One of the more interesting applications of Teledentistry is in the area of caries detection in underserved populations. An article in the Journal of Telemed Telecare in 2006 reviewed a teledentistry project that complemented an existing telehealth project set up as part of six inner-city telehealth centers in six elementary schools of Rochester, New York.
In this study an intraoral camera with rudimentary image quality (768 x 494 pixels) was used to record digital images of children’s teeth at examination. These images were then sent to a computer at the ‘expert’ dental site at the Eastman Department of Dentistry at the University of Rochester where they were reviewed by a pediatric dentist. Then, based on the Dentists recommendations, the telehealth assistant at the clinic contacted the child’s parents or guardians and provided assistance so that they could be treated appropriately.
Fifty subjects comprised the initial pilot study published in the J Telemed Telecare (J Telemed Telecare 2006;12:176-181). In the subsequent nine months of 2005 123 children were screened. In the above article the authors, D Kopycka-Kedzierawski and R Billings, report that of the initial screenings aged 12-48 months 40% had active caries. This attempt at teledentistry involving inner city child care centers and very young children was deemed to be a successful method of caries interception.
