Summary Excerpts from:

THE SCIENCE BASE FOR THE REPORT

This report is based on a review of the published scientific literature. Standards established to determine the quality of the evidence, based on the study design and its rigor, were used where appropriate. In addition, the strength of the recommendations, where they are made, is based on evidence of effectiveness for the population of interest. The scope of the review encompassed the international English literature. Recent systematic reviews of the literature are referenced, as are selected review articles. A few referenced articles are in press, and there are occasional references to recent abstracts and personal communications.

Part Three: What Is the Relationship Between Oral Health and General Health and Well-being?

Chapters 5 and 6 address key issues in the report’s charge--the relationship of oral health to general health and well-being. Chapter 5 explores the theme of the mouth as reflecting general health or disease status. Examples are given of how oral tissues may signal the presence of disease, disease progression, or exposure to risk factors, and how oral cells and fluids are increasingly being used as diagnostic tools. This is followed by a discussion of the mouth as a portal of entry for infections that can affect local tissues and may spread to other parts of the body. The final sections review the literature regarding emerging associations between oral diseases and diabetes, heart disease and stroke, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. The findings include:

Oral diseases and conditions are associated with other health problems. Oral infections can be the source of systemic infections in people with weakened immune systems, and oral signs and symptoms often are part of a general health condition. Associations between chronic oral infections and other health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, and adverse pregnancy outcomes, have also been reported. Ongoing research may uncover mechanisms that strengthen the current findings and explain these relationships.

CONCLUSION

The past half century has seen the meaning of oral health evolve from a narrow focus on teeth and gingiva to the recognition that the mouth is the center of vital tissues and functions that are critical to total health and well-being across the life span. The mouth as a mirror of health or disease, as a sentinel or early warning system, as an accessible model for the study of other tissues and organs, and as a potential source of pathology affecting other systems and organs has been described in earlier chapters and provides the impetus for extensive future research. Past discoveries have enabled Americans today to enjoy far better oral health than their forebears a century ago. But the evidence that not all Americans have achieved the same level of oral health and well-being stands as a major challenge, one that demands the best efforts of public and private agencies and individuals.

For the full report please go to: Oral Health in America A Report of the Surgeon General