- Develop a research agenda that considers the Risk and Benefits Subcommittees' comprehensive review of the scientific literature, and the list of scientific questions and research areas identified by the Research Work Group. In setting out a targeted research agenda, a comparison should be made between the existing inventory of research studies—and the important gaps in current knowledge about the possible effects of dental amalgam and non-amalgam alternative materials on the body.
Lead agency: NIH, jointly with CDC and FDA
- To monitor progress in this area, establish a tracking mechanism to continually identify and evaluate amalgam research studies funded by the PHS, as well as those sponsored by other government agencies and the private sector.
Lead agency: OASH
Education
Develop a public and professional educational campaign to explain to dental personnel and consumers what is and is not known about the safety of dental amalgam. In order to be credible, the program must address both the benefits of amalgam and the controversy that exists regarding the possible biological effects.
Lead agency: CDC, jointly with FDA and NIH
- Encourage changes in dental restorative practices such that preservation of sound tooth structure is maximized, and amalgam and alternative materials are used appropriately in specific cases.
Lead agency: NIH/NIDR
Regulation
- Combine elemental mercury and dental alloy, which are presently regulated separately, into a single product for regulatory purposes. In light of the studies now ongoing and those proposed in this report, and given the capacity of the U.S. Public Health Service to conduct meaningful research in this area, reclassification of dental amalgam to class III is premature from the standpoint of public health and could result in the loss of this material as a viable treatment option.
Lead agency: FDA
- Require that manufacturers of all dental restorative materials, including dental amalgam, label their products with the ingredients to help dentists identify patients who may exhibit allergic hypersensitivity to these substances and select the appropriate restorative material.
Lead agency: FDA
- Through educational and promotional efforts, encourage dentists and patients to report adverse effects from all restorative materials, including dental amalgam, to FDA.
Lead agency: FDA, jointly with CDC and NIH