Grant: Project Grant

Early childhood tooth decay affects childhood health and well-being. It is defined as any dental decay involving the primary (baby) teeth of children up to and including 6 years old. Severe Early Childhood Caries is a severe type that is often difficult to treat in traditional dental clinic settings because of the young ages of affected children and the number of cavities that must be treated. Thus, dental surgery in the operating room under general anesthesia is routine. More than 3,000 preschool children undergo dental surgery under general anesthesia each year in Manitoba alone. The risk of a child developing tooth decay may be related to taste. The microbiological factors responsible for caries are well studied. However, the influence of taste and human cell-microbial interactions in caries risk are poorly understood. We aim to determine how taste signaling pathways and the oral bacteria responsible for cavities talk to each other and influence caries risk in young children. We anticipate the results will contribute to greater screening of susceptible individuals and informed intervention strategies. Our future goal is to use these results to develop targeted intervention strategies for dental caries in young children based on specific environmental modifications such as taste preferences.