“Seal-A-Smile” program offered by the Kenosha Community Health Center, Inc.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

KENOSHA, Wisc. – Elementary school children with unmet dental needs have a lot to smile about now, thanks to the “Seal-A-Smile” program offered by the Kenosha Community Health Center, Inc.

Cavities cause pain, discomfort and make it difficult to eat – or concentrate on school work. KCHC team members visit public schools to provide basic teeth cleaning, along with the application of dental sealants. The oral hygiene services go well beyond the customary services offered to the regular patients of KCHC’s center. Dental sealants prevent 80 percent of cavities in back teeth, where nine in 10 cavities occur. So far, the KCHC team has treated nearly 1,200 students this school year.

Children and youth with special health care needs are twice as likely to have unmet dental needs, according to the Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin.

(https://www.chawisconsin.org). One in three Wisconsin children is living with untreated dental decay, the most preventable chronic disease in the United States. And one in five children in the third grade has untreated dental disease. Nationally, 80 percent of dental decay affects 20 percent of children. “In addition, disproportionate levels of access to oral health care exist in minority and low-income populations,” the Alliance says.

The Alliance provides grants to health organizations like KCHC to implement Seal-A-Smile. Under the program, the KCHC dental health care team visits 20 schools in Kenosha and Western Kenosha. Dentists and dental hygienists treat 25 to 50 children in 2nd, 3rd and 5th grades at each school. The sealants are a quick, easy and painless treatment. Plus, underprivileged kids who may not otherwise see a dentist do not have to miss too much class time while they are being treated on site at school. After the initial treatment, the team revisits schools to offer another fluoride treatment to ensure long-lasting and healthy teeth.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Ahmad Landrum
Community Relations Director
Kenosha Community Health Center
Office: 262-925-1665
Cell: 414-630-7975
[email protected]

Mihaela Popa, D.M.D. / Dental Director
Kenosha Community Health Center
6226 14th Avenue
Kenosha, WI 53143
Ph.: 262.656.0044 Fax: 262.925.1680
[email protected]