Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

A dental practice in Manchester has been named British Den- tal Association (BDA) Good Practice Scheme Practice of the Year. Maple Dental Care Ltd, in the Brooklands area of Manchester, won the award following a rigorous selection process, which included a visit to the practice by judges for the Scheme. The practice is one of roughly 1,800 members of the Good Practice Scheme, which has now been running for over ten years. The Practice of the Year award is judged on criteria covering many aspects of practice manage- ment and care delivery such as patient communications and the care pathway, health and safety and infection con- trol, team training and team working, and corporate social responsibility. Judges this year were particularly impressed with Maple Dental Care’s commit- ment to delivering ‘a caring pathway of evidence based dentistry for patients’. They also praised the range of treatment options and addi- tional services the practice provided, and its commitment to lifelong learning amongst its staff. Clinical Director of the practice, Ian Hunt, said: “We’re delighted to win this accolade, it reflects a real team effort and is a wonderful reward for the hard work and care the team provide each day.” The practice will be pre- sented with their award at the BDA’s Honours and Awards Dinner which takes place in London at the end of November. DT Manchester practice a BDA winner T he results of a four- year, $3.4m National Institutes of Health- funded study led by a research- er from the Indiana University (IU) School of Dentistry will help dental professionals iden- tify which at-risk sites on teeth are likely to become cavities if no preventive action is taken. The study, published in the Journal of Dental Research and led by Andrea Ferriera Zan- dona of the IU dental school, is believed to be the first extended examination of the natural his- tory of dental caries since 1966. A total of 565 children be- tween the ages of five and 13 were recruited for the study in 2007. Of these, 338 children completed all examinations. The children were examined at regular intervals over 48 months. According to Zandona, a lot is known about caries, but lit- tle is known about the process that leads from early caries le- sions to cavities. Caries lesions are an early sign that a cavity might develop. To date, the practice has been to wait and watch lesions until they reach the point where the dentists believe a filling is required, Zandona said. The purpose of the study was to evaluate whether le- sions could be evaluated using the International Caries Detec- tion and Assessment System (ICDAS), a standardised visual examination that requires no special equipment, to iden- tify with greater predictability which ones were more likely to become cavities. “What we were trying to see was if we could identify when lesions reach the point that they will become cavities,” Zandona said. “Are there some signs we see on teeth that signal when it is progressing towards cavita- tion?” IU researchers developed the ICDAS examination with a small group of international scientists. In the study, examin- ers used the ICDAS to give le- sions a score, ranging from 1 to 6 - with one representing a lesion so small that it was dif- ficult to see and scores greater than 5 indicating what is usu- ally considered a cavity -- and judged whether a lesion was active or not. The lesions were tracked during the 48 months, with some registering higher and higher scores until they progressed to cavities. After analysing data collect- ed in the study, the researchers concluded “characterisation of lesion severity with ICDAS can be a strong predictor of lesion progression to cavitation.” “The study shows den- tists can identify which teeth are likely to develop cavi- ties,” Zandona said. “They can then institute a preventive measure such as a sealant or a fluoride treatment instead of waiting for lesions to become cavities” DT Study to help identify potential cavity sites A singing dentist has raised more than £5,000 for diabetes af- ter performing at a concert in East Sheen. Andrew Bain, 39 (pic- tured), took to the stage at the All Saints’ Church on Satur- day, October 13, to raise mon- ey for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Mr Bain, who has worked at the Park Dental Clinic in East Sheen for four years, was joined on stage by Ruth Kerr and an orchestra led by Bernie Lafontaine. Anuja Wagner, who doctors diagnosed with dia- betes at the age of 13 months, was involved with the or- ganisation and promotion of the concert. She said: “The response has been overwhelming. I can’t believe that people have been so kind and supportive. I am so thrilled they enjoyed the show and that we man- aged to raise so much money. “Thank you so much to everyone who has supported this cause.” DT Singing dentist raises thousands for charity H ealth chiefs are hop- ing to put brighter smiles on the faces of hundreds of local school children with a scheme to improve the oral health of youngsters in the Rochdale Borough. Determined to stop the march of teeth decay among the area’s children, NHS Hey- wood, Middleton and Roch- dale (NHS HMR) is working with Pennine Care NHS Foun- dation Trust’s (Pennine Care) Oral Health Unit to roll out an enhanced fluoride scheme in primary schools. Dr Rebecca Craven, Consultant of Dental Pub- lic Health for NHS HMR, said: “The ‘Smile Time’ pro- gramme is inspired by its success in Scotland which saw the percentage of three- year-olds in Glasgow with de- cayed teeth fall from 26 per cent to 17 per cent. “Good oral health is vi- tal – and it’s important that youngsters never forget the importance of looking after their teeth, mouth and gums. I’d urge all parents involved to support the programme which will make a real differ- ence to their children’s oral health.” The initial pilot pro- gramme involves three schools – St Peter’s CE Prima- ry School, Rochdale; Belfield Community Primary School, Rochdale and Bowlee Pri- mary School, Langley, Mid- dleton. And health chiefs are then keen to roll-out the scheme across the Rochdale Borough once the pilot has been evaluated. Andrew Forrest, Oral Health Manager at Pennine Care, said: “With support and supplies from our oral health specialists, school teach- ers will supervise children aged 5 to 7 brushing their own teeth once during the school day. Teachers will be trained to ensure that only a pea-sized amount of tooth- paste will be used for tooth brushing which is the recom- mended amount for primary school-aged children. “Children in the Rochdale Borough have some of the highest rates of tooth decay in the country so we want to reverse this trend and ensure our children have happy, healthy smiles.” DT Rochdale Youngsters get their teeth into new dental scheme 4 News November 12 - 18, 2012United Kingdom Edition