Data Systems

Oral health data systems monitor the prevalence of oral diseases and the factors influencing oral health, such as risky or protective behaviors, the availability of preventive interventions and utilization of preventive services. The systems bring together existing data from multiple national and state sources and present the data in useful and accessible formats for the broad community interested in promoting oral health. See how the data systems relate.

Additional information regarding Policies on Data Methods, Procedures, and Use.

Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Data Resource Center (DRC)

The DRC serves as a resource on dental, oral and craniofacial data for the oral health research community, clinical practitioners, public health planners and policy makers, advocates and the general public. Resources available include the Catalog of Surveys and Archive of Procedures Related to Oral Health, a searchable database containing descriptions of national and state oral health surveys; an annual report; and the Data Query System, a tool for viewing prepared tables or generating rapid statistical analyses of selected data sets.

My Water's Fluoride

Find information about your local water system's fluoridation status.  Currently available only for states that voluntarily participate in the Water Fluoridation Reporting System (WFRS).

National Oral Health Surveillance System (NOHSS) 

Interact with tables, graphs and maps of oral health indicators by state. Compare a state to the nation or to another state on dental visits, dental cleanings or complete tooth loss, either overall or grouped by demographic characteristics. Compare water fluoridation status in 2002 to the status in previous years. See which states have met the Healthy People 2010 Objective for water fluoridation. Or, view all indicators for one state in the State Profile. Other state oral health data meeting the data standards may be added upon request from state dental directors.

Oral Health Maps

Map water fluoridation status by state or county. View demographic characteristics of a selected state or county with more detailed water fluoridation information. Map indicators of oral health for children and adults by state.

Synopses of State and Territorial Dental Public Health Programs (State Synopses)

View characteristics of and programs conducted by state and territorial oral health programs by year. Use tables or maps to see which states or territories have water fluoridation programs, dental sealant programs, oral health education programs, dental screening programs and more.

Water Fluoridation Reporting System (WFRS)

A water fluoridation monitoring tool for state and tribal water fluoridation program managers and oral health program directors or managers. This system requires special authorization for access. WFRS is the data source for the annual fluoridation information in the National Oral Health Surveillance System.

Related Links

• The DRC is co-sponsored by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) and the Division of Oral Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
   
• My Water's Fluoride, NOHSS, Oral Health Maps, the Synopses, and WFRS were developed and are maintained through a collaborative effort with the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD)*, an affiliate organization of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officers.
   
• The Chronic Disease Indicators (CDI) are a cross-cutting set of 90 indicators that were developed by consensus and that allows states and territories to uniformly define, collect, and report chronic disease data that are important to public health practice and available at the state level. In addition to providing access to state-specific indicator data, the CDI Web site serves as a gateway to additional information and data resources. CDI includes three indicators for adult oral health - past year dental visit, past year dental cleaning, and total tooth loss - and other indicators for health behaviors and risk factors associated with oral health.

* Links to non-Federal organizations are provided solely as a service to our users. Links do not constitute an endorsement of any organization by CDC or the Federal Government, and none should be inferred. The CDC is not responsible for the content of the individual organization Web pages found at this link.

Date last reviewed: October 22, 2008
Date late modified: June 1, 2007
Content source: Division of Oral Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion