Jay W. Friedman, DDS, MPH
www.JayWFriedman.com
Dr. Friedman pioneered in the development of quality standards for dental care, group practice and dental insurance. In addition to extensive clinical practice, he was a researcher at UCLA’s School of Public Health, as well as consultant to many state and national organizations.
Dr. Friedman received his dental degree from Columbia University in 1948 and a master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan in 1962. He is the recipient of a Special Merit Award from the American Association of Public Health Dentistry.
He has published over 60 papers in professional journals. One of his articles, The prophylactic extraction of third molars: a public health hazard (published in the September 2007 issue of the American Journal of Public Health), led to the American Public Health Association adopting a policy opposing prophylactic extraction of third molars (wisdom teeth).
Dr. Friedman authored a number of professional books, including the Complete Guide to Dental Health
(Consumer Reports Books, 1991)revised in 2002 as The Intelligent Consumer’s Complete Guide to
Dental Health, photo right, available from www.authorhouse.com and www.amazon.com; Doctors in
Hospitals with M.I. Roemer (Johns Hopkins Press, 1972); co-editor and contributor to Group Practice
and the Future of Dental care (Lea & Febiger, 1974). His Guide for the Evaluation of Dental Care
(UCLA, 1972) set the standard for monitoring dental practice.
He presently resides in Los Angeles.
Dr. Friedman may be contacted by clicking here.
Research
The Prophylactic Extraction of Third Molars: A Public Health Hazard
Each year, tens of thousands of mostly young people are injured and billions of dollars are wasted in the prophylactic removal of wisdom teeth. Prophylactic surgery such as the removal of the tonsils or the appendix to prevent tonsillitis or appendicitis, where the risk of future pathology is small, has long been discontinued in medicine. Yet it is common practice for dentists to recommend extraction of wisdom teeth, whether or not impacted, as if they were a special disease.
In October 2008, the American Public Health Association adopted a policy, Opposition to Prophylactic Removal of Third Molars (Wisdom Teeth), in keeping with its commitment to protect the public from needless and injurious health care. Please see the Research section of this website for a copy of this policy and a letter that was sent by APHA to a number of health care organizations. As stated in the letter, “APHA adopted this policy as a means to educate the public, health practitioners and health insurance administrators on the need to avoid treatment that is not evidence-based.”
Health care writers are in a unique position to educate the public on important public health issues. Therefore, we hope that you will further investigate and report on the issue of prophylactic wisdom tooth extraction that causes so much injury and wastes so much money.
Download the document
Bio
Jay W. Friedman, D.D.S., M.P.H. pioneered in the development of quality standards for dental care, group practice and dental insurance. In addition to extensive clinical practice, he was a researcher at UCLA's School of Public Health, as well as consultant to many state and national organizations.
Dr. Friedman has published over 50 papers in professional journals and a number of books on consumer health issues, including a Guide for the Evaluation of Dental Care and the first edition of Complete Guide to Dental Health: How to Avoid Being Overcharged and Overtreated, originally published by Consumer Reports Books in 1991.
Dr. Friedman graduated Columbia University dental school in 1948 and received a master's degree in public health in 1962 from the University of Michigan. His career has spanned the entire transition of dentistry from the isolation of solo fee-for-service private practice to the proliferation of high volume group practices based on dental insurance. He has been the recipient of numerous honors, including the Special Merit Award from the American Association of Public Health Dentistry.
Press
The Prophylactic Extraction of Third Molars:
A Public Health Hazard
ABC7 Chicago
"The Wisdom of Removing Wisdom Teeth"
Nashua Telegraph article
AJPH 2009 Author of the Year
I would like to share with you the honor I have received by being named the 2009 Author of the Year by the American Journal of Public Health for my paper, The Prophylactic Extraction of Third Molars: A Public Health Hazard, published in the September 2007 issue.
The reason for the 2-year delay is to allow sufficient time to have passed in order to gauge the effectiveness in advancing, "a given health policy or program by persuading readers to think differently about a topic."
As gratifying as this is to me personally, it is more important that it encourage and reinforce our efforts to eliminate treatment that is injurious to individuals and wasteful of our resources.
Click to download AJPH Author of the Year Article
Click to download Prophylactic Extraction of Third Molars
Feel free to drop us a line
© Jay W. Friedman 2008-2009 Website by Tobias Media Design
