Tobacco-Oral Disease - Strategies for Dental Professional

Squier, Christopher

Abstract

In the United States alone, it is estimated that there are over 400,000 tobacco-associated deaths each year. Although many of these are the result of cardiovascular and pulmonary disease, there is significant disease associated with other organs; for example, smoking is estimated to account for 92% of cancers of the lip, oral Cavity and pharynx. The goal of the proposed Educational Workshop entitled """"""""Tobacco and oral disease; strategies for dental professional interventions"""""""" is to develop intervention strategies applicable in the dental professional setting that will lead to a reduction in tobacco use, with a consequential decrease in oral disease, including oral cancer.
The specific aims of the workshop are: (1) to bring together a diverse group of researchers with interests in tobacco use and related disease so as foster cross-disciplinary interaction between basic biomedical researchers, epidemiologists and social and behavioral scientists; (2) to identify strategies for reducing or preventing tobacco use based on state of the art behavioral, pharmacological, neurobiological and genetic approaches; (3) to develop effective interventions utilizing the best strategies that will be applicable in the oral health professional setting for the reduction of tobacco use and the associated burden of oral disease. The researchers will be assisted by a panel of practicing oral health professionals, to provide a perspective from the point of view of the profession and the patient, including those from under-served and under- represented racial and ethnic groups. The desired outcomes will be a series of interdisciplinary research collaborations in which investigators will develop tobacco interventions for the oral health professional, the effectiveness of which can be evaluated in NIH-funded controlled clinical trials. The Workshop will be organized by the Principal Investigator, Dr Christopher Squier, assisted by a small Steering Committee comprising experts in behavioral sciences and tobacco intervention; the PI and Steering Committee will have an Advisory Committee representing expertise in several important constituencies or areas related to the Workshop. The planning activities will be supported by a Program Associate.