A Measure of Inclusion: Women as Authors in Oral Epidemiology and Dental Public Health, 2017-2022

Dentistry has traditionally been male-dominated in North America, although "primary care" dentistry disciplines, including dental public health (DPH), have greater gender equity than other areas. However, gender gaps are likely to persist, specifically in academia. As an example of the measurement of inclusion, we sought to identify gender equity in authorship in publications in DPH and epidemiology over six years. We found that while women occupied first and second authorship positions, men dominated the senior author position. Evaluating gender in authorship provides valuable information on inclusion and the movement toward achieving gender equity in dental public health.