Early Childhood Oral Health

Dental caries has been called a “silent epidemic” and is the most prevalent chronic disease affecting children. Though much has been written on the science and practice of managing this disease, publications are diverse in their loci, preventing easy access to the reader. Early Childhood Oral Health coalesces all the important information related to this topic in a comprehensive reference for students, academics, and practitioners.

This second edition expands the scope of the first and puts an additional focus on interprofessional and global efforts that are necessary to manage the growing disease crisis and screening and risk assessment efforts that have expanded with the boom of new technologies. With updated references and incorporating the latest research, chapters address the biology and epidemiology of caries, the clinical management of early childhood caries, risk assessment, and early diagnosis. Other topics include public health approaches to managing caries worldwide, implementation of new caries prevention programs, fluoride regimens, and community programs, and family oral health education. Brand new are four chapters on the medical management of early childhood caries, considerations for children with special needs, interprofessional education and practice, and how the newest policy issues and the Affordable Care Act affect dental care.

A must-read for pediatric dentists, cariologists, public health dentists, and students in these fields, Early Childhood Oral Health is also relevant for pediatricians and pediatric nursing specialists worldwide.

Acknowledgments ix

Notes on contributors x

Introduction: Why this book? 1
Joel H. Berg

Early childhood caries: Definition and epidemiology 15
Burton L. Edelstein, Courtney H. Chinn, Robert J. Laughlin and Christie L. Custodio]Lumsden

Early childhood caries disease prevention and management 47
Man Wai Ng and Zameera Fida

Managing caries: Obtaining arrest 67
Kevin J. Donly

Use of fluoride 104
Norman Tinanoff

The dental home 120
Arthur J. Nowak and Paul S. Casamassimo

Examination of infants and toddlers 134
Adriana Segura

Children with intellectual and developmental disabilities 153
Jessica De Bord

Anticipatory guidance 169
Arthur J. Nowak and Paul S. Casamassimo

Caries risk assessment: Rationale, uses, tools, and state of development 193
James J. Crall, Rocio B. Quinonez and Andrea F. Zandoná

Family oral health education 221
Tegwyn H. Brickhouse

Community programs and oral health 245
Jessica Y. Lee

Interprofessional education and practice 258
Melinda B. Clark, Mayumi Willgerodt and Rocio B. Quinonez

Building an infant] and toddler]friendly practice, 272
David K. Curtis

Policy issues in the Affordable Care Act concerning pediatric oral health insurance coverage 302
C. Scott Litch

Future directions 317
Rebecca L. Slayton

Index 329

Joel Berg, DDS, MS, is Dean of the School of Dentistry at the University of Washington in Seattle. He has established the Center for Early Childhood Oral Health (ECOH), which brings together experts from various fields who are collectively devoted to improving oral health in children. The University of Washington is also home to Access to Baby and Child Dentistry (ABCD), a program internationally recognized for its advances in early childhood oral health.

Rebecca L. Slayton, DDS, PhD, is Chair of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry at the University of Washington and Director of the Center for Pediatric Dentistry. She also serves as the Director of the Department of Dentistry at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Dental caries has been called a “silent epidemic” and is the most prevalent chronic disease affecting children. Though much has been written on the science and practice of managing this disease, publications are diverse in their loci, preventing easy access to the reader. Early Childhood Oral Health coalesces all the important information related to this topic in a comprehensive reference for students, academics, and practitioners.

This second edition expands the scope of the first and puts an additional focus on interprofessional and global efforts that are necessary to manage the growing disease crisis and screening and risk assessment efforts that have expanded with the boom of new technologies. With updated references and incorporating the latest research, chapters address the biology and epidemiology of caries, the clinical management of early childhood caries, risk assessment, and early diagnosis. Other topics include public health approaches to managing caries worldwide, implementation of new caries prevention programs, fluoride regimens, and community programs, and family oral health education. Brand new are four chapters on the medical management of early childhood caries, considerations for children with special needs, interprofessional education and practice, and how the newest policy issues and the Affordable Care Act affect dental care.

A must-read for pediatric dentists, cariologists, public health dentists, and students in these fields, Early Childhood Oral Health is also relevant for pediatricians and pediatric nursing specialists worldwide.

Key Features:

• Coalesces information on early childhood oral health into one accessible source
• Detailed discussion of early childhood caries
• Full discussion of other factors affecting pediatric oral health
• Fuses impressive scholarship with clinical pragmatism
• Explains how the Affordable Care Act and other policy issues impact children’s oral healthcare
• Second edition fully updated and includes four new chapters