Guest Editorial: A Strategic Approach to Addressing Dental Caries
By James D. Nickman, DDS, MS
Dental caries remains one of the most common chronic preventable diseases of childhood. By age 5, 23% of United States children have a cavity in a primary tooth.1 This increases to six of 10 children by their 8th birthday. When it comes to permanent teeth, 14% of Americans will be affected by caries by age 8, with this rate increasing to 29% by age 11.1 Low income and minority populations tend to bear the brunt of the disease.2 The cost to the child includes potential pain, infection, lost school time, and, in rare cases, death. Families and society also incur losses due to lost productivity and treatment costs.
* References can be found in the original article via the link below.
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