-person and multi-person households. METHODS: It was used data from the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES VII-2017). Subjects were 2,522 women with age of 19 to 64 years in 2017. Complex sampling design and data analysis were performed using SPSS 20.1. RESULTS: Women in one-person households had higher rates of alcohol drinking (χ²=13.77, p=.003), smoking (χ²=16.07, p=.001), unmet medical care (χ²=8.77, p=.004) and non-practice of cancer screening (χ²=13.77, p=.003) compared to women in multi-person households. Health-related quality of life was also lower for women in one-person households (t=−2.46, p=.015). Factors affecting health-related quality of life in one-person households were household income, job status, and unmet dental care, having 32.4% explanatory power. One-person household women with low incomes, no jobs, and unmet dental care showed low health-related quality of life. In comparison, factors affecting health-related quality of life of women in multi-person household women were age, education level, unmet medical care, and unmet dental care, having 10.4% explaining power. Women in multi-person households with age of 60–64, low education level, unmet medical care, and unmet dental care showed low health-related quality of life. CONCLUSION: Health promotion strategies should be developed based on unique understanding of social, economic, and health of adult women in one-person and multi-person households.
Adult ; Alcohol Drinking ; Dental Care ; Early Detection of Cancer ; Education ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Health Behavior ; Health Promotion ; Health Services ; Humans ; Korea ; Nutrition Surveys ; Quality of Life ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Statistics as Topic

OBJECTIVES: Access to dental healthcare services is a major determinant of dental health in communities. This meta-analysis was conducted to estimate the global prevalence of dental needs and of unmet dental needs in adolescents.METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus were searched in June 2018. The summary measures included the prevalence of met and unmet dental needs. A meta-analysis was performed using the inverse variance method to obtain pooled summary measures. Out of 41,661 retrieved articles, 57 were ultimately included.RESULTS: The pooled prevalence of orthodontic treatment needs was 46.0% (95% confidence interval [CI], 38.0 to 53.0), that of general treatment needs was 59.0% (95% CI, 42.0 to 75.0), that of periodontal treatment needs was 71.0% (95% CI, 46.0 to 96.0), and that of malocclusion treatment needs was 39.0% (95% CI, 28.0 to 50.0). The pooled prevalence of unmet dental needs was 34.0% (95% CI, 27.0 to 40.0).CONCLUSIONS: The highest and lowest prevalence of unmet dental needs were found in Southeast Asia and Europe, respectively. The prevalence of dental needs was higher in the countries of the Americas and Europe than in other World Health Organization (WHO) regions. The prevalence of unmet dental needs was higher in Southeast Asia and Africa than in other WHO regions.
Adolescent ; Africa ; Americas ; Asia, Southeastern ; Delivery of Health Care ; Dental Health Services ; Europe ; Humans ; Malocclusion ; Methods ; Prevalence ; World Health Organization

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the validity of dental hygienist job according to judgment standard of medical practice in medical law. In this study, we conducted a self-administered questionnaire survey to evaluate the validity of dental hygienist job for 12 professors of dental college in Gangneung-Wonju National University from November 10 to 20, 2017. We investigated whether the dental hygienist job conforms to the three criteria of medical practice such as disease prevention and treatment, patient care, and health hazard. The response rates were scored and classified into four categories according to the final score. As a result of this study, dental hygienist job are classified into four categories according to judgment standard of medical practice. The higher the level of the category, the higher the degree of difficulty, and the higher the level of expertise and skills required. More than 50% of respondents answered that measuring the gingival pocket, bleeding on probing, professional tooth cleaning, oral health education, counseling after dental treatment are all three criteria for medical treatment. And these were classified into Level 4 group which requires the difficulty and expertise in the final score 4.3. It is necessary to develop and utilize standardized guidelines on the level of knowledge, education, and qualification standards required for dental practice in order to effectively allocate work among the dental personnel while ensuring the health rights of patients in the dental clinic field in Korea. In addition, there is a need to evaluate the various aspects of cost effectiveness, dental health service productivity, and health promotion contribution to dental hygienist jobs, And based on this evidence, it is necessary to continue to expand and adjust the dental hygienist job and to reorganize the dental workforce system.
Cost-Benefit Analysis ; Counseling ; Dental Clinics ; Dental Health Services ; Dental Hygienists* ; Education ; Efficiency ; Gingival Pocket ; Health Promotion ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Judgment* ; Jurisprudence* ; Korea ; Oral Health ; Patient Care ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Tooth

OBJECTIVES: This research was conducted to identify the effects of a mother's nationality on adolescent oral health using data from the Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (2016). METHODS: This research matched adolescent health behavior online survey results using propensity score matching and identified the influence of a mother's nationality on her adolescent child's oral health. A total of 715 adolescents whose mothers' nationalities were identified as not Korean were selected as research participants, and 715 adolescents were selected from 62,349 individuals whose mothers' nationalities were identified as Korean as a comparison group to undergo propensity score matching. RESULTS: Having a non-Korean mother showed no influence on adolescents' subjective oral health. Socioeconomic characteristics, oral health behaviors, and experience visiting dental clinics were identified as affecting oral health. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between the characteristics of a multi-cultural family and oral health shown in this research suggests that health and welfare services essential to protect the rights to health must be maintained. Moreover, the results suggest that health services that focus on socioeconomically disadvantaged multi-cultural families must be seriously considered.
Adolescent ; Adolescent Health ; Dental Clinics ; Ethnic Groups ; Health Services ; Humans ; Korea ; Mothers ; Oral Health ; Propensity Score ; Risk-Taking ; Vulnerable Populations

BACKGROUND: Early childhood caries (ECC) affects children across Japan and throughout the world. Thus, it is important to identify dietary and dental care habits that either promote oral health or cause ECC. The objective of this study was to identify protective and risk factors associated with ECC in Japan. METHODS: In a typical rural Japanese community, we selected children born between 2004 and 2008 who had received checkups at their community health center including oral examinations conducted by dentists. We obtained data from children's records and from a questionnaire filled out by parents. We enrolled only children who at their checkup for 18-month-olds had no caries, and we obtained data about them at their checkup for 3-year-olds. We classified children as either having caries (treated or untreated) or being caries-free. We conducted bivariate analyses using data on child/family demographic characteristics, child's dietary habits, and child/parental oral health habits. We also conducted logistic regression analysis to control for variables and identify predictors of the presence/absence of caries. RESULTS: Five hundred sixty six children (278 boys, 288 girls) were enrolled and followed. After 2 years, 173 children (30.6%) presented with caries. Logistic regression analysis predicting caries at follow-up identified the interaction term "bottlefed overnight and brushed irregularly" at 18 months of age as a highly significant predictor of developing caries-adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of 14.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02-199.71. Two variables measured at follow-up were also significant predictors: having low levels of dental plaque (AOR 2.41, 95% CI 1.34-4.35) and having a mother who had untreated caries (AOR 1.84, 95% CI 1.09-3.12). CONCLUSION Public health efforts should encourage parents to eliminate bottle feeding overnight and promote brushing twice daily as children's teeth begin to erupt. Greater efforts should be made to teach parents and daytime caregivers how to brush effectively to remove all plaque. Health professionals should pay close attention to mothers' oral health status. Mothers with caries should receive prompt treatment and be assisted in developing better dietary and oral health habits that will benefit themselves and their children. Policies and programs should focus more on family oral health rather than just child oral health.
Dental Caries ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Female ; Home Care Services ; statistics & numerical data ; Humans ; Incidence ; Infant ; Japan ; epidemiology ; Male ; Oral Health ; statistics & numerical data ; Prevalence ; Protective Factors ; Risk Factors

PURPOSE: This study utilized a strong quasi-experimental design to test the hypothesis that the implementation of a policy to expand dental care services resulted in an increase in the usage of dental outpatient services. METHODS: A total of 45,650,000 subjects with diagnoses of gingivitis or advanced periodontitis who received dental scaling were selected and examined, utilizing National Health Insurance claims data from July 2010 through November 2015. We performed a segmented regression analysis of the interrupted time-series to analyze the time-series trend in dental costs before and after the policy implementation, and assessed immediate changes in dental costs. RESULTS: After the policy change was implemented, a statistically significant 18% increase occurred in the observed total dental cost per patient, after adjustment for age, sex, and residence area. In addition, the dental costs of outpatient gingivitis treatment increased immediately by almost 47%, compared with a 15% increase in treatment costs for advanced periodontitis outpatients. This policy effect appears to be sustainable. CONCLUSIONS: The introduction of the new policy positively impacted the immediate and long-term outpatient utilization of dental scaling treatment in South Korea. While the policy was intended to entice patients to prevent periodontal disease, thus benefiting the insurance system, our results showed that the policy also increased treatment accessibility for potential periodontal disease patients and may improve long-term periodontal health in the South Korean population.
Delivery of Health Care ; Dental Care ; Dental Scaling ; Diagnosis ; Gingivitis ; Health Care Costs ; Health Policy ; Health Services Accessibility ; Humans ; Insurance ; Insurance Benefits ; Korea ; National Health Programs ; Outpatients ; Periodontal Diseases ; Periodontitis

PURPOSE: This study was performed to quantify the repeat rate of imaging acquisitions based on different clinical examinations, and to assess the prevalence of error types in intraoral bitewing and periapical imaging using a digital complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) intraoral sensor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 8,030 intraoral images were retrospectively collected from 3 groups of undergraduate clinical dental students. The type of examination, stage of the procedure, and reasons for repetition were analysed and recorded. The repeat rate was calculated as the total number of repeated images divided by the total number of examinations. The weighted Cohen's kappa for inter- and intra-observer agreement was used after calibration and prior to image analysis. RESULTS: The overall repeat rate on intraoral periapical images was 34.4%. A total of 1,978 repeated periapical images were from endodontic assessment, which included working length estimation (WLE), trial gutta-percha (tGP), obturation, and removal of gutta-percha (rGP). In the endodontic imaging, the highest repeat rate was from WLE (51.9%) followed by tGP (48.5%), obturation (42.2%), and rGP (35.6%). In bitewing images, the repeat rate was 15.1% and poor angulation was identified as the most common cause of error. A substantial level of intra- and interobserver agreement was achieved. CONCLUSION: The repeat rates in this study were relatively high, especially for certain clinical procedures, warranting training in optimization techniques and radiation protection. Repeat analysis should be performed from time to time to enhance quality assurance and hence deliver high-quality health services to patients.
Calibration ; Gutta-Percha ; Health Services ; Humans ; Prevalence ; Radiation Protection ; Radiographic Image Enhancement ; Radiography, Dental, Digital ; Retrospective Studies ; Semiconductors* ; Students, Dental