[A study of oral status of adults who received regular checkups and professional care]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of regular professional care on oral health status. We examined the oral health status of 255 adults (76 males, 179 females; 61.8 +/- 7.8 yrs) who received professional dental care at the Dental Hospital of Tokyo Medical and Dental University at least once a year. The oral health care included checkups and prevention (oral health education, scaling, polishing, topical application of fluoride). We compared the oral health status of adults who received regular professional care with the status of subjects of similar age reported in national and Tokyo surveys of dental diseases in 1999. The following results were obtained. 1. The number of teeth present among adults who received regular oral health care was greater than that reported in the national and Tokyo surveys of dental diseases in 1999. 2. The number of untreated decayed teeth among adults who received regular oral health care was smaller than that reported in the national and Tokyo surveys of dental diseases in 1999. The results show that the oral health status of adults who received regular oral health care was better than the oral health condition of those reported in the national and Tokyo surveys of dental diseases in 1999. Therefore, it is suggested that regular professional care by a dentist or dental hygienist will assist in achieving the objective of the 8020 movement (20 healthy teeth at age 80).