Trends in oral health care for vulnerable and underserved population:A narrative review

Abstract

Background: Vulnerable and underserved populations are known to have higher levels of untreated oral diseases and are faced with a disproportionate burden of oral health care despite the progress made in advancing oral health care globally. The purpose of this review  is to appraise the oral healthcare for the vulnerable and underserved population and present information on the trends in oral health care for these groups.

Methodology: A literature search was done using available databases and electronic sources using terms such as 'trends in oral health  care', 'oral health care for vulnerable population', and 'oral health care for underserved population'. The reference lists and  bibliographies of the articles found through database searches were also examined and reviewed for additional articles.

Results: From  the search, 93 articles were found and only 23 constituted the final sample. It can be said that most studies focused on improving access  to oral health care for vulnerable and underserved population.

Conclusion: Despite the fact that various efforts have been made to  improve the oral health care for vulnerable and underserved population, a lot still needs to be done in the face of numerous challenges  especially in developing countries.found through database searches were also examined and reviewed for additional articles.