Garcia I, Tabak L A
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892-2190, USA.
Adv Dent Res. 2011 May;23(2):207-10. doi: 10.1177/0022034511402015.
Despite impressive worldwide improvements in oral health, inequalities in oral health status among and within countries remain a daunting public health challenge. Oral health inequalities arise from a complex web of health determinants, including social, behavioral, economic, genetic, environmental, and health system factors. Eliminating these inequalities cannot be accomplished in isolation of oral health from overall health, or without recognizing that oral health is influenced at multiple individual, family, community, and health systems levels. For several reasons, this is an opportune time for global efforts targeted at reducing oral health inequalities. Global health is increasingly viewed not just as a humanitarian obligation, but also as a vehicle for health diplomacy and part of the broader mission to reduce poverty, build stronger economies, and strengthen global security. Despite the global economic recession, there are trends that portend well for support of global health efforts: increased globalization of research and development, growing investment from private philanthropy, an absolute growth of spending in research and innovation, and an enhanced interest in global health among young people. More systematic and far-reaching efforts will be required to address oral health inequalities through the engagement of oral health funders and sponsors of research, with partners from multiple public and private sectors. The oral health community must be "at the table" with other health disciplines and create opportunities for eliminating inequalities through collaborations that can harness both the intellectual and financial resources of multiple sectors and institutions.
尽管全球口腔健康状况有了显著改善，但国家之间和国家内部口腔健康状况的不平等仍是一项艰巨的公共卫生挑战。口腔健康不平等源于一系列复杂的健康决定因素，包括社会、行为、经济、遗传、环境和卫生系统等因素。消除这些不平等不能孤立地看待口腔健康与整体健康的关系，也不能忽视口腔健康在个人、家庭、社区和卫生系统多个层面受到的影响。出于几个原因，现在是全球致力于减少口腔健康不平等的有利时机。全球健康越来越被视为不仅是一项人道主义义务，也是健康外交的工具，是减少贫困、建设更强大经济和加强全球安全这一更广泛使命的一部分。尽管全球经济衰退，但仍有一些趋势预示着对全球健康努力的支持：研发的全球化程度提高、私人慈善机构的投资增加、研究与创新支出的绝对增长，以及年轻人对全球健康的兴趣增强。需要通过口腔健康资助者和研究赞助商与多个公共和私营部门的合作伙伴共同努力，采取更系统、更具深远影响的措施来解决口腔健康不平等问题。口腔健康领域必须与其他健康学科“共商对策”，通过合作创造消除不平等的机会，这种合作可以利用多个部门和机构的智力和财政资源。
