Monday, May 15, 2017

SHOCKING STATISTICS ABOUT DENTAL DISEASE

·      More than 64 million Americans have moderate to severe periodontal disease, not counting occasional bouts of mild gingivitis.
·      Dental disease is the most common chronic disease in children, five times more prevalent than asthma.
·      About 1 in 5 children in the U.S. go without dental care each year. This pool of untreated kids is estimated to contain about 17 million children from low-income families.
·      Every year children in the U.S. miss approximately 51 million school hours due to dental problems and treatment appointments.
·      Adults lose almost 164 million work hours for the same reasons.
·      More than one quarter of Americans age 60 or older are edentulous.
·      More than 25% of American adults have untreated tooth decay. The rate among low-income adults is twice that of adults with more income.
·      Between 2000 and 2010, the number of dental-related emergency room visits doubled from just over 1 million per year to more than 2.1 million per year. ER dental-related visits cost the U.S. health care system up to $2 billion annually according to the ADA Health Policy Resource Center.
·      Dental disease is almost 100% preventable.   



In a recent copy of Dental Product Shopper, I came across an eye-catching infographic from DentaQuest, a company dedicated to the prevention of dental disease by educating the public about the oral health crisis in America. Many of the facts stated above are printed on their infographic, an attractive piece to be used for social media postings and handouts in your office. Go to Oral Health Matters: Check Out Our New Infographic to find the graphic and other information. Also, peruse the ADA website for facts that can be added to the educational section of your practice website. Statistics such as these, presented in a colorful, brief format, can be used effectively to alert the American public to chronic oral health problems. Post such facts on your practice social media sites and discuss them with patients. After all, education is the key to prevention and treatment acceptance.

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