The effectiveness of a primary care nursing-led dietary intervention for prediabetes: a mixed methods pilot study.

Background: Primary care nurse-led prediabetes interventions are seldom reported. We examined the implementation and feasibility of a 6-month multilevel primary care nurse-led prediabetes lifestyle intervention compared with current practice in patients with prediabetes, with weight and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) as outcomes.

Methods: This study used a convergent mixed methods design involving a 6-month pragmatic non-randomised pilot study with a qualitative process evaluation, and was conducted in two neighbouring provincial cities in New Zealand, with indigenous Māori populations comprising 18.

The evidence supporting methods of tooth width measurement: Part II. Digital models and intra-oral scanners.

Digital models and intra-oral scanners are gaining increasing popularity in orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning by allowing clinicians to store and 'virtually' analyse dental casts. The present paper reviews the various digital model programs and available intra-oral scanners and presents the research which has tested their accuracy. With this information, clinicians may be better informed to adopt the most appropriate system.

The evidence supporting methods of tooth width measurement: Part I. Vernier calipers to stereophotogrammetry.

Measuring tooth widths is a key component of orthodontic treatment planning. Over recent decades, many methods have been proposed to achieve this purpose. The current review highlights and describes the initial techniques.

Validity, reliability, and reproducibility of the iOC intraoral scanner: a comparison of tooth widths and Bolton ratios.

Introduction: The objectives of this study were to determine the validity, reliability, and reproducibility of the iOC intraoral scanner (Cadent, Carlstadt, NJ) and its associated OrthoCAD software (Cadent) in measuring tooth widths and deriving Bolton ratios.

Methods: Thirty subjects had impressions taken of their teeth and rendered as stone casts. In addition, their mouths were scanned with the iOC and the scans were converted into digital models.

Improving school readiness with the Before School Check: early experience in Hawke's Bay.

Aim: The New Zealand Ministry of Health's Before-School Check (B4SC) aims to identify those 4-year-old children with health, developmental or behavioural problems likely to impact on their education so these can be remediated before school entry. This evaluation aims to demonstrate the outcomes of the first 10 months of the B4SC programme in Hawke's Bay and the lessons learnt.

Methods: The B4SC was implemented in Hawke's Bay using an intersectoral, collaborative approach including all major stakeholders, led by the Hawke's Bay Primary Health Organisation (HBPHO).

Contemporary issues in dental education in Australia.

Australia has witnessed a proliferation of dental workforce training opportunities over the last 15 years, including dentists, dental therapists, dental hygienists and prosthetists. The reasons for this have not been examined critically. Universities have welcomed the opportunities to increase the student base but do not seem to have examined the advisability of continued expansion or its impact on the delivery and costs of health services.

Visual application of the American Board of Orthodontics Grading System.

Background: Assessment of treatment outcomes has traditionally been accomplished using the subjective opinion of experienced clinicians. Reduced subjectivity in the assessment of orthodontic treatment can be achieved with the use of an occlusal index. To implement an index for quality assurance purposes is time-consuming and subject to the inherent error of the index.

Patients' attitudes towards compliance with retainer wear.

Objectives: The objectives of this survey were to determine patients' attitudes towards retainers and their compliance in wearing retainers.

Methods: Three hundred dental school patients were selected at random and survey questionnaires were distributed. Twelve private orthodontists were willing to participate in the survey and each was given 20 questionnaires for distribution to their patients.

An orthodontic information package designed to increase patient awareness.

Background: Most patients and their parents experience difficulty in fully appreciating the implications and demands of orthodontic treatment. This is largely because of inadequate understanding of the process of treatment or the commitment required.

Objectives: To determine if a specifically developed video information package could significantly increase patient awareness of the implications of a full course of orthodontic treatment.

A comprehensive survey of retention procedures in Australia and New Zealand.

Objectives: This survey aimed to identify consistencies in retention procedures.

Methods: Three hundred Australian orthodontists and 70 New Zealand orthodontists were randomly selected for the study. A questionnaire gathered their views regarding the most commonly used retainers, wire types and sizes of bonded retainers, factors influencing the design of retainers, duration of regular retention, definition of permanent retention, percentage of cases that needed permanent retention, factors influencing the decision to use permanent retention, changes in retention protocols over the last five years, and reasons for such changes.

Cross-sectional survey of the use of section 5(2), Mental Health Act 1983, within a psychiatric hospital.

A survey of the use of section 5(2), Mental Health Act 1983 within a psychiatric hospital was carried out between January and December 2001. Using computer-based patient records, it was found that 89 patients were placed on a section 5(2) between January and December 2001. Data on patient demographics, hospital admission date, date of implementation of section 5(2), date of reassessment after section 5(2) and outcome of the assessment was obtained from these records.

Pulp-test responses in orthodontic patients.

The diagnosis of orofacial pain is complicated in the orthodontic patient as treatment-induced alterations to pulpal physiology may result in altered responses to pulp-test stimuli. Thirty-three subjects commencing fixed orthodontic treatment and another 15 subjects not undergoing orthodontic treatment were used in this study. Cold and electrical stimuli were applied to the maxillary incisor teeth prior to treatment, after the placement of fixed appliances and at regular intervals for both groups for up to 252 days.

Distortions in panoramic radiographs.

This study was designed to investigate the factors affecting linear distortion in orthopantomography A test model was constructed with metallic rods positioned to simulate maxillary teeth from the first permanent molar to the lateral incisor. In addition to examining the effects of varying the tilts of the test rods in a mesiodistal or bucco-palatal direction, spatial position changes (sagittal displacement, transverse displacement and horizontal rotation) of the test model were evaluated by determining the magnification changes in the width and length of the test rods. Results showed that significant errors occurred with all variations in magnification when test rods were inclined buccopalatally (p < 0.

Frictional resistance to sliding archwires with repeated displacement.

Fictional resistance between a length of stainless steel archwire and a single bracket was calculated, and the effects of cyclical displacement forces on frictional resistance were tested. With the application of repeated displacement forces to the archwire, the force required to slide the wire through the bracket was substantially reduced. The percentage reduction in the force required to slide the wire was dependent on the size of the displacement force applied to the archwire.

A survey of dental and oral trauma in south-east Queensland during 1998.

Background: This project investigated the aetiology of dental and oral trauma in a population in south-east Queensland. The literature shows there is a lack of dental trauma studies which are representative of the general Australian population.

Method: Twelve suburbs in the south-east district of Queensland were randomly selected according to population density in these suburbs for each 25th percentile.

Tooth movement and vascularity of the dental pulp: a pilot study.

The effect of orthodontic tooth movement on the dental pulp was assessed histologically in twelve subjects. The participants in this study required the extraction of at least two maxillary first premolars for orthodontic treatment. They were asked to wear a maxillary removable appliance that acted to move a randomly determined premolar in a buccal direction.

The effect of orthodontic treatment on salivary flow, pH, buffer capacity, and levels of mutans streptococci and lactobacilli.

Fixed orthodontic treatment has been shown to cause an increased incidence of enamel demineralisation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes in stimulated salivary flow rate, pH, buffer capacity, and the levels of mutans streptococci (MS) and lactobacilli in patients undergoing therapy with fixed orthodontic appliances. Saliva samples, plaque index scores and dietary histories were taken from 21 sequential patients before the start of treatment, and one month and three months after placement of brackets and bands.

EICO-1: an orthodontist-maintained expert system in clinical orthodontics.

Expert systems are increasingly being used to provide comprehensive interpretative services for diagnosis and treatment planning. Some of these systems are constrained by the complexities of rule-based strategies and a need for knowledge engineers throughout the maintenance phase. A new approach to knowledge acquisition known as Ripple-Down-Rules was used in the development of EICO-1 (Expert Interpretation in Clinical Orthodontics).

Variations in treatment need using four screening methods.

The study models of 100 Grade Seven students were used to compare the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI), the Dental Health Component (DHC) and the Aesthetic Component (AC) of the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN), and the Danish Ministry of Health (DMH) screening system. The basis for comparison was the agreed subjective assessment of two orthodontists for each subject. Disagreements between the subjective assessment and each screening method were further analysed in an attempt to identify the specific occlusal traits responsible for the disagreement.

Strength decay of orthodontic elastomeric ligatures.

Aim: To evaluate, over a 12-week period, the tensile strength (TS) and extension to TS of elastomeric ligatures (both clear and coloured) obtained from two companies.

Setting: Ex vivo study.

Method: Seven replicates of five ligatures from two orthodontic companies were tested using an ex vivo assembly which simulated a clinical situation.

Incidence and aetiology of facial injuries resulting from motor vehicle accidents in Queensland for a three-year period.

Background: No studies have been reported on the frequency and aetiology of facial injuries due to MVAs in Queensland. This study aims to investigate the incidence, aetiology, age and sex distribution of facial injuries resulting from MVAs for a period of three years.

Method: Cases were identified from the Motor Accident Insurance Commission, Queensland.