The Effectiveness Of Consuming Fluoridated Water In Reducing Children's Caries Experience.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$507,090.00
Summary
The extent to which water fluoridation has contributed to the considerable reduction of dental decay in children in recent times in Australia is unclear, due perhaps to the increasing availability of fluoride in other sources such as toothpaste, drops, tablets, and professional applications. It is proposed to monitor for approximately three years a sample of 23,140 primary and secondary school children to examine the precise contribution of consuming fluoridated water to new tooth decay. The pro ....The extent to which water fluoridation has contributed to the considerable reduction of dental decay in children in recent times in Australia is unclear, due perhaps to the increasing availability of fluoride in other sources such as toothpaste, drops, tablets, and professional applications. It is proposed to monitor for approximately three years a sample of 23,140 primary and secondary school children to examine the precise contribution of consuming fluoridated water to new tooth decay. The project also aims to examine the comparative role of diet, toothbrushing, socioeconomic status, and other factors in the development of tooth decay. Given the widespread fluoridation of water supplies in Australia, and the continuing public debate over the extent of its effectiveness in preventing tooth decay, one of the project's most significant features is its capacity to contribute to a calculation of the cost effectiveness of water fluoridation as a public health strategy for the reduction of decay experience in children. The findings of the project will provide a strong argument for either eliminating fluoride from the water supply due to it's negligable public benefit or extending water fluoridation to the remaining quarter of the Australian population who are currently being disadvantaged by not having access to the health benefits derived from consuming fluoridated water.Read moreRead less
Caries Initiation Across Childhood To Adulthood By Exposure To Water Fluoridation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$198,297.00
Summary
This research program is expected to contribute to filling significant gaps in the understanding of factors determining the oral health of Australian children and young adults. The purpose of the project is to develop a better understanding of the outcome of long-term exposure to fluoridated water among young adults.
The National Survey of Adult Oral Health will interview and dentally examine 7,500 people aged 15 or more across all States and Territories of Australia. It will provide a national snap-shot of the nation's oral health, including levels of tooth loss, dental decay and gum disease. The survey, to be conducted in 2004-04, will be directed by researchers at the Australian Research Center for Population Oral Health at The University of Adelaide. It will be conducted in collaboration with the Commonw ....The National Survey of Adult Oral Health will interview and dentally examine 7,500 people aged 15 or more across all States and Territories of Australia. It will provide a national snap-shot of the nation's oral health, including levels of tooth loss, dental decay and gum disease. The survey, to be conducted in 2004-04, will be directed by researchers at the Australian Research Center for Population Oral Health at The University of Adelaide. It will be conducted in collaboration with the Commonwealth and State-Territory health departments. Occurring 17 years after the first National Oral Health Survey of Australia, this new survey will monitor changes in oral health among all Australians. The survey will identify groups at particular disadvantage in terms of oral diseases, and it will search for lifestyle and community-level hazards that increase the risk of oral disorders. The study will have a compare patterns of dental health among people born before and after the fluoride generation of adults born in the 1960s when most of Australia's capital city water supplies became fluoridated. The study has been designed to automatically capture national statistics on general health among the 7,500 study participants over the next decade. The researchers will use that information to study links that have been observed in other countries between gum disease and heart disease. Results from the survey will provide the basis for monitoring progress towards national health targets and provide information to help direct dental health services into the 21st century.Read moreRead less
Understanding The Role Of Psychological Factors In The Etiology, Prevention And Treatment Of High Dental Fear
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$344,007.00
Summary
Despite dental fear being one of the most common fears experienced by Australians, the etiology of this serious condition is still not well understood and both the prevention and treatment of dental fear are not widely or effectively implemented. This project aims to better understand the psychological processes at work in determining dental fear through further research as well as by gaining first hand experience at one of only a handful of dental fear research clinics in the world.
I am an epidemiologist whose research is concerned with investigating the behavioural, social, structural and environmental determinants of obesity and its antecedent behaviours
The South Australian Dental Longitudinal Study has been the first comprehensive dental longitudinal study of older adults to be conducted in Australia. Participants were aged 60+ years at the 1991 baseline data collection, and were a random sample of community-dwelling older adults in urban Adelaide and rural Mount Gambier. The 11-year follow-up data collection will build upon the previous study findings to provide important and new information about the onset and progression of oral diseases in ....The South Australian Dental Longitudinal Study has been the first comprehensive dental longitudinal study of older adults to be conducted in Australia. Participants were aged 60+ years at the 1991 baseline data collection, and were a random sample of community-dwelling older adults in urban Adelaide and rural Mount Gambier. The 11-year follow-up data collection will build upon the previous study findings to provide important and new information about the onset and progression of oral diseases in older Australians. It will also assist with the identification of general health and other characteristics (socio-demographic, medical, functional, cognitive, nutritional, swallowing, dental history, oral hygiene care, financial, social support and oral disorder social impact characteristics) that are associated with oral diseases in various groups of older adults. Groups of older adults within the study include those who are healthy and living in the community, those who are frail and use support services, and those who have moved into residential care. This information will assist both private and public health sectors, dental professionals and other health professionals with the identification of those older adults who are at high risk for developing oral diseases, such as those with dementia, those with physical disabilities, and those living in residential care. This 11-year data collection will be one of only 4 similar international studies currently being conducted, and will provide important comparison data for future studies of older Australians.Read moreRead less
Methods For Evaluating The Therapeutic Impact Of Diagnostic Tests - Development Of Guidelines
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$132,325.00
Summary
New diagnostic tests are frequently adopted in clinical practice without any evidence that they improve patient outcomes. This project will produce the first guidelines about the role and optimal design of studies assessing the impact of a new test on therapeutic decisions for conclusions about its clinical value. This work will inform researchers and clinicians to improve evidence-based diagnostic practice and promote the more efficient use of limited health care resources.
Explaining Social Inequality In Population Oral Health Using A Multilevel Approach
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$103,500.00
Summary
Our preliminary research demonstrated a social gradient in the oral health of Australian adults. Adults who occupy higher positions on the social hierarchy experienced less disease and symptom experience, enhanced quality of life, and better self-rated oral health. Not only were associations made between social position and oral health, but a range of other factors such as personal control, social support, stress, life satisfaction, and workplace and childhood social environments were also assoc ....Our preliminary research demonstrated a social gradient in the oral health of Australian adults. Adults who occupy higher positions on the social hierarchy experienced less disease and symptom experience, enhanced quality of life, and better self-rated oral health. Not only were associations made between social position and oral health, but a range of other factors such as personal control, social support, stress, life satisfaction, and workplace and childhood social environments were also associated with oral wellness. This work is new Australian research and is yet to be published. In an expansion of this project, we move from describing oral health inequalities and identifying their social determinants to provide a better understanding of pathways to population oral health. In doing so we shift the focus from the individual to the social context in which individuals live. We suggest that characteristics of social environments contribute independently to the variation in oral health outcomes accounted for by the characteristics of the residents themselves. In particular, we seek to demonstrate that social cohesion (the social integration, trust, and reciprocity within an area) influences conditions linked to oral health. Previous research has demonstrated variation in health according to area. Such studies are able to demonstrate a clustering of health, but are not able to distinguish whether observed social patterns in health reflect characteristics of residents or some feature of the area itself. Such conclusions require multilevel statistical models designed to separate individual effects from contextual effects while simultaneously examining interactions between both levels. Oral health is ideally suited as a proxy for general health because of the ubiquity of dental diseases, the broad utilisation of dental services within the population, and the shared risk factors between oral disease and a wide range chronic health conditions.Read moreRead less