Spring 2004 Issue Summer 2003 Issue Fall 2002 Issue

In this issue:

• NIDCR Releases Publications on Oral Health and Developmental Disabilities
• New NIDCR Booklet
• New in the Combined Health Information Database (CHID)
• Contact NOHIC

NIDCR Releases Publications on Oral Health and Developmental Disabilities

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) is pleased to announce the release of a new publication series, Practical Oral Care for People With Developmental Disabilities: Making a Difference. Developed through the Institute's National Oral Health Information Clearinghouse (NOHIC), the project aims to equip dental professionals in the community with the basic information they need to provide oral care to people with mild or moderate developmental disabilities. Publications provide practical management strategies for office-based dental care and information to support home-based oral hygiene.

Publications in the Practical Oral Care series include background information on developmental disabilities and address oral health problems common in people with these disorders. Treatment strategies emphasize adapting standard care procedures to accommodate the needs of special care patients. The following materials are available:

For dental professionals

• An Introduction to Practical Oral Care for People With Developmental Disabilities
• Continuing Education: Practical Oral Care for People With Developmental Disabilities
• Practical Oral Care for People With Autism
• Practical Oral Care for People With Cerebral Palsy
• Practical Oral Care for People With Down Syndrome
• Practical Oral Care for People With Mental Retardation
• Wheelchair Transfer: A Health Care Provider's Guide

For caregivers

• Dental Care Every Day: A Caregiver's Guide

Copies of these materials are available for free by contacting NOHIC or from the publication order form.

Complementing the materials is a free continuing education test for dental professionals located on this web site. Participants who complete the test successfully earn two credit hours.

NIDCR's partners in this project are the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Special Care Dentistry.

New NIDCR Booklet

NIDCR has recently added a booklet to its catalog of education resources. Enfermedad de las encías o enfermedad periodontal is the newly released Spanish version of Periodontal (Gum) Disease. The booklet is intended to provide Spanish-speakers with basic facts about periodontal disease and its causes, symptoms, and treatment. Copies are available free of charge by contacting NOHIC or from the publication order form.

New in the Combined Health Information Database (CHID)

Here's a sample of items on developmental disabilities indexed in the oral health database in CHID. You can access and search the database for free at any time. If you would like to obtain an item listed in CHID, contact information for the publisher is listed in each record.

• Dental Care: Promoting Health and Preventing Disease. This chapter on dental care is from the medical textbook Children With Disabilities. The authors describe the formation and emergence of teeth; the causes, prevention, and treatment of common dental disease; and the various developmental disabilities. Disabilities discussed include cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, meningomyelocele, seizure disorders, and other conditions such as sickle cell disease. The authors emphasize that oral health is an important component of overall health, and that oral care for children with developmental disabilities should be approached in the same manner it is for other children: prevention through home dental care and office checkups. Children With Disabilities is available from Brookes Publishing Company.
  
  
• Dental Fear in a Special Needs Clinic Population of Persons With Disabilities. This article reports findings of a survey on dental fear in a special needs dental clinic population. Dental fears were assessed using the Kleinknecht Dental Report, and levels of fear were examined among patients within differing categories of disability, gender, race, and educational background. The survey reported that 43.2 percent of the respondents had some level of dental fear. Gender, educational levels, and classes of disability were significantly associated with the levels and types of fear reported. Interviews were conducted with caregivers and patients, and the article notes differences between the two groups. The authors conclude that dental fear may be a serious problem for this patient population that warrants additional study. The article was published in the journal Special Care Dentistry.
  
  
• Dental Problems of Children With Disabilities. This chapter on dental problems of children with disabilities is from a textbook for dental students titled Dentistry for the Child and Adolescent. The chapter discusses some of the disabling conditions of children that a dentist may encounter in practice. Topics include access to dental care, the first dental visit, management of a child with disabilities during treatment, immobilization techniques, management of specific disabilities, and many others. The textbook is available from Harcourt Health Services.
  
  
• Dental Care for Children With Mental Retardation: Thoughts About the Americans With Disabilities Act. This article provides an introduction to the demographics of children with mental retardation and their need for dental service, as well as a framework for discussion of the dimensions of this population's difficulties in obtaining care. The authors note that due to deinstitutionalization, increasing numbers of community dental providers will be called upon to provide care, and that treatment often consists of using various behavior management techniques. The article was published in the Journal of Dentistry for Children.
  
  

Contact NOHIC

If you have any questions, simply contact us by e-mail or by telephone at (301) 402-7364. NOHIC information specialists can send publications, perform customized database searches on a variety of oral health topics, and refer you to additional resources.