Oral Health Program
On January 13, the World Health Organization (WHO) welcomed the approval of an international treaty that will reduce the harmful effects of mercury. Read the note here.
Resources:
American Dental Association: Best Management Practices for Amalgam Waste
WHO: Mercury in Health Care Policy Paper
WHO: Exposure to Mercury: A Major Public Health Concern
US Environmental Protection Agency: Dental Amalgam Government regulations & Environmentally Responsible Practices
US EP: Dental Amalgam Effluent Guidelines
US EPA: Mercury in Dental Amalgam
CDC: Mercury and dental amalgam
PAHO Publications:
- PAHO. Oral Health in the Americas. Chapter 2: Health Conditions and Trends (2007) (P. 135-141)
- pdf PAHO. System Analysis for Oral Health. Regional Oral Health Program. May 2004. (231.66 kB)
- PAHO. Oral Health Promotion: An Essential Element of a Health-Promoting School-Based Oral Health. (2003) (801.84 kB)
- pdf OPS. Desarrollo y Fortalecimiento de los Sistemas Locales de Salud en la Transformación de los Sistemas Nacionales de la Salud. (1993) (1,45 MB)
World Health Organization:
- pdf WHO. Oral Health in Aging Societies: Integration of Oral Health and General Health. (2006) (933.89 kB)
- WHO. Writing Oral Health Policy: A Manual for Oral Health Policy Managers in the WHO Africa Region. (2005) (324.95 kB)
- WHO. The World Oral Health Report 2003: Continuous improvement of oral health in the 21st century - the approach of the WHO Global Health Programme. (2003). (1.31 MB)
- WHO. Oral Health Surveys - Basic Methods. (1997) (3.58 MB)
Others Sources:
- For scientific and technical publications and guidlelines reguarding PRAT, Development Disorders, HIV/AIDS and Oral Health, NOMA, Nutrition and Oral Health, Oral Cancer and Periodontal Disease go to Health Topics section
Resolutions and Mandates
10-Year Plan on Oral Health:
47th Directing Council. 58th Session of the Regional Committee. Washington, D.C., USA. 25 - 29 September 2006.
- CD47/14. Proposed 10-Year Regional Plan on Oral Health. - PowerPoint Presentation (4.37 MB)
- CD47/14. Propuesta de plan regional decenal sobre salud bucodental - Presentación en PowerPoint (4.37 MB)
- CD47/14. Projet De Plan Décennal Régional Sur La Santé Bucco-Dentaire
- CD47/14. Projeto de Plano Regional Decenal De Saúde Bucodental
- CD47.R12. Resolution. Proposed 10-Year Regional Plan on Oral Health
- CD47.R12 Resolución. Propuesta de plan regional decenal sobre salud bucodental.
- pdf CD40/20 Oral Health XL Meeting. Washington D.C, September 1997. (1.04 MB)
- pdf PAHO. Strategy for Improving General Healh in the Americas Through Critical Advancements in Oral Health. The way forward: 2005-2015. July 22, 2005. (545.99 kB)
- pdf OPS. Estrategia para el mejoramiento de la salud general en las Américas a través de avances críticos en la Salud Oral. El camino hacia delante: 2005- 2015. Julio de 2005. (1.38 MB) pdf
- pdf PAHO. Regional Oral Health Strategy For the 1990s. January 1996. (2.26 MB)
- Partnership: El Programa Regional de Salud Oral de la OPS/OMS y la Facultada de Odontología de la Pontifica Universidad Javeriana firmaron acuerdo de colaboración
- PAHO-Colgate Agreement on Community-based Interventions
Interns
Noma, or cancrum oris, is a fast-acting gangrene infection that destroys the mucus membranes of the oral and facial tissues. The exact etiology of it is unknown, but it most often occurs in malnourished children living in areas with poor sanitation.
Noma has not been widely reported in the LAC region, but approximately 140,000 new cases are diagnosed annually. Mortality rate is about 8.5%. It is most prevalent in sub-saharan Africa.
This section has information on the disease, worldwide prevalence, and links for more information:
Introduction and Fact Sheets
Noma in the World (44.66 kB)WHO. Map showing global incidence of NOMA by percent of population effected.
Scientific and Technical Publications
Noma in Loas: Stigma of Severe Poverty in Rural AsiaThe American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 2008. Description of clinical and social features of Noma in Laos emphasizing the significance of poverty reduction, nutritional improvement, increasing awareness and advantages of early therapy.
Epidemiology of the Incidence of Oro-Facial Noma: A Study of Cases in Dakar, Senegal, 1981-1993
The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 1999. Thirteen-year retrospective study based on clinical records of oral gangrene occurring in early childhood in extremely poor areas in an attempt to understand the epidemiology of noma.
Additional Resources:
International Noma Federation.
The Swiss foundation "Winds of Hope" is making its first donation to WHO to help African children facing the threat of the deadly Noma disease.
A UK NGO devoted to Noma.
Sources - Database:
General Health Sicience: LILACS, MEDLINE /International Agencies: PAHO- Pan American Health Organization, WHOLIS - World Health Organization / Cochrane Library: Cochrane systematic reiews, Protocols of Cochrane systematic reviews, CENTRAL, Abstracts by INAHTA, economic studies and critically appraised, abstracts of quality assessments / BBO -Brazilian Dentistry Bibliography / MEDCARIB - Caribbean Health Sciences Literature / Bandolier / Ibero-American Clinical Trials, Evidence. Updating in ambulatory, Reports / HIL- Internet Resources.
HIV/AIDS has infected millions of people worldwide. It is the most devastating illness of our time with respect to loss of human life and its associated social and economic costs.
The oral cavity plays a key role in the HIV/AIDS epidemic. It is often the first clinical sign of the disease and usually the most common complaint of those suffering from the illness. Approximately 40 varying oral manifestations of the disease have been reported since the start of the AIDS epidemic.
This section provides information on oral health care, existing dental programs, strategies and interventions for People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA):
Introduction and Fact Sheets
Oral health and communicable diseases: HIV/AIDS (WHO Introduction.)
Oral Lesions in Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (649,4 kB) (WHO, 2005. Discussion on the importance of oral lesions as indicators of HIV and as predictors of progression of HIV disease to AIDS.)
pdf Policy for Prevention of Oral Manifestations in HIV/AIDS: The Approach of the WHO Global Oral Health (495.29 kB) (WHO, 2006. Overview of global AIDS epidemic including discussion of health systems and policy. Includes information on the relationship between AIDS and oral health with recommendations for prevention and capacity building.)
Scientific and Technical Publications
Oral Healthcare for People with HIV Infection (AIDS Institute & New York State Department of Public Health, 2001. Diagnosis and management of soft-tissue lesions, clinical manifestations and management of HIV-related periodontal disease, oral and maxillofacial surgery, ethical and legal considerations, oral health management in children and adolescents with HIV.)
El VIH/SIDA y Otras Infecciones en la Práctica de la Odontoestomatología (7.54 MB) (OPS & ONUSIDA, 2002. Aspectos generales y diagnóstico del VIH, manifestaciones orales y su tratamiento.)
Training Materials
Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in Pediatric HIV Patients (NIH, 2008. Diagnosis, lab monitoring, treatment recommendations, monitoring antiretroviral therapy and drug resisting testing.)Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in HIV-1-Infected Adults and Adolescents (Office of AIDS Research Advisory Council (OARAC), 2008. Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents. Guidelines for the use of antiretroviral agents in HIV-1-infected adults and adolescents.)
Guidance on Provider-Initiated HIV Testing and Counseling in Health Facilities (2.65 MB) (WHO & UNAIDS, 2007. Recommendations for provider-initiated testing and counseling in different types of HIV epidemics including information on social, policy and legal framework, informed consent and special consideration for various subgroups.)
pdf A Guide for Epidemiological Studies of Oral Health Manifestations of HIV (1.16 MB) (WHO, 1993. A guide intended for oral health practitioners who are not specialists in epidemoiology and for epidemiologists who are interested in HIV-associated oral lesions.)