Abstract:
Few clinical datasets exist in dentistry to conduct secondary research. Hence, a novel dental data repository
called BigMouth was developed, which has grown to include 11 academic institutions contributing Electronic
Health Record data on over 4.5 million patients. The primary purpose for BigMouth is to serve as a high-quality
resource for rapidly conducting oral health-related research. BigMouth allows for assessing the oral health status
of a diverse US patient population; provides rationale and evidence for new oral health care delivery modes;
and embraces the specific oral health research education mission. A data governance framework that encouraged
data sharing while controlling contributed data was initially developed. This transformed over time into a
mature framework, including a fee schedule for data requests and allowing access to researchers from noncontributing
institutions. Adoption of BigMouth helps to foster new collaborations between clinical, epidemiological,
statistical, and informatics experts and provides an additional venue for professional development.
