Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Vũ Mạnh Hà speaks at the event. — VNA/VNS Photo Minh Quyết

HÀ NỘI — The 47th Asia Pacific Dental Congress and the second Hà Nội International Dental Exhibition and Congress 2026 (APDC–HAIDEC 2026) opened in Hà Nội on Tuesday.

The three-day event is co-hosted by the Việt Nam Odonto-Stomatology Association (VOSA), the Asia Pacific Dental Federation (APDF), the Hà Nội Central Odonto-Stomatology Hospital (NHOS), and the FDI World Dental Federation.

It’s the first time Việt Nam has hosted the APDC, drawing over 4,000 domestic and foreign experts, scientists, and dental practitioners.

In his opening speech, Permanent Deputy Minister of Health Vũ Mạnh Hà praised VOSA for bringing together experts, intellectuals, physicians, and members nationwide, while pushing into training, scientific research, technology transfer, international cooperation, and community oral healthcare. The tie-up with the APDF to co-host the congress, he said, underscores the credibility, organisational capacity, and growing global standing of Việt Nam’s dental industry.

Hà urged VOSA, hospitals, universities, and specialsed units to sharpen oral disease prevention, especially school-based care, geriatric dentistry, and support for vulnerable groups, while lifting workforce quality through continuous training, advanced technique updates, standardised protocols, infection control, and patient safety.

He also pressed the sector to accelerate scientific research, oral epidemiology, digital transformation, and the use of artificial intelligence and digital dentistry in examination, treatment, and education.

Stronger international collaboration in training, research, technology transfer, and deeper integration with global dentistry must become priorities, he said.

VOSA was encouraged to sustain an active role in policy consultation, expert networking, and supporting the Ministry of Health and local authorities in community oral healthcare.

APDP President, VOSA President and NHOS Director Assoc. Prof. Trần Cao Bính said the congress unlocks knowledge sharing and bridges scientific advances with clinical practice, raising oral healthcare quality while building research cooperation among scientists, experts, and practitioners.

The event features pre-congress sessions encompassing three in-depth reports on implants, orthodontics, and aesthetic restoration. The main scientific agenda packs nearly 80 thematic presentations, research papers, and clinical updates from more than 60 experts representing close to 20 countries and territories. An E-Poster forum spotlights 18 research projects from clinicians across multiple nations.

Running in parallel, an international dental exhibition with almost 400 booths from multinationals and enterprises is showcasing equipment, technologies, and materials.

The World Health Organisation estimates roughly 3.5 billion people globally suffer from oral diseases, the most widespread cluster of non-communicable conditions.

In Việt Nam, the prevalence tops 90 per cent, with the population experiencing oral disease to varying degrees.

Over the past years, the VOSA has teamed up with partners on World Oral Health Day activities that have raised public awareness and been recognised by the global dental community as an effective model with broad social significance.

In 2026, VOSA launched a nationwide month-long campaign delivering free oral health examinations, consultations, and care, with more than 50 public and private facilities registered to join. The push is expected to reach over 47,000 children and residents nationwide. — VNA/VNS