The clinical use of the Nd:YAG laser in paediatric dentistry for the removal of oral soft tissue.

This article considers the clinical use of the Nd:YAG laser for soft tissue surgery in paediatric dentistry. If the claims made about its performance and properties are true then the Nd:YAG laser should be a very useful additional clinical tool for dentists treating children.

Evaluation of a teaching aid for dental students.

A new teaching aid to assist undergraduate dental students to learn charting methods was developed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the aid. Baseline charting tests were completed by 58 inexperienced clinical students at the start of a weekly half-day attachment at 3 community dental service (CDS) teaching clinics. These students were randomly assigned, in their tutor groups, to act as either test or control groups. The test group was actively taught charting with the new aid over their first 5-week attachment and control students were taught in the traditional way. Final charting tests were completed at the end of the attachments by all students and their results compared with baseline test results. The test group improved their mean scores from 20 out of a possible 50 marks at baseline to 36 at final test, a mean increase of 15 marks and an improvement of 71%. The control group scored a mean of 18 marks at baseline and improved this to 25, an increase of 7 marks, an improvement of 39%. It is concluded that the new teaching aid is more effective in assisting the students to learn charting than the traditional method.

An investigation into the measurement of the working length of immature incisor teeth requiring endodontic treatment in children.

A study was undertaken to determine if a tactile technique, using absorbent paper points, could be used to estimate the working length of nonvital immature incisor teeth undergoing endodontic treatment. Two operators were involved in measuring 35 incisor teeth. The tactile technique was found to be valid and reliable. In 95% of the cases the estimated working length was within 1 mm of the radiographic diagnostic length. It is recommended that diagnostic radiographs are no longer necessary in the majority of cases involving endodontic treatment of incisor teeth requiring root end closure in children, for practitioners who are regularly carrying out endodontic treatment of immature incisor teeth. However, if a tooth has been on open drainage a diagnostic radiograph is still required.

Assessment of the risk of glove puncture during oral surgery procedures.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine the incidence of glove puncture during stages of oral surgery procedures. METHOD: One surgeon was requested to wear one type of sterile operating gloves during the treatment of patients who required an oral surgery procedure under outpatient local anesthesia. Each surgical procedure was divided into three modules, namely, (I) administration of the anesthesia and raising of mucoperiosteal flap, (II) bone removal and delivery of the tooth or root, and, (3) soft tissue repair. A total of 450 gloves worn during these modules were examined for punctures with a water inflation method and 200 unused gloves were tested as controls. RESULTS: The results were analyzed statistically with Fischer's exact test. A total of 12 punctures were recorded, indicating that a glove puncture occurred in 16% of the surgical procedures. Gloves from the left hand (the nonworking hand) in module III showed the highest incidence of punctures. One puncture was observed in the 200 gloves tested as controls. Statistical analysis indicated that glove puncture was significantly more likely to occur in gloves worn on the left (nonworking) hand overall as compared with gloves from the right hand (p = 0.02) and that glove puncture was significantly more likely to occur in gloves worn on the left hand in module III as compared with gloves from other modules (p = 0.01). Additional precautions may therefore be indicated during the soft tissue repair part of oral surgical procedures.

An assessment of the incidence of punctures in gloves when worn for routine operative procedures.

The value of glove wearing as part of dental surgery cross-infection control regimen is negated if gloves are punctured during use. An assessment of the procedures most likely to give rise to glove puncture is therefore of importance. Accordingly, 892 gloves worn by two dentists in general practice were examined for punctures, after being used in one of seven common operative procedures. It was found that gloves used for the treatment procedures investigated had a significantly higher proportion of punctures than unused gloves of the same type. Gloves used for surgical extraction showed the highest proportion punctured (16%). There was no significant difference in puncture frequency between the gloves worn on left or right hands irrespective of procedure.

Glove wearing by dental surgery assistants in general practice: results of a survey.

Cross-infection routines should be used by both the dentist and the dental surgery assistant (DSA), and the wearing of gloves during patient treatment is considered an integral part of such routines. Results are presented which indicate the extent to which DSAs wear gloves while assisting in patient care, and the factors influencing glove wearing are discussed.

Patient attitudes to the wearing of gloves by dentists.

Cross-infection control in dentistry is of continuing concern, and this survey provides some timely information on the attitudes of patients to the wearing of gloves by their dentists. A high proportion of the patients questioned felt glove wearing was important, although only half would not attend a dentist who did not wear gloves.