Week in Review: Perio risk assessment tools | Rural oral care | U.S. opioid deaths

Dear DrBicuspid Member,

Dental practitioners in solo and small group practices don't widely use periodontal disease risk assessment tools, although a new study finds they're open to using them. Researchers delved into the reasons why and provided recommendations for overcoming barriers. Read more here.

Pediatric oral healthcare can be challenging in any situation, but in rural communities with fewer resources, collaboration may be the key to improving their oral health. Dental professionals from rural Oklahoma discussed how they partnered with outside organizations to dramatically reduce the rate of early childhood caries. Learn more here.

In the latest research to quantify the opioid epidemic in the U.S., researchers found that opioid-related deaths increased by more than 300% over a 15-year period. The researchers also reported that men accounted for two-thirds of all opioid-related deaths in 2016. Read more here.

A simple, two-question survey appears to accurately identify adults with oral health problems, according to researchers. The survey may be the first step to helping nondental providers refer high-risk adults to dentists for proper evaluation. Read more here.

The above article on the two-question survey is interesting and well worth your time. What concerns me is that it is 2018 and we're still in a situation in which nondental practitioners don't regularly ask their patients about their oral health. How can we be part of the solution? I'd love to hear your thoughts.