Dental hygiene is the academic field and clinical practice concerned with the prevention and control of oral diseases through the removal and prevention of dental plaque and biofilm. It investigates effective methods for maintaining oral health and its impact on overall systemic well-being.
Ontological type
Core Procedures
Preventive Strategies
Systemic Health Links
Plaque-Centered Prevention
1965 - 1988
Host–Microbe Immune Paradigm
1989 - 2002
Evidence-Based Population Prevention
2003 - 2023
Plaque-Centered Prevention era
Harald Löe [1] is a central figure in the Plaque-Centered Prevention era, with affiliations at University of Bern [3] and University of Oslo [4]. Harald Löe [1]'s Experimental gingivitis in man [7] defined the causal link between dental plaque and gingival inflammation and underscored standardized plaque measurements as a foundation for preventive guidelines. Jan Lindhe [2] stands as a leading figure in this era, with affiliations to University of Pennsylvania [5] and University of Washington [6]. Jan Lindhe [2] and his 1978 paper Effect of controlled oral hygiene procedures on caries and periodontal disease in adults [8] demonstrated how structured oral hygiene regimens influence caries and periodontal outcomes, reinforcing mechanical plaque removal and hygiene instruction as core preventive strategies.
Host–Microbe Immune Paradigm era
Didier Pittet [1] was a leading figure in infection control during the Host–Microbe Immune Paradigm era, with affiliations spanning Radboud University Nijmegen [2] and the University of Wisconsin–Madison [3]. His pivotal contribution in this era was the Guideline for hand hygiene in health-care settings [4] (2002), which established standardized practices, promoted adherence to infection-control policies, and linked hygiene behavior to reductions in healthcare-associated infections, aligning with biologic risk modeling of host–microbe interactions. Pittet's leadership [1] in promoting evidence-based infection-control practice set a precedent for integrating behavioral and microbial factors into public-health policy during this era. Overall, Pittet [1] contributed to translating these insights into hospital policy and training, reinforcing how dental hygiene and general infection-control measures could be coordinated within an immuno-microbial risk framework.
Evidence-Based Population Prevention era
Poul Erik Petersen[1] held appointments at University of Copenhagen[3] and University of Gothenburg[4] during the Evidence-Based Population Prevention era (2003-2023). His key contribution is The global burden of oral diseases and risks to oral health[7], a paper that quantified the global burden and risk factors to inform surveillance, guideline development, and population-level prevention in this era. Robert J. Genco[2] was affiliated with University of California, San Francisco[5] and University of Pennsylvania[6] during this era. His paper Prevalence of Periodontitis in Adults in the United States: 2009 and 2010[8] highlighted prevalence patterns in adults and supported risk-stratified prevention and public health planning within the era.