Child Identification Programs

Board takeaway

• Record: The dentist’s most useful contribution to child identification is an accurate, confidential, retrievable record that changes as the child grows.
• Continuity: Establish a dental home by 12 months and update the record at recall visits.
• Community role: Community identification programs should record the child’s dental home and encourage continuing attendance.

Use dental records for comparison

• Dental records allow comparison between a known missing child and an unidentified person.
• Teeth present, distinctive oral findings, restorative materials, and appliances may be useful when other identifiers are unavailable.
• AAPD supports dental participation in community identification programs; it does not recommend routine DNA collection or a separate imaging schedule solely for identification.

Build a useful dental record

• Record teeth present, distinguishing oral features, and anomalies throughout the oral cavity.
• Document restorative treatment, including restored surfaces and materials used.
• Include histories of orthodontic treatment and prosthetic or orthodontic appliances in place.
• Potential supporting records: appropriate dental radiographs, facial photographs, study casts, and bite registrations.
• Refresh information at recall appointments; a single community screening does not provide the ongoing updates of a dental home.
• Preserve confidentiality while keeping records accessible for identification assistance. The policy does not specify a release procedure or retention interval.

Compare other identification methods

• Nondental identifiers include fingerprints, photographs, physical descriptions, and DNA from blood, saliva, or other tissue.
• Practical limitations described in the source: few children have fingerprint records; DNA methods may be difficult to access, slow, and costly.
• Saliva is not routinely collected for this purpose. The source describes its possible use by forensic experts for age and gender profiling, without establishing routine clinical testing.
• Dentists can contribute noninvasive identification tools; this policy does not mandate universal DNA collection.

Community program examples

These are examples described in the 2022 policy, not verified current service offerings:

• Masonic Child Identification Program (CHIP): physical description, fingerprints, profile photographs, video/voice information, and DNA samples from impressions and/or cheek swabs.
• New England KIDS: dental bite impressions and cheek swabs incorporated into CHIP events; sponsored by Massachusetts Masons and the Massachusetts Dental Society.
• National Child Identification Program: American Football Coaches Association identification kit with an inkless fingerprint card and DNA collection site.
• FBI Child ID app: described as storing photographs and essential child information, with a way to email information to authorities when needed.

Common board traps

Answer aloud

Which dental records can help identify a child?

Maintain accurate, confidential, retrievable records and update them at recall as the child grows.

• Record teeth present, anomalies, restorations with surfaces/materials, and appliances/orthodontic history.
• Appropriate radiographs, photographs, models, and bite registrations can support comparison.
• Establish the dental home by 12 months; community programs should document it and encourage continuing visits.

Should every child receive a DNA kit and identification radiographs?

No. Possible identification tools are not universal requirements.

• The policy does not prescribe additional imaging solely for identification or routine DNA sampling.
• A one-time kit does not replace updated dental-home records.