The impact of poor behaviour in schools can have wide-ranging detrimental affects on learning, wellbeing and social development. School-Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS or PBIS), originally created by Horner and Sugai (2006), is a whole-school behaviour intervention program. It has been widely implemented in more than 16,000 schools across the United States, with [read the full story…]
Fissure sealants have been available since the 1960’s and a 2008 Cochrane review by Ahovuo-Saloranta et al highlighted their effectiveness for preventing occlusal caries noting that their effectiveness is obvious in high caries risk children. The aim of this new study by Muller-Bolla et al, was to assess their effectiveness in a school-based dental sealant [read the full story…]
Dentine hypersensitivity (DH) arises from exposed dentine as a result of various stimuli. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of three commercially available toothpastes in the reduction of dentine hypersensitivity. 149 participants (72 males and 77 females; aged 20 to 60 years) were randomised to four groups:- Group 1-toothpaste containing 5% [read the full story…]
The main aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of the adjunctive use of metronidazole (MTZ) or MTZ + amoxicillin (AMX) in the treatment of generalized chronic periodontitis (ChP). Participants with untreated generalized ChP were randomised to receive either scaling and root planning (SRP) only (n= 40); SRP with MTZ, 400 mg/3 times [read the full story…]
Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) presents as a subjective burning sensation of the tongue, lips or entire oral cavity, but does not manifest any objective lesions or laboratory test findings. BMS is more common in middle-aged to elderly age groups. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a tongue protector in combination [read the full story…]
In my last blog I emphasised the importance of addressing recovery expectations during treatment sessions with individuals with low back pain (LBP) and highlighted a simple screening instrument. However, the question remains, if a person has ‘low scoring’ recovery expectations how can we go about helping them? With that question in mind, I was delighted [read the full story…]
I remember discovering the joys of storybooks in the 1970’s, as Grandpa Elf and I would sit in the dappled shade of the trees, reading story after story set in the woodland. For human children, tucked up in their beds, tales of deadly wolves and evil grandmothers may well have had a scary edge, but [read the full story…]
Occlusal reduction is one possible technique to reduce postoperative pain in patients suffering from irreversible pulpitis and tenderness to percussion. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of this procedure Patients with irreversible pulpitis and mild tenderness to percussion without moderate-to-severe spontaneous pain underwent standardized root canal treatment (RoCT) performed by a [read the full story…]
In root canal treatment (RoCT) apical preparation is traditionally to three sizes larger than the first apical binding file (FABF) although some have argued for further enlargement. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of different apical preparation sizes on the outcome of primary RoCT in mandibular first molars. Patients > 18 [read the full story…]
The aim of this study was to compare both the effectiveness of the anaesthesia and the pain with deposition between fast and slow inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) injection techniques. Patients attending a dental emergency department and requiring endodontic management were randomised to receive either fast (n=30) or slow (n=30) IANB injections using 3.6 mL [read the full story…]
