Advances in Dental Research, Vol 3, 3-6, Copyright © 1989 by International & American Associations for Dental Research
Forty years of progress
H. Loe
The celebration of the 40th anniversary of the National Institute of Dental
Research (NIDR) provides an opportunity for reviewing the growth of dental
research over the decades. The Institute owes its origin to public and
professional concern over the dental health of Americans and the prospect
that a Federal investment in dental research could pay off. The early years
of the Institute were devoted to studies of fluoride and dental caries,
with notable achievements in clinical trials of water fluoridation and
caries microbiology. During the 1960s came the discovery that the
periodontal diseases, like dental caries, were bacterial infections that
could be prevented. Basic and clinical research expanded, and the research
manpower pool grew with the addition of microbiologists, immunologists,
salivary gland investigators, and other basic biomedical and behavioral
scientists. The Institute created special broad-based Dental Research
Institutes and Centers to foster interdisciplinary research, and continued
to expand its research base. A national survey undertaken by NIDR in the
late 1970s showed major declines in caries prevalence in schoolchildren.
Recent NIDR surveys of adults and older Americans as well as a second
children's survey have demonstrated overall improvements in oral health and
a continued decline in childhood caries.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
