Pilot program has kids open wide for dental care

It takes less than a minute to apply and effectively prevents the most common chronic disease in children.

But the majority of America's infants and preschoolers do not get fluoride varnish -- a treatment to slow tooth decay -- simply because they don't get dental checkups that young.

A possible solution: Let physicians do it.

That's the idea behind a pilot project taking off in Seattle. Washington Dental Service and Group Health Cooperative have joined forces in a novel effort to make oral checkups a part of routine child visits.

The three-year pilot program hopes to show the benefits of integrating preventive dental services during regular medical checkups for children age 6 months to 3 years. Some insurers, including Washington Dental and Washington Medicaid, already reimburse doctors to apply fluoride varnish.

The thin coating of resin can be applied as soon as the first tooth comes through the gums. Studies show the treatment can reduce the likelihood of cavities in infants and young children by as much as 70 percent.

Dr. Michael Madwed, medical director of Group Health's Rainier Medical Center in Columbia City, questioned sending parents on another visit to a dentist for a procedure doctors can handle. Madwed joined six other physicians from his clinic on Tuesday for an hourlong training session conducted by Washington Dental. They learned to look for signs of early decay and practiced applying the varnish to Group Health employees' children.

During the three-year trial program, children age 3 and younger who are enrolled in Group Health will receive free fluoride application during their scheduled checkups at one of six select Group Health clinics. In addition to the Rainier clinic, the locations will include Burien, Port Orchard and Olympia. Doctors at two Group Health medical centers in Spokane began providing oral exams earlier this year.

Washington Dental, the state's largest dental insurer, will cover the cost for Group Health members' children who don't have dental coverage.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children see a dentist around age 1. In 2004, 53 percent of American children between ages 2 and 4 had not visited a dentist during the preceding year, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

Dental decay among 2- to 5-year-olds has been increasing in recent years, according to the National Centers for Disease Control. By age 3, one-third of American children have had tooth decay.

Kyung Song: 206-464-2423 or ksong@seattletimes.com