Optident donation helps to protect Cambodian children’s teeth

Optident and Ultradent donated 2,000 units of fluoride varnish for Dentaid to use on its projects around the world. The first batch was sent to Cambodia where volunteers visited slum areas near the capital Phnom Penh and community clinics in Kampong Cham.  In addition to providing emergency dental treatment for people in pain, the team also ran oral health education sessions, screening and fluoride varnish programmes.  The easy availability of fizzy drinks and sweets has led to widespread dental decay but many Cambodians can’t afford basic dental care. Over two weeks the team treated more than 350 people and they also supported Cambodian dental professionals who are working to improve access to dental care in the country.

The donations of fluoride varnish will also prove invaluable in Dentaid’s work in Uganda, Morocco and the refugee camps in Greece where fluoride varnish treatments are offered alongside emergency dental care and oral health advice. A Dentaid team heading to Uganda in February is expected to see more than 1,000 patients in schools, prisons, orphanages and community clinics and the charity is also working with Ugandan dentists to establish dental clinics in refugee camps on the northern Ugandan border where people have fled from South Sudan. Some of the donated fluoride is also being used for Dentaid’s projects providing dental care for vulnerable and homeless people in the UK.