The role of the dental professional in diabetes care.

Diabetes mellitus, specifically type 2 diabetes, is one of the major public health issues facing the world in the 21st Century. This article summarizes the rapid changes in the management of diabetes and its impact on dental practice. The reader will find many "hyperlinks" to other diabetes information on the Internet throughout this article as these links provide greater detail. The incidence of type 1 diabetes has increased slowly, while that of type 2 diabetes has increased explosively. The worldwide incidence of type 2 is likely to double by the year 2010 due in large part to changing lifestyles, longer life expectancy, and rapid growth of ethnic and racial populations that have high prevalence rates. There are 15.7 million people or 5.9% of the population in the United States who have diabetes. While an estimated 10.3 million have been diagnosed, it is unfortunate that 5.4 million people are not aware they have the disease. Diabetic dental patient management strategies are presented. Dental professionals are urged to remain current in their knowledge of this disease in order to provide proper care for their patients.