Infant oral health education in U.S. dental school curricula. 2001

A G McWhorter, and N S Seale, and S A King
Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Baylor College of Dentistry, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center, USA. amcwhorter@tambcd.edu

OBJECTIVE This study was performed to determine didactic and clinical curricular content about infant oral health in predoctoral pediatric dentistry programs. METHODS 54 dental school departments of pediatric dentistry were surveyed about: 1) curricular content devoted to teaching infant oral health (IOH) and age of first dental visit; 2) methods used to teach IOH and hours dedicated to each method; and 3) whether students receive hands-on experiences with infants. RESULTS Eighty-six percent of programs teach students to see infants at 12 months of age or younger. Curricular time ranged from 15 minutes to 13 hours (mean = 2 hrs, 20 min, median = 1 hr, 45 min). All programs used lectures; other formats included handouts, demonstration and small group seminar. Fifty percent provide clinical experiences, albeit they are not uniform for all students. One-fourth provides uniform, clinical hands-on experiences with infant oral examinations. CONCLUSIONS The findings indicate varying degrees of acceptance about teaching infant oral health in our dental schools.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007223 Infant A child between 1 and 23 months of age. Infants
D009909 Oral Health The optimal state of the mouth and normal functioning of the organs of the mouth without evidence of disease. Health, Oral
D010377 Pediatric Dentistry The practice of dentistry concerned with the dental problems of children, proper maintenance, and treatment. The dental care may include the services provided by dental specialists. Dentistry, Pediatric,Pedodontics
D002675 Child, Preschool A child between the ages of 2 and 5. Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D003479 Curriculum A course of study offered by an educational institution. Curricula,Short-Term Courses,Course, Short-Term,Courses, Short-Term,Short Term Courses,Short-Term Course
D004497 Education, Dental Use for articles concerning dental education in general. Dental Education
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012575 Schools, Dental Educational institutions for individuals specializing in the field of dentistry. Dental Schools,Dental School,School, Dental
D014481 United States A country in NORTH AMERICA between CANADA and MEXICO.

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