Disparities in Children's Oral Health and Access to Dental Care

Dental caries can be prevented through community, experts and personal measures. It includes the use of fluoride, topical fluoride and dental sealants for professional uses, and fluoride toothpaste. However, caries are the most common chronic disease in childhood. Dental care is the most common health needs not satisfied among children in the United States and there is a big difference in access to oral hygiene and care. Only one child in five receives Medicaid and they receive qualified preventative oral care. Low-income children with a small number of families have poor health of the oral cavity, few dentists and few protective sealants. Although fluoridation is the most effective measure for prevention of caries, only 62% of the feed water is fluorinated, and the lack of fluorination may have a disproportionate effect on poor people and ethnic minority children there is.

Childhood oral diseases have a serious medical and economic impact and may not be understood due to the separation of medicine and dentistry. The possibility of caries, early onset, early intervention is necessary to emphasize preventive oral care in primary pediatric medicine to complement existing dental services. However, many pediatricians lack important knowledge to promote oral health. We are committed to prioritizing Medicaid's early and regular screening, diagnosis and dental care diagnosis, controlled care responsibilities, comprehensive medical and dental professional training, clinical care and research, and national leadership We recommend economic incentives.

Health insurance inequality brings about a difference in oral health. In the United States, oral health services are available through the provision of private dental insurance or public funded oral care. Private dental insurance helps prevent the use of preventive oral care and reduces the adverse effects of oral disease. Public oral care fund prevention care, but few qualified people actually receive preventive care. The experiment of Rand Health Insurance provides evidence that oral health of low-income preschool children can be improved by providing free dental treatment. However, even if you join dental insurance, the difference in oral health may not be reduced. Theoretically, in many American Indian and Alaska Native communities, dental treatment can function as a function of tribal status without oral expense.

Dental treatment, especially prophylactic dental treatment, is a very important determinant of oral health inequality. Little is known about the broader social and cultural determinants of oral hygiene practices, the values ​​and beliefs of teeth, mouth and face, and the fact that these values, beliefs and practices differ by social and cultural groups Absent. Dental care and dental insurance are not the main determinants of oral health differences. Focusing solely on the provision of dental care services is unlikely to compromise social stratification, differences in power, understanding of different cultures, and the greater influence of their beliefs and practices that contribute to oral health There is. To maintain the health of the oral cavity and benefit from evidence-based technological advancement, while recognizing that expert care must be done throughout the lifetime, expand the scope of the conceptual framework to a new intervention channel Open the door

The final result for reducing oral health differences through dental care may not differ from the general health difference task. Many European countries have incorporated healthcare into central national policy with equal access to health care for all members, including dental care. Why can not the US adopt an intensive medical system as one of the richest countries in the world? At the middle / regional level, health insurance is usually provided as part of employment benefits. However, due to the short working hours, many low-income people can not get dental or medical insurance. Distribution of medical care is closely related to distribution of employment opportunities. In the public sector, employment decisions are based on bureaucratic procedures that considers only the applicant's skills and qualifications, regardless of gender or ethnicity.