Health Risks of Problem-Oriented Dental Attenders

描述(由申请人提供)：这项K-23拨款计划的目的是开发一个培训和研究计划，使任博士能够成为多学科临床和行为研究的独立研究员。任博士对以问题为导向的求医行为与健康结果之间的关系特别感兴趣，尤其是那些与口腔和心血管健康相关的问题。他将探索面向问题的牙科护理人员(POA)的口腔疾病负担和心血管疾病(CVD)的风险因素，并测试一种简短的干预机制，以促进初级保健的利用和健康风险的降低。这项建议的具体目的是：1)进一步扩展任博士在流行病学和健康行为研究方面的知识和技能，使他成为一名跨越多个学科的独立研究员；2)确定口腔健康和一般健康状况，以及口腔疾病负担和心血管疾病风险之间的相互关系；以及3)通过试点试验，评估简短的社会行为干预计划在促进POA预防保健利用和降低健康风险方面的有效性。在该项目结束时，任博士将成为临床和健康行为研究的独立研究员，并在研究资金方面具有竞争力。这项建议描述了一个职业发展计划，该计划提高了任博士在跨学科研究方面的技能，以及一个研究计划，该计划解决了口腔和POA整体健康状况之间的相互关系。POA没有固定的牙科和医疗保健来源，其中许多人不仅牙科疾病患病率高，而且还有多种心血管疾病的危险因素，包括无法控制的高血压、高脂血症、肥胖和吸烟。这一多学科计划的公共卫生意义在于，它将为在很大程度上依赖紧急服务满足其医疗保健需求的患者群体提供获得初级保健的接入点。它还将导致为高危患者在牙科护理和初级医疗保健系统之间建立一个连续的护理体系。这种牙科/医学连续体可能会使数百万有可能患上致衰性疾病的人受益。这一点特别重要，因为近40%的总人口符合POA的定义，他们中的许多人可能没有固定的医疗保健来源。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of this K-23 grant proposal is to develop a training and research program that will enable Dr. Ren to become an independent investigator in multidisciplinary clinical and behavioral research. Dr. Ren is particularly interested in the relationship between problem-oriented care seeking behavior and health outcomes, especially those pertinent to oral and cardiovascular health. He will explore the oral disease burden and risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) in problem-oriented dental attenders (POAs) and test a brief intervention mechanism for promoting primary care utilization and health risk reduction. The specific aims of this proposal are: 1) To further expand Dr. Ren's knowledge and skills in epidemiologic and health behavior research in order for him to become an independent investigator bridging multiple disciplines; 2) to determine the oral health and general health status and interrelationship between oral disease burden and CVD risks of POAs; and 3) to assess the effectiveness of a brief socio-behavioral intervention program in promoting preventive care utilization and health risk reduction in POAs through a pilot trial. At the end of the program, Dr. Ren will be an independent investigator in clinical and health behavior research and be competitive for research funding. This proposal describes a career development program that enhances Dr. Ren's skills in interdisciplinary research and a research program that addresses the interrelationship between the oral and overall health status in POAs. POAs have no regular sources of dental and medical care and many of them have not only high prevalence of dental diseases but also multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including uncontrolled high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, obesity and smoking. The public health significance of this multidisciplinary program is that it will lead to the provision of an access point to primary care for a patient population who largely depend on emergency services for their health care needs. It will also lead to the creation of a continuum of care between the dental care and the primary medical care system for high-risk patients. This dental/medical continuum may potentially benefit millions of individuals at risk for debilitating diseases. This is particularly important as nearly 40% of the general population meet the definition of POAs and many of them may not have a regular source of medical care.