It is an honor to address our readers on a day marked by the publication of the first issue of Odontoestomatología at the beginning of the term of the new Dean of the School of Dentistry of Universidad de la República, Uruguay.

In the proposed ‘Agenda for debate’ submitted to the university community at the meetings where the Dean was elected we set out to:

“Work within an ongoing and open dialog with all the social and institutional actors to have a Dean's term of office that focuses on the training of ‘university people’, taking into account the multiple dimensions of humans. The main objective is to create the necessary conditions to improve the health of all Uruguayans and honor the mission society has entrusted to us as we run this educational institution”

Odontoestomatología is a source of pride for our institution, as well as a solid credential when introducing ourselves on account of its high level and academic commitment, in compliance with the international standards of quality scientific journals. Scientific publications in the field of human health are essential to preserve and disseminate scientific advances and to ensure the visibility, accessibility and availability of the knowledge created. In this way they impact the training and updating of students, teachers and professionals, and ultimately, the improvement of health care based on scientific evidence.

Its strength lies in the authors that publish their work, and also, to a large extent, in the scientific editorial committee that assesses and decides on the papers to publish.

Their goals, objectives and targets have evolved and gradually gained prestige and visibility in the national and regional field of publications. Additionally, with its recent on-line version in Spanish and English, the journal has acquired international status, which has helped open quality communication lines to ensure that the scientific work of these authors fulfills its main objective: reaching and interacting with readers.

It is for this reason that I invite national and regional research colleagues to continue on the path of knowledge generation to ensure that people’s quality of life is improved.