Oral Health Survey Methods

The Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors, in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has produced Basic Screening Surveys: An Approach to Monitoring Community Oral Health.  The manual provides step-by-step guidance on conducting open-mouth screening surveys, including guidelines for data analysis.  A training video is also available.  The Ohio Department of Health led the process for developing this tool.

The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research and the CDC Division of Oral Health have developed The Catalog of Surveys and Archive of Procedures Related to Oral Health.  This comprehensive resource is a two-part, searchable database that contains a catalog of sources of oral health data and an archived list of various indices used to collect oral health data. 

The catalog describes surveys and studies of oral health that have been conducted and includes details on the sample design, data collection methods, and population studied in each survey. 

The archive describes clinical indices and questionnaires that have been developed for measuring various indicators of oral health.  Information includes the standard procedures to follow when using each index/questionnaire and well-established modifications for use in specific surveys. A list of surveys in the catalog that have used each index/questionnaire is provided. 

Last Updated: 11/06/07
Last Reviewed: 06/10/08

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