DrBicuspid.com Hygiene Insider

Dear Hygiene Insider,

In our Hygiene Insider Exclusive, we report on a recent paper by Dr. Robert Compton, the executive director of the DentaQuest Institute, about opportunities to increase prevention in dentistry. He notes the key role hygiene plays in improving oral healthcare in children and also how working with parents to change one risky behavior a month, such as not putting juice into a sippy cup for very young children, can dramatically increase caries reduction. Read more here.

In a related story, researchers from Louisiana State University studied the effectiveness of in-depth parental dental education and its influence on their knowledge and also the oral and dental health practices of their children. They found that educating parents about oral hygiene has a positive effect on their children's oral hygiene practices, and they presented their findings at the recent American Public Health Association annual meeting. Read more here.

Economically disadvantaged children in the U.S. received more preventive dental care but less treatment in 2013, according to a new report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on children enrolled in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program. Read Features Editor Donna Domino's article here.

On the other end of the patient spectrum, the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has released the findings of a new survey that finds seniors in the state with the poorest oral health are those who are economically disadvantaged and have conditions that affect their ability to eat and also may impact their overall health. Find out more here.

Also in the Hygiene Community, the W. K. Kellogg Foundation has awarded an additional two-year, $400,000 grant to the American Dental Education Association Minority Dental Faculty Development program to address oral health disparities in vulnerable children and communities. Read more here.

Some 52,000 dental professionals gathered at the 2014 Greater New York Dental Meeting, the largest dental meeting in the U.S., amid mild weather for the Big Apple. With a number of continuing education seminars and scores of vendors, the conference continues to be one of the most important dental meetings. See a slideshow here.