The World Health Organization's Oral Health Programme in Europe

On 7 April, 1998, the World Health Organization (WHO) celebrated its 50-year anniversary. In 1957 the WHO Regional Office for Europe (EURO) was moved to its present permanent quarters at Scherfigsvej in Copenhagen. During the period 1948-1968 no coherent oral health programme existed in EURO. In the following years the oral health programme became more structured with emphasis on: 1) implementation of oral disease preventive programmes, 2) assistance in introducing appropriate technology and design of relevant infrastructures for dental care delivery systems, 3) improvement of oral health manpower development, 4) establishment of an oral health information service system, and 5) encouraging coordinated research aiming at improving the oral health status of the European population. The present paper gives for the first time a comprehensive account of the oral health activities in WHO's European Region as well as a complete list of references of all the reports, documents and publications issued by WHO's Regional Office for Europe in the field of oral health.