School-based Sealant Program Reduces Disparities in Sealant Use

A model program promoted by the Ohio Department of Health has shown that elementary school-age children who attend schools with school-based dental sealant programs are two to three times more likely to have dental sealants applied to their teeth than those attending schools that don’t have such programs. An article in today’s MMWR reports the results of a study conducted during the 1998-99 school year that compared sealant prevalence in 11,191 third-grade students attending 335 schools in 87 of Ohio’s 88 counties.

Dental sealants are plastic coatings applied to the chewing surfaces of teeth that can prevent dental decay. When properly placed, dental sealants are almost 100% effective in preventing decay on the chewing surfaces of first and second permanent molar teeth. Although Healthy People 2010 has established a national goal of assuring that 50% of all 8-year-olds having sealants, only 23% of all 8-year-olds, 11% of African American children, 10% of Mexican American children, and 3% of poor 8-year-old children have received dental sealants.

The study found that in the schools with sealant programs, both African American and White students, as well as students of all income levels, had achieved or exceeded the national Healthy People 2010 goal. In schools with sealant programs, 57.2% of students had a sealant, compared with 28.2% of students attending schools without sealant programs. Seventy percent of the students who had sealants and were in schools with programs had received them at school.

"Providing sealant programs in all high-risk schools could reduce or eliminate gaps in who receives these preventive tools," states William R. Maas, DDS, MPH, director of CDC’s Division of Oral Health. "State and local health departments should consider this approach to effectively reach children at high risk of dental decay."

Dental decay is the most prevalent chronic infectious disease of childhood; 80% of all children have had dental decay by the time they are 18 years old.

Related Links

• Impact of Targeted, School-Based Dental Sealant Programs in Reducing Racial and Economic Disparities in Sealant Prevalence Among Schoolchildren — Ohio, 1998-1999. MMWR, August 31. 2001;50(34):736–738.
  
  
• Recommendations for Using Fluoride to Prevent and Control Dental Caries in the United States. MMWR, August 17, 2001; 50(RR-14):1–42.
  
  

Historical Document
Page last reviewed: June 1, 2007
Content source: Division of Oral Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion