Medical Emergencies in Dental Clinics: A Survey of 2013 Dentists in China

Objective To investigate the feature and frequency of medical emergencies in dental clinics in China and the Methods A survey study was conducted among 2408 dentists who attended continuing educational courses held by Society of Sedation and Analgesia of Chinese Stomatological Association in 18 cities from December 2015 to December 2018.Demographic information of the dentists and the characteristics of medical emergencies they encountered were collected and analyzed.The associated demographic features for dentist experiencing medical emergencies were analyzed by logistic regression model.Results A total of 2013 dentists provided valid responses and reported 2923 events of medical emergencies in dental clinics.Among them,85.0%reported that they had encountered medical emergencies,and 35.5%had encountered at least twice.Syncope(35.9%)and hypoglycemia(30.3%)were the most common reported medical emergencies.Medical emergencies were most likely to occur during local anesthesia(49.9%),out-patient oral surgery(25.9%),and root canal treatment(11.3%).There were 6 patients(0.2%)died in emergencies.84.0%dentists reported that they had never received training courses about medical emergency management in dentistry other than Basic Life Support.Longer practicing time(10-15 years)(OR=0.59,95%CI:0.41-0.85,P=0.004),working in private dental facilities(OR=1.69,95%CI:1.20-2.38,P=0.003)were associated with an increased risk of experiencing medical emergencies.Conclusion More efforts are needed in prevention,early identification,and timely management of medical emergencies in dental clinics in order to prevent fatal outcomes.The results of this survey are useful information for re-designing emergency training courses for Chinese dentists.

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation knowledge and attitude among general dentists in Kuwait

BACKGROUND: Dentists as health care providers should maintain a competence in resuscitation. This cannot be overemphasized by the fact that the population in our country is living longer with an increasing proportion of medically compromised persons in the general population. This preliminary study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of general dentists towards cardiopulmonary resuscitation(CPR).METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out among 250 licensed general dental practitioners working in ministry of health. Data were obtained through electronic self-administered questionnaire consisting of demographic data of general dentists, and their experience, attitude and knowledge about CPR based on the 2010 American Heart Association guidelines update for CPR.RESULTS: Totally 208 general dentists took part in the present study giving a response rate of 83.2%. Only 36% of the participants demonstrated high knowledge on CPR, while 64% demonstrated low knowledge. Participants' age, gender, nationality, years of experience, career hierarchy, and formal CPR training were associated significantly with CPR knowledge. Almost all the participants(99%) felt that dentists needed to be competent in basic resuscitation skills and showed a positive attitude towards attending continuing dental educational programs on CPR.CONCLUSION: This study showed that majority of general dental practitioners in Kuwait had inadequate knowledge on CPR. It was also found that CPR training signi? cantly in? uenced the CPR knowledge of the participants. Therefore, training courses on CPR should be regularly provided to general dentists in the country.

Evaluation of dentists’ awareness about personnel and patients national protection in Yazd dental office

Background: Dental radiology had helpful assistant in the diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases. Dentists in their practice have to access benefits of dental oral radiographs against its hazards. They must aware from new radiation protection techniques and radiation dosage which daily receive. Present study was performed for radiation protection awareness in dentists of Yazd city and their knowledge about recent lowering radiation techniques. Materials & Methods: Present cross sectional study was performed on 102 medical dentists of Yazd city. Our study samples were participated in one Continues Medical Educations (CME) session. Knowledge assessment of study medical dentists was gathered with questionnaire which was given to study participants during CME session. Results: Eighty nine percent of dentists had poor and 11% had moderate awareness about radiation protection techniques. There was no significant difference between mean of knowledge scores among study participants according their age groups, job experiences and genders. Conclusion: The knowledge of dentists about radiation protection techniques was very poor and they should implement recent and appropriate radiation protection techniques and guidelines.

Dental Aesthetics: A Study Comparing Patients’ Own Opinions with Those of Dentists

Objective: A beautiful smile is perceived as important but the components that contribute to the patient’s concept of a beautiful smile have not been fully investigated. Hence this study aimed to compare the views of patients on their own dental aesthetics with those of a group of dentists. It also assessed the patients’ willingness to undergo aesthetic treatment. Methods: Fifty patients, who ranged in age from 24 to 76 years, completed self-assessment questionnaires. Photographs were taken of these patients, which were subsequently assessed by six dentists using a questionnaire with visual analogue scale to assess each parameter. Results: Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found between the opinions of the dentists and the patients. Older patients were generally more satisfied with their smile than the dentists. Eighty-six percent of the patients were willing to undergo aesthetic treatment, although factors such as the complexity of treatment, time involved, discomfort and financial costs, deterred many. The cost of treatment was the main deterrent. The younger patients were least likely to be put off treatment. Conclusion: Patients’ views of their own smile differed from the dentists’ opinion. Those who were the least satisfied and were most likely to undergo aesthetic treatment were in the younger age groups. Satisfaction increased with age and older patients were less likely to seek the aesthetic treatment.

Attitudes and Practices of Senegalese Dentists towards Hepatitis B

Introduction: Hepatitis B is an infectious viral disease that causes inflammation of the liver. It is transmitted through body secretions and fluids, including genital secretions, saliva and blood. The objective of this study was to assess the attitudes and practices of dental surgeons in the face infection of Hepatitis B. Methods: This was a descriptive, cross-sectional a sample of 171 dental surgeons. Probabilistic multi-stage, stratified, and systematic sampling was used. Using a questionnaire, we gathered variables related to the attitudes and practices of dentists with respect to Hep B. Results: Nearly 22% of dentists were not vaccinated against hepatitis B virus;Compliance with the use of gloves, glasses, professional clothing, and hygiene in dental offices was not systematic. Blood exposure accidents (BEA) were common, with nearly 13% suffering from needle stick injuries, 10% from eye splashes and about 6% from sharp instruments. The majority of the actions to be taken in the event of (BEA) were disinfection in the event of sticks or injuries (52.1%) and rinsing in the event of eye splashes (66.7%). Conclusion: Dentists should be educated and informed about the need for vaccination and hygiene, sterilization, and good behaviour in case of exposure to blood.

Knowledge and Practices of Dentists, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons of Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) and the Dentascanner in a Low Income Country: Case of Togo

Background: In dental-maxillofacial imaging, 3D sectional imaging progressively replaces conventional 2D imaging in developed countries. They are based specially on Computed tomography (CT-Scan), with the Dentascan application and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). In developing countries those technics are newly introduced. Aim: This study aimed at studying the knowledge and practices of dentist and oral and maxillofacial surgeons on sectional imaging such as Dentascan and Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT). Materials and Methods: We conducted an anonymous survey among dentists and oral maxillofacial surgeons in Togo over one month. Results: The response rate was 78.79% (27/33). They were mainly male sex (sex ratio of 2.25 men for one woman). They were aged between 27 and 71 years old with an average of 49.69 years old. The majority (61.54%) had a professional experience over 20 years. The majority of respondents (65.38%) believed their level of knowledge about dental x-Ray was poor. Half of them (50%) confirmed that they had never asked for a Dentascan, and 15.38% asked from time to time for it and only two (7.69%) asked often for this test. 96.15% confirm they have no knowledge of the Dentascan. Regarding the CBCT, 84.62% didn’t ask for it because this technique did not exist in Togo before. 69.20% of respondents confessed to be interested in continuing training on sectional imaging. Conclusion: This study shows that sectional imaging is very little used by oral and dental practitioners in Togo because of the ignorance of the new techniques and the absence of the CBCT. It is therefore necessary to promote the teaching of the new technique of sectional imaging in the training syllabus of oral and dental specialists and to initiate continuing medical training.

Managements of Special Health Care Needs Patients from Dental Assistant Point

The main role of this article is to describe dental assistants and the dental department’s role in the dental delivery system for Special health care needs (SCHN) by creating a structure to educate the dental assisting profession and project factors that have a significant impact on the dental assistant. The dental assisting management of SCHN patient’s profession including dental Assistance general responsibilities, regulation credentialing, and education. The SCHN patient’s management creates a challenge in all area of the dental department. Handling patient with a SCHN is underexplored throughout the dental staff especially when there is not enough theoretical foundation, education and training to deal with this category of patients. SCHN patients are defined as individuals who have abnormal behavioral impairments, mental conditions or/and chronic disease or abnormal laboratory results. Thus, the aim of this article is to guide all dental assistance staff in the best dental management choice for SCHN patients. All health care teams are part of patient care in most medical settings. A work environment supportive ensures positive outcomes for patient care. This article was considered as those categories of patients required more care and special way to deal with, moreover language, age, gender and education level of the patient are also considered significant parries. Not Many studies were found to support the care of SCHN patients in dentistry department. Taking experience from other area help to design a system to handle the SCHN even if it requires hiring a Dentist who is specialized in that filed.

To explore and develop a model to maintain and build upon a dental clinic open for all in developing regions, with a primary focus on India

AIM: To study a service model that enables a clinic to be open to all members of the community, irrespective of their ability to pay.METHODS: Sampling methodology was used to gather information in two phases, with the city of Indore as the target region. In the first phase, dental professionals were surveyed to gather the cost of the facility, land and equipment and the cost of sustaining the practice. In the second phase, the residents of Indore were surveyed to collect information regarding their oral health problems and their expenditure for the same. Assessing the current situation, the questions to answer are related to the issues of dental health care access problems and the resources required, human and financial.RESULTS:(1) People younger than 20 years of age form a large proportion(43%) of the population of the city and also a large proportion(54%) of people who visit dental clinics;(2) Dental caries are commonlyfound in the population younger than 20 years of age and mobile teeth in those older than 50 years of age;(3) Dental caries and mobile teeth are almost equally found in people of the age group 20-50 years old;(4) A significantly large proportion of those older than 50 years old have had all their teeth extracted; and(5) A significantly large proportion of the 20-30 years of age group has had no teeth extracted.CONCLUSION: The model which we propose works well for low income patients; however, it places a lot of extra burden on the higher income group. A lot of effort can be put into generating revenue from other sources, including events and donations.

Visiting Patients at Home: Reasons and Efficiency of Dental House Calls

This retrospective study analyzes indications for house calls by dentists in a domiciliary setting. Its database consists in 69 visits made by a dentist office in Munich from 1998 to 2013 at the homes of 29 non-institutionalized seniors (≥62 years old, 15 females, 14 males, average age 83.7 years old). The analysis focused on the patients’ general state of health, their dental and oral health, the kinds of dental treatments administered, as well as economic aspects and the quantitative development in the frequency of house calls during the study period. The most frequent pre-existing conditions that made a house call necessary were cardiovascular illnesses (60%) and dementia diseases (36%). Multi-morbidity, dependency on care, accessibility issues, and frailty because of advanced age played a central role. The patients’ oral health was acceptable, with the exception of those with dementia diseases, who were more frequently toothless (40% versus 5.6%) and had a higher percentage of carious and decayed teeth (26.3% versus 10.3%). The most frequent procedures were treatments for denture sores and the repair of removable dentures (53.6%). The main focus was on reparative dentistry. The average house call took 37 minutes including travel time. Thus, the time needed was a multiple of the time necessary for treatment in the dental office. The lack of economic efficiency may be the reason why many dentists in Germany hesitate to make house calls. Despite the introduction of additional fees for the treatment of patients in need of long-term care on April 1, 2013, the number of house calls is low and increases only slowly. At the same time, the need for house calls will rise in the future due to an increasing proportion of elderly persons in the population and a decline in the percentage of toothless elderly.

The COVID-19-Effect on Social Life of Dentist Working in Specialist Dental Centers for Adult: Sample Al-Resafa Health Directorate

Background: While causing a financial and economic loss in many countries in a few months, COVID 19 was of great impact on public health. The Iraqi government took several measures since the first Iraqi case was discovered in February 2020. One of the fundamental measures to control this pandemic is social isolation, which depends greatly on people’s awareness to decrease the incidence of COVID-19. Objectives: To study the COVID-19-effect on dentists’ social life and their future plan, and to find the relation between that effect and some dentists’ demographic variables. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 2nd January to 7th May 2021, by an electronic version of the questionnaire through Google form. With facilitating orders delivered to all the specialist dental centers for adults of Al-Resafa health directorate;any dentists working in specialist dental centers for adults of Al-Resafa health directorate, and accept to participate in this study. Results: A total of 10 specialist dental centers for adults of the Al-Resafa health directorate represent 566/628 dentists enrolled in this study with a response rate of 88.99%. Most of them aged less than 30 years old (62.2%), female (60.6%), married status (50.4%), had 1 - 3 children (71.91%), Rotator (51.1%), with less than five years of experience (61.3%). Conclusion: COVID-19 affected so many aspects of health workers’ lives including dentists. About two-thirds of dentists had negative feelings, of which almost all had anxiety. Younger ages, females, married and having children are factors that contribute to the affection of dental social lives more than other categories.

Significance of Dental Records in Personal Identification in Forensic Sciences

Forensic odontology is a branch that connects dentistry and the legal profession.One of the members in the forensic investigation team is a dentist.Dentists play an important and significant role in various aspects of the identification of persons in various forensic circumstances.However,several dentists and legal professionals are quite ignorant of this fascinating aspect of forensic odontology.A need was felt to fill this gap.The dental record is a legal document possessed by the dentist and it contains subjective and objective information about the patient.A PubMed search and Google search were done for articles highlighting the importance of dental records in forensic sciences using the key words“forensic odontology,forensic dentistry,forensic dentists,identification,dental records,and dental chart”.A total of 42 articles relevant to the title of the article were found and reviewed.The present article highlights the role of dentists in forensic sciences,their possible contributions to forensics,and the various aspects of forensic dentistry,thus bridging the gap of knowledge between the legal and the dental fraternities.

Assessment of Knowledge,Attitude,and Practice in Forensic Dental Anatomy and Histology among Dental Practitioners

Dental anatomy and histology is one of the fundamental subjects and a key to comprehend the act of dentistry.Dental features such as tooth morphology and variations in shape and size play a vital role in the area of forensic odontology.Forensic odontology is a challenging field that involves the application of such knowledge of dental sciences in the identification of deceased individuals.The aim and objective was to assess and evaluate the knowledge,attitude,and practice regarding dental anatomy and histology in forensic investigation among dental practitioners.A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 217 dental practitioners from Maharashtra who in their day-to-day life may experience instances of forensic interest.The information was collected through telephonic interview by means of a pretested,close-ended questionnaire.In our stud%the general awareness about forensic odontology was found to be more among MDS dental practitioners than BDS dental practitioners.Overall,there is a lack of adequate legal knowledge and forensic practices among the dentists of Mumbai and Nagpur.However,the practitioners did have a positive attitude toward the field and were keen to learn more about it.The study is the first of its kind to be conducted in Maharashtra state of India regarding dental anatomy and histology with respect to forensic odontology.The dental practitioners were also aware about the dental anatomy and dental histology with respect to forensic investigation.