Oral health research in the WHO African region between 2011 and 2022: a scoping review
Open accessAbstract
The status of oral health research in the World Health Organization (WHO) African region is unclear, yet the need for such information is central to moving an oral health agenda forward. Such an agenda is essential for effectively translating research into actionable practices and supporting regional strategies. The aim of this scoping review was to provide data on the scope and output of oral health research in the WHO African region to be used as a starting point for establishing a research agenda that can affect oral health in the region. We conducted a systematic search in PubMed; EMBASE; Epistemonikos; Scopus; the International Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research General and Regional Sessions; ProQUEST; PROSPERO; and African regional databases such as Regional African Index Medicus and the African Journal Online. We included primary and secondary studies published in English, French, or Portuguese between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2022, addressing oral health-related research having individuals, groups, or populations as units of analysis. These reports either addressed a topic relevant to the WHO African region assessed using the title and study objective or were conducted in a country in the region. We excluded in vitro and in vivo studies focusing on cells, biomarkers, or animals. We assessed 24,014 records, and 1,379 proved eligible. Our findings indicate a preference for particular research designs less suitable for evidence-informed practice guidelines and oral policies, a limited scope of oral health research topics, and important regional differences in research capacity. Furthermore, publications by researchers in the WHO African region tend to be published in journals with a limited readership. A discussion of our findings among oral health researchers at academic institutions in the WHO African region on how to create within- and across-country collaborations could potentially improve both health and oral health in the region.
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The 2022 World Health Assembly Resolution on oral health and Sustainable Development Goal 3 provides an unprecedented global mandate.
“The 2022 World Health Assembly Resolution on oral health and Sustainable Development Goal 3 provides an unprecedented global mandate.”
From Oral health in Africa: a neglected public health priority (2026) · cites this paper as [38]
The Introduction (page unavailable) describes 2022 World Health Assembly guidance as global political guidance for oral health. It does not say that this guidance and Sustainable Development Goal 3 together provide an unprecedented global mandate; SDG target 3.4 appears only in a reference title. (LLM, conf=0.83)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredIn 2022, the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution on oral health committed to Universal health coverage for oral health, pledging to develop ambitious national responses to promote oral health by 80% in 2030 and to reduce oral diseases, conditions and oral health inequalities by 10%.
“In 2022, the World Health Assembly adopted a resolution on oral health committed to Universal health coverage for oral health, in which they pledged, among other global strategies, to develop ambitious national responses to promote oral health by 80% in 2030 and to reduce oral diseases, conditions and oral health inequalities by 10% (38).”
From Oral health in Africa: a neglected public health priority (2026) · cites this paper as [38]
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Research works printed but not linked: 2
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Oral health in Africa: a neglected public health priority
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- Authors
- Labarca, T. F., Ortuño, D., Neira, L., Andrade, G., Bravo, F. J., Cantarutti, C. R., Dallaserra, M., Gatarayiha, A., Karajgikar, J., Kulchar, R. J., Liu, X., Martins-Pfeifer, C. C., Olivares, N., Pilcher, L., Pahlke, S., Pirela, C., Sanchez, J. M., Song, A., Urquhart, O., Vargas, J. P., Véliz, C., Verdugo-Paiva, F., Vergara, P., Zaffiri, V., Zuñiga, J., Makino, Y., Glick, M., & Carrasco-Labra, A.
- Affiliations
- Universidad de Los Andes, Chile (CL)
- Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (CL)
- University of Chile (CL)
- University of Rwanda (RW)
- University of Pennsylvania (US)
- Department of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dentistry, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- American Academy of Pediatrics (US)
- Infectious Diseases Society of America (US)
- Mean Data Corporation, FL, USA
- Epistemonikos Foundation, Mariano Sanchez Fontecilla, Santiago, Chile
- World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa (CG)
- Center for Integrative Global Oral Health, School of Dental Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Dental Research
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2024-10-29
- Volume
- 103
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 1209-1217
- ISSN
- 0022-0345 (ISSN-L)
- 1544-0591
- PMC
- PMC11562290
- OpenAlex
- W4403876338
- Cited by
- 9
- References
- 24
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 1
- FWCI
- 0.73
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Dental Research (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Universidad de Chile (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Funders
- World Health Organization
- University of Pennsylvania
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Dentistry › Periodontics › Dental Health and Care Utilization
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty › scientometrics and bibliometrics research
- Health Sciences › Dentistry › Periodontics › Scientific and Engineering Research Topics
- Keywords
- oral health research, WHO African Region, research agenda, research capacity, research output, research design, evidence-informed practice, oral health policy, research collaboration, regional disparities in research
- MeSH terms
- Africa, Humans, Oral Health, World Health Organization, Dental Research
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