• Event
• Expressions Spring 2026

Building Smiles Across Borders

HKU and Shenzhen Join Forces to Tackle Oral Disease in the GBA

The Faculty convenes the “Greater Bay Area Oral Disease Prevention and Control Forum” in Shenzhen

On 20 November 2025, HKU Faculty of Dentistry advanced its role as a regional leader in oral health by convening the Greater Bay Area Oral Disease Prevention and Control Forum in Shenzhen. The event brought together representatives from public health, maternal and child health, education, academia and industry to strengthen cross-border collaboration in oral disease prevention.

At the forum and press conference, the Faculty highlighted the achievements of the Jockey Club Children Oral Health Project, launched in Hong Kong in 2019. The project has provided more than 192,000 dental examinations to over 115,000 children and treated more than 153,000 decayed teeth with silver diamine fluoride. Within three years, the prevalence of early childhood caries among preschool children dropped from 38% to 31%, while the average number of decayed teeth fell by 20%. The programme also achieved zero cross-infections, zero serious adverse events, and satisfaction rates above 90% among parents and schools.

These outcomes demonstrated the effectiveness of prevention-focused, community-based oral healthcare and resonated with Shenzhen partners. In response, the Oral Disease Prevention and Control Centre of Shenzhen Maternity & Child Healthcare Hospital introduced two policy initiatives covering maternal oral health and oral healthcare for children aged 0–6 years from 2024 to 2030. Guided by the Health Commission of Shenzhen Municipality, the plans aim to build a life-course oral health protection system from pregnancy through the preschool years.

A key milestone was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between HKU Faculty of Dentistry and Shenzhen University Faculty of Medicine to establish a Greater Bay Area Oral Disease Prevention and Control Collaborative Development Platform, promoting technical exchange, talent development and research innovation.

Dean of Dentistry Professor Lijian Jin said the initiative marks an important step towards integrated healthcare development across the GBA.

The Faculty signs a Memorandum of Understanding with Shenzhen University Faculty of Medicine