The Oral-Systemic Health Connection: A Guide to Patient Care, 1st Edition

In today's health care environment, the emphasis on disease prevention means that, more than ever before, dentists are expected to promote the general as well as oral health of their patients. Over the past several decades, an impressive body of knowledge has accumulated about the impact of oral infections on overall health and well-being. New information is being published at a rapid pace, and clinicians must sort through sometimes conflicting findings. Written by distinguished experts in the fields of oral medicine, periodontology, epidemiology, and microbiology, The Oral-Systemic Health Connection: A Guide to Patient Care gathers the latest scientific information on the associations between the oral environment and overall health. With careful analysis, the authors weigh the latest evidence about the relationships between oral infections and systemic diseases and conditions such as diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis, heart disease, pulmonary disease, inflammation, obesity, and complications of pregnancy. Other chapters focus on cutting-edge research into areas such as infectious disease screening, bioinformatics, targeted cancer therapies, and salivary diagnostics. This book will help readers to better understand current and future evidence on the associations between oral health and general health and enable readers to examine with a critical eye the claims made by scientists working on this subject. More importantly, readers will be able to apply this information clinically to guide treatment decisions and recommend preventive strategies, for the benefit of their patients.