Contemporary Twin Block appliance wear protocols: A survey of UK orthodontists.

Objective: This study was undertaken to determine contemporary trends in the use of the Twin Block appliance among UK orthodontists, including the wear time currently prescribed. In addition, the study explored if there had been any change in wear time prescribed, considering recent research evidence proposing part-time wear.

Design: Cross-sectional, online survey.

The Effect of Mini Dental Implant Number on Mandibular Overdenture Retention and Attachment Wear.

Purpose: Evaluate the effect of different mini-implant numbers on overdenture retention and evaluate attachment wear following one year of simulated placement/removal. . Nine models simulating atrophic mandibles held 27 mini dental implants in three groups of 2, 3, and 4 mini-implants.

The opinions of GDPs on the challenges of managing tooth wear in primary dental care.

As patients access most of their dental care within the primary care setting, it is relevant to consider how the experience and opinions of general dental practitioners (GDPs) influence the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of their patients with tooth wear. This paper records the agreed outcomes of semi-structured discussions with three experienced GDPs. The aim is to continue the broader debate about how patients with tooth wear currently are and ideally could be managed within the primary care settings in England.

Gastrointestinal conditions related to tooth wear.

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is a relatively common condition that occurs in adults and less commonly in children. It develops when the reflux of stomach contents into the oesophagus causes troublesome symptoms and/or complications. Signs and symptoms include heartburn, retrosternal discomfort, epigastric pain and hoarseness, dental erosion, chronic cough, burning mouth syndrome, halitosis and laryngitis.

Epidemiology, aetiology and prevention of tooth wear.

Tooth wear is a commonly reported finding globally; however, many patients are unaware of having tooth wear. Identifying early signs of erosion, abrasion or attrition and determining the risk factors contributing to a patient's tooth wear may help to prevent further loss of enamel and dentine in the future. Appropriate prevention should be instigated, or appropriate referral made to other health professionals, when conditions such as gastroesophageal reflux or eating disorders are suspected.

Endodontic management strategies for permanent teeth with immature apices.

This article will provide a summary of causes of incomplete root end closure and the implications of this on endodontic treatment. The limitations and benefits of traditional and more contemporary materials including the use of bioceramic cements are considered. The apical barrier technique is described in detail for teeth with immature apices utilising a variety of bioceramic cements and regenerative endodontic procedures with an overview of appropriate instruments to successfully complete the procedure.

Late Dental Toxicities After Proton Chemoradiation for Rhabdomyosarcoma: A Pediatric Case Report.

Purpose: Radiation therapy is an independent risk factor for adverse sequelae to the oral cavity and dentition in childhood cancer survivors. However, dental toxicities after radiation therapy often are underreported and there are minimal published data on disturbances in tooth development after proton beam therapy (PBT). We present the long-term clinical and radiographic dental findings 8 years after treatment completion for a patient treated with PBT and chemotherapy for rhabdomyosarcoma.

The Gold guide for dental core and speciality training in the UK: a review.

The Dental gold guide was originally developed in 2009 by the UK Committee of Postgraduate Dental Deans and Directors as a reference document for those undertaking specialist training within the UK. A similar document was later produced for dental core training in 2013, called the Silver guide. The documents act as a framework for training and outline the regulations and assessment processes.

Smile makeover treatments.

The demand for aesthetic smile makeover treatments is increasing, especially with the rise in social media use. Historically, healthy tooth structure was sacrificed in order to achieve rapid results but this would invariably lead to compromise of the occlusion and a less-than-ideal result.Multi-disciplinary treatment planning, including the use of orthodontic treatment, is now routinely used in order to achieve optimal results.

The effect of treatment timing on clinical and psychological outcomes with Twin Block therapy: A multicentre two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial.

Objective: To evaluate whether delaying treatment with a twin block appliance affects treatment outcomes, in terms of skeletal and dental change and psychological disadvantage.

Design: Multicentre, two-arm parallel randomised controlled trial.

Setting: Three UK hospital orthodontic units.

Considerations for restorative dentistry secondary care referrals - part 3: assessment of case complexity.

Assessing the complexity of a case is a challenging exercise, with many tooth-specific as well as patient-specific considerations required. This decision is not made in isolation but goes hand in hand with the assessment of restorability, as well as strategic importance, both of which have been covered by the previous papers in this series. A number of guidelines regarding this matter have been devised in order to aid clinicians in determining the complexity of their patients and thus the most appropriate setting for their treatment.

Considerations for restorative dentistry secondary care referrals - part 2: predictability of treatment.

The assessment of restorability is necessary to determine whether it is possible to predictably restore a tooth once primary disease has been managed.There are a multitude of factors that may determine the restorability of a tooth. It varies on a case-by-case basis and as such, clinicians must consider both local tooth factors and general patient-related factors, ensuring a holistic approach when assessing these patients.

Considerations for restorative dentistry secondary care referrals - part 1: defining strategic importance.

Strategic importance is an essential concept for dental service providers. It allows clinicians to differentiate treatment needs on both a patient level and a health care commissioning level, not simply based upon complexity alone. On a patient level, it influences both the clinician's and patient's decision as to whether a tooth/teeth should be restored, as well as determining the possible need for specialist input.

Confidence-level of foundation dentists in the North West of England in the placement of preformed metal crowns using the Hall technique.

Introduction: The Hall technique is a biological caries management approach commonly used within the field of paediatric dentistry. The technique involves the placement of a preformed metal crown (PMC) without local anaesthetic, caries removal or tooth preparation. Despite being widely taught across dental schools in the United Kingdom, evidence from the literature suggests that PMCs are seldom used in general dental practice, even by newly qualified dentists.

The ADEPT study: a comparative study of dentists' ability to detect enamel-only proximal caries in bitewing radiographs with and without the use of AssistDent artificial intelligence software.

Introduction Reversal of enamel-only proximal caries by non-invasive treatments is important in preventive dentistry. However, detecting such caries using bitewing radiography is difficult and the subtle patterns are often missed by dental practitioners.Aims To investigate whether the ability of dentists to detect enamel-only proximal caries is enhanced by the use of AssistDent artificial intelligence (AI) software.

The use of latex and non-latex gloves and dental equipment in UK and Irish dental hospitals.

Aim To identify glove usage within UK and Ireland dental hospitals as well as the use of latex- and non-latex-containing dental equipment.Method A self-completed questionnaire was disseminated to 16 dental hospitals in the summer of 2017. The survey concerned their current use of latex and non-latex gloves and dental equipment.

Occlusion: is there a third way? A discussion paper.

This paper does not set out to describe the reasons why a new concept of dental care should be deemed as acceptable and recognised as mainstream. Rather, the starting point of this paper is the belief that some dentists who are increasing the overall vertical dimension for worn dentition patients are not using the protocols of the traditional 're-organised approach'. If adhesive direct restorations are used, there seems to be anecdotal indication that despite not restoring in the terminal hinge axis, it can have a successful outcome.

Can anteroposterior skeletal pattern be determined from a silhouetted profile photograph? A cross-sectional study.

Objective: To determine the degree to which the anteroposterior (AP) skeletal jaw relation can accurately be determined from a silhouetted clinical profile photograph and whether the level of agreement is influenced by patient vertical proportions.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: University Dental Hospital of Manchester, United Kingdom.

Balancing the dental boards.

The gender balance on boards is an important issue because any imbalance represents gender inequality and is not acceptable. We describe data that we have gathered on the current balance of the UK dental boards and then outline potential ways forward to address any imbalance.

Welsh dental trainees' confidence and competence in completing orthodontic assessments and referrals.

Objective: To improve the confidence and competence of newly qualified dentists in Wales in undertaking orthodontic assessments and making orthodontic referrals.

Design: Quality improvement project.

Setting: Study days arranged by the Wales Deanery.