Nation's oral health to be assessed

Thousands of people across Australia will take part in dental interviews and free dental examinations as part of a $5.8 million University of Adelaide national oral health study.

To be conducted by the Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health (ARCPOH) in the University’s School of Dentistry, in partnership with national and State Departments of health and dental services, the study will assess the level of oral diseases in the Australian adult population, and the effectiveness, sustainability and equity of dental service delivery across the country.

The National Study of Adult Oral Health 2016-2018 is being funded under a National Health and Medical Research Council grant. Further support has also been received from the Australian Dental Association and Colgate.

“This study will inform policy-makers and service providers who need to make decisions about the delivery of fair and effective dental services for all Australians over the next decade and more,” said chief investigator Professor Marco Peres (pictured), Professor of Population Oral Health at the University of Adelaide and Director of ARCPOH.