Ireland - New bid to cut tooth decay in children

By Fiona Dillon
Monday September 13 2010
A NEW Irish research project hopes to address the alarmingly high rate of tooth decay among pre-schoolers.
It has emerged that more than one in five children in the greater Dublin area who needed to have a tooth extracted under general anaesthetic were aged four and under.
A new Irish research project, supported by funding from the Health Research Board (HRB), is set to develop a practical intervention to increase tooth brushing and reduce the high incidence of tooth decay and extraction in this age group.
In the greater Dublin area, 2,294 children underwent general anaesthetic for dental extractions in 2008 -- 22pc were aged four or less.
The goal of the new project is "to develop an intervention designed to increase the frequency of toothbrushing among disadvantaged children from age two years in Ireland."
It is believed that targeting this group will have a major impact on the overall burden of tooth decay in the population as the vast majority of the disease is found among the less well off.

- Fiona Dillon

Ireland is the only country that requires fluoridation:NYSCOF