Six out of ten dentists have sent out concerns for child protection. But a third have failed to do so, despite suspicions that children are exposed to neglect, a new study shows.
1,500 dentists and dental hygienists are questioned in the nationwide survey, discussed in newspaper Aftenposten. It is part of the doctoral thesis of Ingfrid Vaksdal Brattabø.
‘The reasons for the messages may be that children have lots of cavities and very poor oral hygiene, often in a combination that you should not see repeatedly’ said Brattabø, who is a research fellow at the University of Bergen and the Dental Health Resource Center at west/Hordaland.
‘In some extreme cases, dentists are also suspicious of physical, psychological and sexual abuse due to the injuries they see, or other circumstances that give them cause for concern’ said Brattabø.
Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today