School Dental Health Programs : A Review

Oral health is fundamental to general health and well-being. A healthy mouth enables an individual to speak, eat and socialize without experiencing active disease, discomfort or embarrassment. Oral disease can lead to pain and tooth loss, a condition that affects the appearance, quality of life, nutritional intake and consequently, the growth and development of children. The burden of oral disease is considerable.The sole purpose of the educational, prevention and curative oral health activities under the School Oral Health Program is to nullify the incidence of hard and soft tissue diseases and bring out a new caries free generation.The aim of this review is to assess the various school dental health programs in India and around the world for its effectiveness in the improvement of oral health of the children