Baby clinic from the Londrina state University (UeL): a Historical overview

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to present a brief history of the primary dental care during the first years of life and to discuss the principles on which the Baby Clinic from the Londrina State University (UEL) are based on. The literature show some reports of primary dental care for babies since the beginning of the 20th century, but only during the 80’s these concepts were systematized and applied on public and private oral health services in Brazil. The Baby Clinic experience allowed the formation of human resources and the definition of oral health strategies to the babies’ dental care in Brazil and around the world. Based on the principles discussed in this paper, it can be concluded that the primary dental care must start around the first four to six months of life. The main objective is to maintain children’s oral health emphasizing the focus on caries risk. The oral health education through prevention with the co-participation of parents and professionals is the most important principle.