The Oral Health Alert: Focus on Head Start is a monthly
newsletter that provides timely information about national campaigns
and initiatives, materials, and journal articles. Past issues are available at http://www.mchoralhealth.org/alert/archives.html
September 2009
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1. A Healthy Smile for You and Your Baby: Tips to Keep
Your Baby Healthy
This brochure is designed to educate new and expecting parents about
the importance of oral hygiene and oral care during infancy. Topics
include caring for an infant's gums and teeth, giving healthy foods,
and getting a dental checkup by age 1. Additional topics include the
importance of primary teeth, tips to help parents keep their own mouths
healthy, and resources for finding a dentist. The brochure is available
in English and Spanish. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]
Holt K, Barzel R. 2009. Washington, DC: National Maternal and Child
Oral Health Resource Center. 2 pp. Available at http://www.mchoralhealth.org/materials/consumerbrochures.html
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2. A Healthy Smile for You and Your Young Child: Tips to
Keep Your Child Healthy
This brochure is designed to educate parents and other caregivers of
young children about oral hygiene and oral care during early childhood.
Topics include toothbrushing, flossing, eating healthy foods, and
getting dental checkups and treatment. Additional topics include the
importance of primary teeth, tips to help parents keep their own mouths
healthy, and resources for finding a dentist. The brochure is available
in English and Spanish. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]
Holt K, Barzel R. 2009. Washington, DC: National Maternal and Child
Oral Health Resource Center. 2 pp. Available at http://www.mchoralhealth.org/materials/consumerbrochures.html
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3. Two Healthy Smiles: Tips to Keep You and Your Baby
Healthy (rev.)
This brochure is designed to educate women about the importance of oral
hygiene and oral care during pregnancy. Topics include brushing,
flossing, eating healthy foods, and getting dental checkups and
treatment. Additional topics include the impact of hormonal changes
during pregnancy on gum health, caring for an infant's gums and teeth,
and finding a dentist. The brochure is available in English and
Spanish. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]
Holt K, Barzel R, Clark M. 2009. Washington, DC: National Maternal and
Child Oral Health Resource Center. 2 pp. Available at http://www.mchoralhealth.org/materials/consumerbrochures.html
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4. Children's Drinking Water: Parental Preferences and
Implications for Fluoride Exposure
This study interviewed parents of children (ages 6 months to 15 years)
seen in pediatric settings in Valhalla, New York, about their
children's drinking water. Of 194 parents, 134 (69 percent) gave their
children bottled water exclusively or in combination with tap water.
Bottled water use was not significantly associated with primary source
of tap water (municipal or well), parent education, insurance plan, or
household income. Reasons for use of bottled water included (1) fear of
contaminants in tap water; (2) taste of tap water, smell of tap water,
or both; and (3) convenience of bottled water. Over 65 percent of
parents whose children consumed bottled water reported that they did
not know if their bottled water contained fluoride.
Sriraman N, Patrick PA, Hutton K, Edwards KS. 2009. Pediatric Dentistry
31(4):310-315. Abstract available at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/aapd/pd/2009/00000031/00000004/art00005
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5. Effects
of Periodontal Therapy on Rate of Preterm Delivery: A Randomized
Controlled Trial
This randomized trial tested whether maternal periodontal disease
treatment reduced the incidence of preterm birth. Periodontal therapy
consisting of a single treatment of scaling and root planing and oral
hygiene instruction did not resolve gingival inflammation or prevent
disease progression in the majority of the enrolled pregnant women. The
periodontal therapy resulted in a small but statistically significant
improvement in periodontal clinical signs relative to the
delayed-treatment group (control). However periodontal therapy did not
restore most pregnant women to periodontal health, nor did it reduce
the incidence of preterm delivery at less than 37, 35, or 32 weeks of
gestational age; low birthweight or fetal growth restriction; or
neonatal morbidity.
Offenbacher S, Beck JD, Jared HL, Mauriello SM, Mendoza LC, Couper DJ,
Stewart DD, Murtha AP, Cochran DL, Dudley DJ, Reddy MS, Geurs NC, Hauth
JC, for the Maternal Oral Therapy to Reduce Obstetric Risk (MOTOR)
Investigators. 2009. Obstetrics and Gynecology 114(3):551-559.
Full-text (free, online only) available at http://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Fulltext/2009/09000/Effects_of_Periodontal_Therapy_on_Rate_of_Preterm.11.aspx
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