Dental fluorosis is characterised by bilateral, diffuse, thin and horizontal white striations and stained plaque areas, with pitting and discolouration of the enamel in more severe case. It is caused by excess fluoride ingestion during tooth development and can have an impact on quality of life. The aim of this study was to evaluate the [read the full story…]
The restoration of teeth following root canal treatment (RoCT) can present challenges and posts inserted into the root canal can provide support to enable restoration. The aim of this study was to evaluate the survival of glass fibre and cast metal posts used to restore endodontically treated teeth with no remaining coronal wall. Patients with [read the full story…]
When I was training formocresol was the standard dressing for primary teeth following pulpotomy . However, it use is now questionable because of potential adverse effects such as potential carcinogenicity, mutagenicity, and cytotoxicity. Consequently a range of other materials have been investigated, ferric sulphate, gluatraldehyde preparations , mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA), electrosurgery, calcium hydroxide, and laser [read the full story…]
The 2010 Cochrane review of powered toothbrushes (Deacon et al) provided some evidence that rotational oscillation powered toothbrushes are more effective than other designs. However, the available evidence was based on short-term studies and the differences were small, so the clinical importance was unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of [read the full story…]
Sinusitis is one of the commonest reasons for visiting the doctor accounting for 15% to 21% of all adult outpatient antibiotic prescriptions. Patients may also present at dental practices, as pain from upper posterior teeth can be indistinguishable from sinusitis. Typical signs and symptoms are purulent nasal discharge, postnasal drip, sinus pain at palpation, nasal [read the full story…]
A new Cochrane protocol has just been published by the Cochrane Effective Practice and Organisation of Care group. With increasing emphasis on the links between general an oral health the adoption of a common risk factor approach is being encouraged. The underlying principle being that general health promotion in dental health-care favours the control of [read the full story…]
Enamel defects and other oral abnormalities have been reported in premature children. The aim of this review was to assess whether there is any association between premature birth and enamel opacities or hypoplasia. A search was conducted in PubMed and Embase for follow-up, case control or cross sectional studies published in English German, Danish, Swedish [read the full story…]
Posterior cross-bite is a common malocclusion and a number of approaches to address this with maxillary expansion have been developed. These can be broadly divided into rapid maxillary expansion (RME) and slow maxillary expansion (SME). The aim of this review was to compare the effectiveness of RME and SME for transverse maxillary discrepancy. Searches were [read the full story…]
Failure to maintain good oral hygiene during fixed appliance orthodontic treatment can lead to the development of demineralised white lesions (DWLs) around the orthodontic brackets. The incidence of this adverse effect of treatment has bee reported as being between 15-85. A recent Cochrane review by Benson et al (see Dental Elf 27th Jan 2014) found [read the full story…]
It has been reported that implantitis affects between 2-47% of implants and with the number of implants being placed rising years on year more patients are likely to be affected. The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness of different interventions for the treatment of peri-implantitis. Searches were conducted in Medline, PubMed, Embase [read the full story…]
