Holloway P J
University Dental Hospital of Manchester.
Curr Opin Dent. 1991 Jun;1(3):348-56.
Dental public health workers around the world are considering the service implications of changing patterns of dental health. In industrialized countries, with few exceptions, caries levels are declining among adolescents and young adults, but there are signs that this may not now be the case in the very young. The situation in developing countries is equivocal. In an effort to target resources more efficiently, efforts to detect those at high risk to caries continue. However, there still seems no better predictor than the caries experience of the individual or group. With reducing levels of dental caries, greater interest is being shown in the epidemiology of periodontal disease. Despite the acceptance by Federation Dentaire Internationale of the Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Needs as a suitable measure of community periodontal health, some workers still have reservations of its value. With increasing numbers of elderly people retaining greater numbers of teeth, investigations into patterns of adult caries, particularly root caries, are increasing. Collaboration among health workers on an international basis would enhance knowledge in these disciplines.
世界各地的牙科公共卫生工作者正在考虑牙齿健康模式变化所带来的服务影响。在工业化国家，除少数例外，青少年和年轻人的龋齿水平正在下降，但有迹象表明，对于非常年幼的儿童来说，情况可能并非如此。发展中国家的情况尚不明确。为了更有效地分配资源，人们继续努力找出那些龋齿高危人群。然而，似乎仍然没有比个人或群体的龋齿经历更好的预测指标。随着龋齿水平的降低，人们对牙周病流行病学的兴趣日益浓厚。尽管国际牙科联合会认可社区牙周治疗需求指数作为衡量社区牙周健康的合适指标，但一些工作者对其价值仍持保留意见。随着保留牙齿数量较多的老年人数量的增加，对成人龋齿模式，尤其是根面龋模式的调查也在增加。卫生工作者之间的国际合作将增进这些学科的知识。
