(By Dr. Joseph D. Lim and Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI)
ORAL HEALTH is an integral part of general health.
This observation is made by no less than the World Health Organization which calls for countries to address the fact that poor oral health is a major contributor to general health conditions and vice versa.
It is also a fact that medicine and dentistry “have always been, and continue to be, worlds apart,” observe Dr. Frank Lobbezoo and Dr. Ghizlane Aarab of the Department of Orofacial Pain and Dysfunction, Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam, University of Amsterdam and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
“Unfortunately, this separation has exacerbated the poor oral health of many people, especially among vulnerable sections of the population, which, in turn, has led to oral health inequities across the globe,” they write in The Lancet medical journal.
Oral diseases have increasingly been associated with some of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases, namely cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancers. Oral diseases share common risks, including social determinants such as low income and low level of education. They are also associated with risk behaviors such as frequent smoking and high amounts of sugar consumption.
The article cites the observation of The Lancet Commission on Oral Health that it is important to have sufficient amount of essential, evidence-based expertise sharing and skill sharing between medical doctors and dentists.
Health-care planning, politics, and legislation should be aligned with new, partly overlapping medical and dental curricula worldwide.
Interprofessional collaboration is necessary in this process.
“Consequently, medicine and dentistry should seek to evolve beyond their long-standing modi operandi of being worlds apart and instead move towards an urgently needed united approach. Only then will medical doctors and dentists be able to work sustainably together for the express aim of improving general and oral health equity around the globe,” The Lancet article observes.
Dr. Lobbezoo and Dr. Aarab conclude that interprofessional collaboration between medical doctors and dentists in research, education, prevention, and care provision must be promoted.
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the former Associate Dean of the College of Dentistry, University of the East; former Dean, College of Dentistry, National University; Past President and Honorary Fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy; Honorary Fellow of the Japan College of Oral Implantologists; and Honorary Life Member of the Thai Association of Dental Implantology. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515.
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Dr. Kenneth Lester Lim, BS-MMG, DDM, MSc-OI, graduated Doctor of Dental Medicine, University of the Philippines College of Dentistry, Manila, 2011; Bachelor of Science in Marketing Management, De la Salle University, Manila, 2002; and Master of Science (MSc.) in Oral Implantology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany, 2019. He is an Associate professor; Fellow, International Congress of Oral Implantologists; Member, American Academy of Implant Dentistry and Philippine College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail limdentalcenter@gmail.com/PN
