MICHR-Supported Study Says Genetic Testing, Personalized Care May Prevent Tooth Loss

Using individual patient risk factors, including genetics, research led by Will Giannobile, DDS, MS, DMSc provides new insights into the frequency of dental cleanings that benefit a patient to prevent gum disease that leads to tooth loss. 

Giannobile is a former MICHR faculty member and former head of the Michigan Center for Oral Health Research, a MICHR-affiliated program. He says that the standard twice-yearly cleanings may be more than is needed for some people, while others with certain risk factors may need more frequent dental care.

MICHR provided significant support for this multi-year study, including project management, data management, and data entry, collecting and entering data on about 40,000 participants. MICHR also helped to develop thousands of "cheek swab" packets, which were sent to and mailed back by participants and required bar code tracking on several components of each packet. 

Several MICHR employees were thanked by name in the paper: Sue Burhop, Shari Sidener, and Lea Franco.  

Read the full U-M article or the New York Times article.