USA - A cavity in children's health
A cavity in children's health
Email|Print| Text size – + January 26, 2008
TOOTH DECAY and other dental woes hit low-income and minority children hard, according to a study released this week. It's a public check-up that should push Massachusetts to act.
more stories like thisChildren across the country suffer from toothaches and decay, and many go without basic care. In one horrifying case last year, 12-year-old Deamonte Driver of Maryland died because an untreated dental abscess apparently led to a brain infection. His family was poor and frequently homeless.
While most cases aren't this tragic, thousands of disadvantaged children in Massachusetts do suffer from dental pain that hinders eating, learning, and sleeping.
Problems start early. In Massachusetts, 19,000 kindergarteners (28 percent) have tooth decay. And of this number, 10,000 aren't getting treatment, according to estimates in the new report from the Catalyst Institute, a nonprofit that's funded in part by the Delta Dental insurance company. Black children are 1.7 times more likely than white children to be in this group. Hispanic children are 1.8 times more likely. And poor children are almost twice as likely to be in this group as wealthier peers.
There is no one magic cure, but there are ways to weave a stronger dental safety net.
Connecticut sets a good example. It has a statewide oral health plan, which calls for doubling the number of dentists who take Medicaid - by raising reimbursement rates and cutting down on paperwork - and increasing the number of people who get annual dental care. Massachusetts doesn't have such a plan, but it is wisely seeking federal funds to create one. And in the last year, the state has added 200 dental providers who accept Medicaid patients.
Massachusetts already has an Office of Oral Health that's putting up a good fight. The office manages school-based fluoride rinse programs in communities where the water isn't fluoridated. It also promotes the use of dental sealants, a coating to protect against cavities, on children's teeth.
But there's more to do. The state should seek to increase the number of cities and towns that have fluoridated water systems. Currently 139 cities and towns do, including Boston, Somerville, and Cambridge. But most - including Springfield - do not.
Other steps could prove useful. More minority dental students should be recruited to increase diversity and break down some patients' distrust of dentists. And more dental services could be put in schools, public housing, and other alternative settings.
While this state and the nation as a whole have made strides in extending health coverage to poor children, efforts to make sure children have dental care have lagged behind. Massachusetts needs a broad strategy to deal with these needs.
© Copyright 2008 Globe
Email|Print| Text size – + January 26, 2008
TOOTH DECAY and other dental woes hit low-income and minority children hard, according to a study released this week. It's a public check-up that should push Massachusetts to act.
more stories like thisChildren across the country suffer from toothaches and decay, and many go without basic care. In one horrifying case last year, 12-year-old Deamonte Driver of Maryland died because an untreated dental abscess apparently led to a brain infection. His family was poor and frequently homeless.
While most cases aren't this tragic, thousands of disadvantaged children in Massachusetts do suffer from dental pain that hinders eating, learning, and sleeping.
Problems start early. In Massachusetts, 19,000 kindergarteners (28 percent) have tooth decay. And of this number, 10,000 aren't getting treatment, according to estimates in the new report from the Catalyst Institute, a nonprofit that's funded in part by the Delta Dental insurance company. Black children are 1.7 times more likely than white children to be in this group. Hispanic children are 1.8 times more likely. And poor children are almost twice as likely to be in this group as wealthier peers.
There is no one magic cure, but there are ways to weave a stronger dental safety net.
Connecticut sets a good example. It has a statewide oral health plan, which calls for doubling the number of dentists who take Medicaid - by raising reimbursement rates and cutting down on paperwork - and increasing the number of people who get annual dental care. Massachusetts doesn't have such a plan, but it is wisely seeking federal funds to create one. And in the last year, the state has added 200 dental providers who accept Medicaid patients.
Massachusetts already has an Office of Oral Health that's putting up a good fight. The office manages school-based fluoride rinse programs in communities where the water isn't fluoridated. It also promotes the use of dental sealants, a coating to protect against cavities, on children's teeth.
But there's more to do. The state should seek to increase the number of cities and towns that have fluoridated water systems. Currently 139 cities and towns do, including Boston, Somerville, and Cambridge. But most - including Springfield - do not.
Other steps could prove useful. More minority dental students should be recruited to increase diversity and break down some patients' distrust of dentists. And more dental services could be put in schools, public housing, and other alternative settings.
While this state and the nation as a whole have made strides in extending health coverage to poor children, efforts to make sure children have dental care have lagged behind. Massachusetts needs a broad strategy to deal with these needs.
© Copyright 2008 Globe
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