An important new study indicates that dentists may be able to screen patients for diabetes during an appointment. According to the WHO nearly 347 million people suffer from Diabetes and by the year 2030 it will be the seventh leading cause of death.

Dentists are certainly comfortable working in the oral cavity and no one expects to have his finger pricked for a blood test at a cleaning. So using blood from the gingival crevice could be a natural extension of dental hygiene care and allow for greater contribution to our patients’ health. If this became a routine practice eventually there could be other salivary fluid testing as well. And of course, software that would lead the clinician and patient into next steps if the readings suggested pre-diabetes or diabetes would be most helpful.

Congratulations to the authors of this study: Dr.’s Shiela M. Strauss, Mary T. Rosedale, Michael A. Pesce, David M. Rindskopf, Navjot Kaur, Caroline M. Juterbock, Mark S. Wolff, Dolores Malaspina, and Ann Danoff.

Click here to schedule a LIVE online demo to see if we are  fit for your office!

Dental Symphony offers ePatient: the only HIPAA compliant Online Patient Registration System with the exclusive “Pre-Clinical Analysis” tool.

ePatient was created by Dentists for Dentists and is easily adaptable for any type of practice with free customization.