My Research Projects
Project Oral Health for Juvenile Diabetics
Edmund julian L Ofilada
Friday, July 06, 2018
The following single character keyboard shortcuts enable alternate display modes:
C - Show table of contents
F - Toggles the display of the footer
A - Toggles display of current vs all slides (useful for printing handouts)
S - Make fonts smaller
B - Make fonts larger
In the beginning…
- In 1996, Project Oral Health for Juvenile Diabetics (POHJD) was initiated to provide dental treatment to type 1 diabetics in Metro Manila. The project was started with the premise that the oral health of type 1 diabetic patients is largely neglected because of the financial demands of diabetes and the lack of information regarding the importance of oral health among children and families of patients with diabetes.
- In 1997, funding for the project ($8,613.89) was provided by the Jash Ressei Committee from Japan through the Religious of the Sacred Heart, a religious organization here in the Philippines.
- Patients were recruited from the Philippine General Hospital, non-governmental organizations such as the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation Philippines, Inc. (JDFPI), Diabetes Care (Diacare), and the Institute for Studies in Diabetes Foundation, Inc. (ISDFI). Private physicians engaged in the practice of treating patients with diabetes were informed of the project as well.
Commonalities - Diabetes and Oral Health
- Sugar intake largely determines severity of disease in oral health and diabetes.
- Success in improving oral health and blood sugar levels are largely dependent on the patient’s knowledge and motivation.
- Both require considerable amount of money to treat. Diabetes requires frequent monitoring of blood sugar levels, daily injections of insulin while dental treatment is not subsidize by the medical insurance.
- Increasing awareness and education has been shown to be highly effective in improving oral health and diabetes.
- Poor oral health predisposes to poor glycemic control and poor glycemic control predisposes to periodontal disease.
- Both periodontal disease and diabetes can be controlled but not cured.
DMFT Index
The DMFT index is a simple count of the number of decayed, missing and filled teeth in an individual averaged over a population or age group. It is a widely accepted method for comparing prevalence of tooth decay between populations. Adding D, M, and F yields the DMFT score.
| 1-5 |
1.0 |
0.0 |
2.5 |
3.5 |
| 6-10 |
6.9 |
0.5 |
0.8 |
8.2 |
| 11-15 |
6.6 |
0.8 |
1.3 |
8.7 |
| 16-20 |
11.4 |
1.0 |
1.7 |
14.3 |
| 21-25 |
8.9 |
3.5 |
1.4 |
14.3 |
| 26-30 |
5.4 |
7.5 |
4.3 |
19.3 |
Decayed, Missing and Filled Teeth
Periodontitis and Tooth Decay
Early Onset Periodontitis
Barriers to Access to Dental Care
- The following were the reasons cited by the respondents for their reluctance to seek dental treatment:
- cost of dental consultation and management (cited by 50%);
- difficulty in finding dentists who are willing to treat diabetic patients (30.8%);
- fear of dental procedures (24.4%);
- the need to obtain medical clearance (14.1%); and
- fear of delayed healing (17%) and of uncontrolled bleeding (10%).
A third of the patients also related a previous experience of being refused dental treatment by a dentist.
Oral Health = Systemic Health
A common risk factor approach
to improving oral and systemic health among patients
with diabetes may offer a better solution
Publications
- Managing Periodontitis in Type I Diabetic Patients Improves Glycemic Control: A Case Report
- Improvement in Periodontitis Following Conservative Periodontal Treatment in a Type 1 Diabetic Patient
- Diabetes and Oral Health
- Diabetes Watch, a publication of Diabetes Philippines. Issue dedicated to Oral Health. January-April 2015
- Oral Health Status of Children Attending a Summer Camp for Diabetes Children.
Publications (continuation)
- A Pilot Study to Determine the Attitudes and Practices Regarding Oral Health Among Physicians Treating Patients with Diabetes.
- A Survey on the Barriers to Dental Care among Individuals with Type 1 Diabetes.
- Periodontal Health of Type 1 Diabetic Patients in the Philippines.
Publications (continuation)
- Caries Experience of insulin-Dependent Diabetic Patients in the Philippines.
- www.projectoralhealth.org
- A website for Project Oral Health for Juvenile Diabetics.
- The Oral Health of Diabetics.
- June-August 1995 The Journal of the Philippine Dental Association (Vol. 47, No.1)
Some of my published article may be found also by following this link to ResearchGate
