ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: To investigate Finnish dentists' smoking cessation related attitudes, consultation practices and familiarity with the local treatment guideline on smoking cessation. BASIC RESEARCH DESIGN: An online questionnaire was sent to 1740 dentists, which corresponds to 39% of dentists in Finland. A total of 456 dentists responded (response rate 26%), of whom 435 (95%) were clinicians. The dentists' smoking cessation practices were also compared to ones reported in a previous study in Finnish physicians. RESULTS: Dentists found smoking cessation important and often discussed and recommended quitting to the patients, but concrete withdrawal actions were seldom provided. The local treatment guideline on smoking cessation was actively utilized by 36% of the dentists. Adherence to the guideline was associated with higher rates of smoking cessation activities and success in them. Smoking cessation activity among dentists was significantly lower than in Finnish physicians. In accordance with the literature, among dentists, the most common barriers for smoking cessation were lack of time (44%) and education (42%). CONCLUSION: Although smoking cessation is discussed with patients, dentists are less active in taking concrete actions to support the patient on withdrawal. Adherence to the local treatment guideline was associated with better capabilities in dealing with tobacco withdrawal and a more active role in smoking cessation. The results suggest that more education on the local smoking cessation treatment guideline and cessation intervention is needed in order to overcome the remaining barriers to promoting effective smoking cessation in dental practice.
Subject(s)
Attitude of Health Personnel , Dentist-Patient Relations , Dentists , Practice Patterns, Dentists' , Professional Role , Smoking Cessation , Female , Finland , Humans , Male , Self ReportABSTRACT
Dental maturity was assessed in 131 children with cleft lip with or without cleft palate in two age groups from panoramic X-rays using the method of Demirjian. The subjects showed a mean delay of 6 months in the age group of 3-9 years (x = 6.4 years), which decreased to 2 months in the age group of 8-14 years (x = 11.0 years). Involvement of the palate made the delay longer than in children with cleft lip only. Geographical differences between parts of Finland were also found. To study tooth development longitudinally, the timing of the beginning of calcification of one maxillary central incisor was assessed from occlusal X-rays taken between the ages of 2 and 18 months in 107 of the above mentioned 131 subjects. Using rank-order correlations, the beginning of the calcification of the maxillary central incisor weakly predicted the subjects' tooth developmental status. The correlation of dental maturity between the ages of 6 and 11 years was, however, high.
Subject(s)
Cleft Lip/physiopathology , Cleft Palate/physiopathology , Tooth Calcification , Tooth Eruption , Adolescent , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Finland , Humans , Incisor/physiology , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Longitudinal Studies , Male , Maxillofacial DevelopmentSubject(s)
Cleft Lip/physiopathology , Cleft Palate/physiopathology , Odontogenesis , Age Factors , Anodontia/etiology , Child, Preschool , Fused Teeth/etiology , Humans , Infant , Infant, Newborn , Maternal Age , Time Factors , Tooth Eruption , Tooth, Deciduous/abnormalities , Tooth, Deciduous/physiopathology , Tooth, Supernumerary/etiologyABSTRACT
The timing of eruption for primary central incisors was studied in seventy-six children with oral clefts. The eruption timing was found to be very close to that of healthy children, and only weak correlations were found between prenatal factors and eruption times of first primary teeth.
Subject(s)
Cleft Lip , Cleft Palate , Incisor/physiology , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects , Tooth Eruption , Adolescent , Birth Weight , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Pregnancy , Time FactorsSubject(s)
Odontogenesis , Tooth/diagnostic imaging , Adolescent , Child , Child, Preschool , Humans , Male , Radiography, Panoramic , Tooth/physiologyABSTRACT
Formation of deciduous and permanent maxillary incisors and canines was studied in 361 children with cleft lip and palate. Altogether, 704 occlusal X rays of the children aged from 2 weeks to 41 months were assessed using a 13-stage scale. The early timing of tooth development was in both dentitions close to that reported for healthy children. However, developmental asymmetry was noted between contralateral teeth on the cleft and noncleft sides. In the unilateral cleft lip and palate group, every tenth cleft-side deciduous central incisor, deciduous canine, and permanent central incisor was delayed compared to the corresponding contralateral tooth. The formation timing was also compared within 11 prenatal and hereditary variables. Risk factors for delayed development were low placental weight, short gestation, mother's use of drugs during pregnancy, first in birth order, cleft with multiple additional malformations, and relatives having malformations other than oral clefts. However, the associations between a risk factor and tooth development were weak.