The National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) is very pleased to sponsor this workshop on the oral complications and associations with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. It is estimated that more than 10 million Americans suffer from diabetes, and another six million people are yet to be diagnosed.
With our nation's changing demographics and changing patterns of disease, diabetes is particularly important to the health and well-being of a very significant number of people. In addition, we are realizing that diabetes is a type of autoimmune disease that involves complex associations and interactions between disparate metabolic activities such as glycolysis and lipogenesis.
We further understand that oral infections can exacerbate diabetes, and that diabetes induces multiple oral complications. Therefore, it is imperative that NIDCR, NIDDK and other NIH Institutes, Centers and Offices collaborate on in this complex human disease, and take the opportunity to use your recommendations to accelerate scientific progress to understand and eventually reduce the burden of diabetes.
