A Textbook of Public Health Dentistry

This textbook is designed for undergraduate and postgraduate students in dentistry as well as health professionals with an interest in understanding and promoting oral health within communities. Although Public Health Dentistry is concerned with oral health of the population rather than dental needs of an individual patient, the ultimate beneficiary of public health programs is an individual. As expected in a book of Public Health Dentistry, epidemiology, etiology, and preventive measures in context of dental caries, periodontal diseases and oral cancer have been discussed in detail. Extensive coverage has been given to the role of fluoride in the prevention of dental caries. The principal diseases of the mouth such as caries, periodontal disease and oral cancer are lifestyle dependent. A sound public health program can provide effective measures. Some of the topics have been contributed by highly experienced colleagues from other dental colleges, bringing greater depth to the subject. The contribution of some chapters such as epidemiology, statistics, and nutrition, by senior teachers in Faculties of Medicine, Malaysia is gratefully acknowledged. Forensic dentistry, Occupational hazards, Ergonomics in dentistry and Financial aspects of dental health practice are attracting greater attention these days. These topics have been included in this book. The book incorporates the latest syllabus. The study of Public Health Dentistry also involves an appreciation of aspects of several disciplines including sociology, psychology and health-related behavior, health economics, health promotion and health service organizational methods in preventive dentistry. All these topics have been given adequate attention. This textbook deliberately takes a broader international perspective of the dental preventive measures. Optimal solutions of health service provision are often hard one and one can often benefit from experiences in other countries. An important aspect of this book is the large number of illustrations, mostly in color, as well as tables. Must-know information has been highlighted in a large number of boxes.