Dental public health: CPITN as a strategy towards better periodontal health.
The CPITN has been widely adopted in health services planning. Studies widely used for service planning indicate that deep periodontal pockets are an infrequent manifestation of the need for periodontal treatment and that a substantial amount of periodontal care can be done by dental hygienists. However, so far, CPITN data has not been helpful in placing periodontal treatment needs within the context of general health needs, partly because it is often presented in terms unfamiliar to health service planners and in categories not immediately meaningful to decision makers in the health sector. Finally, there is very limited data showing the use of CPITN for evaluating changes in periodontal status; the limited experience in evaluating change would suggest that further research is needed on the most appropriate format for data presentation and the statistical analysis of such data.
Lennon
M A
MA
Department of Clinical Dental Sciences, University of Liverpool, UK.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003657:Decision Making; D003756:Dental Hygienists; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006285:Health Planning; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods / Q000458:organization & administration; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D009909:Oral Health; D010510:Periodontal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000628:therapy; D010512:Periodontal Index; D011636:Public Health Dentistry / Q000458:organization & administration