I-Smile@School is a program that provides preventive dental care to elementary students in Iowa schools. I-Smile@School provides dental screenings, dental sealants, fluoride varnish, and oral health education for elementary school students.
For school-aged children, most of their cavities occur on the chewing surfaces of back molar teeth. Applying dental sealants, a resin, to those teeth makes it more difficult for the teeth to get cavities.
Cost Savings by Preventing Cavities
The cost to prevent cavities by placing dental sealants on children’s teeth is much less than the cost of treating cavities with fillings, and the savings realized over a lifetime can be significant.
According to the Surgeon General Report, there is strong evidence supporting dental sealants and community sealant programs for the prevention of dental decay, particularly for children at the highest risk for developing cavities. By providing the program in schools, children can receive services easily. In the end, they will experience fewer cavities which helps them concentrate on learning instead of mouth pain.
Iowa HHS provides funding to Child and Adolescent Health programs to administer I-Smile@School in elementary schools that have at least 40 % free and reduced lunch rates.
For program summaries, visit the Oral Health Data & Reports page.