By Matt Leingang
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Eight-year-old Jared Wade opens wide.

"OK, sweetie," says Dr. Sulbha Midha, checking inside Jared's mouth for cavities. "Yep, we have some decay there."

Midha, a dentist with the Greater Cincinnati Oral Health Council, works on her patient inside a giant mobile dental van parked outside Gamble Elementary school in Westwood.

The 40-foot-long van - a complete dental office on wheels - made its debut this month. It's the first of its kind in Cincinnati, where an estimated 40 percent of residents lack dental insurance, according to the Oral Health Council.

The council also estimates that 40 percent to 50 percent of 8-year-olds in the city have untreated tooth decay.

The dental van brings oral health care to these children, many of whom come from families who don't have private insurance and can't afford a regular dentist, or can't get an appointment soon enough at one of the city's clinics.

The van is a project of the Oral Health Council, which bought the van and loaded it with equipment at a cost of about $400,000. The nonprofit agency secured grants from Ohio Department of Health, the Anthem Foundation of Ohio and the United Way.

"These dental vans are becoming popular in other cities, and we think our unit is going to be a real winner," said Dr. Larry Hill, executive director of the council.

The van made its first stop Feb. 5 at the Gamble school and has also made appearances at the Crest Smile Shoppe Dental Clinic at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Cincinnati.

Plans call to return to Gamble school this month and to make stops at about 15 other schools this year, staying weeks at a time.

The van has a digital X-ray unit, sterilizing equipment, a DVD/television for educational videos and a computer for record keeping.

Jared's mother, Melissa Wade of Westwood, said it's been a long time since her children last saw a dentist. She has two other small children.

"I do have a regular dentist, but a program like this helps make sure that everything is OK with their teeth," Wade, 35, said.

E-mail mleingang@enquirer.com