Have you heard of "pedonomics"? It's Dr. Roger Sanger's economic model for pediatric dentistry that works in 2015 and beyond. (He wrote about it in the April issue of Dental Economics.) Taking inspiration from Dr. Sanger's pedonomics factors, we dug into some of the details of the caries crisis. If this doesn't make the case for pediatric dentistry, we don't know what will.
Caries are the Most Common Chronic Disease in Children
Seeing the numbers side-by-side puts things in perspective: we're talking epidemic proportions.
The Impact of Tooth Decay
You know what happens when caries go untreated. But the impacts go far beyond oral and physical health.
And the problem isn't going away, or getting better across the board...
Percent of Children with Caries in Permanent Teeth
How do you Treat Pediatric Patients without Stress?
Minimal conscious sedation using an orally administered sedative and amnesic (no memory) drug with N2O analgesia can change the way you treat pediatric patients.
Dr. Sanger called pediatric sedation dentistry a "game changer" in treating children:*
Minimal conscious sedation with orally administered sedative and amnesic (no memory) drug midazolam (Versed) supplemented with nitrous oxide analgesia can not only make for a more pleasant pediatric visit for both child and doctor, but the child will have no memory of the experience…. If medical disciplines (ENT, GI, plastic surgery, dermatology, radiology, etc.) use oral sedation routinely, why can't dentists?
Think about it: completing a child's dental treatment in one single appointment, with no stress; less time the parents have to spend at your office and less time a child has to miss school; more time for you to treat other cases. Total game-changer.
Doesn't pediatric dentistry make a lot more sense now?
Sources:
*Sanger, R. (2015, August). Game Changers in Pedonomics: Think Profit, Not Overhead. Dental Economics, 62-68.
Untreated decay
- http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/su6302a9.htm
- http://www.ncohf.org/resources/tooth-decay-facts
Common chronic diseases
- http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/hygiene/disease/dental_caries.html
- http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=185394
- http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/most_recent_data.htm
- http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/pdf/ndfs_2011.pdf
- http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/childhood.html
- http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html
School hours
Dental expenses & insurance
Caries in 2–5 year olds
Caries by age/ethnicity
The information contained in this, or any case study post in Incisor should never be considered a proper replacement for necessary training and/or education regarding adult oral conscious sedation. Regulations regarding sedation vary by state. This is an educational and informational piece. DOCS Education accepts no liability whatsoever for any damages resulting from any direct or indirect recipient's use of or failure to use any of the information contained herein. DOCS Education would be happy to answer any questions or concerns mailed to us at 106 Lenora Street, Seattle, WA 98121. Please print a copy of this posting and include it with your question or request.
