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Journal of Taibah University Medical... Apr 2024This research was aimed at assessing comprehension, attitudes, and perspectives regarding artificial intelligence (AI) in dentistry. The null hypothesis was a lack of... (Review)
Review
OBJECTIVES
This research was aimed at assessing comprehension, attitudes, and perspectives regarding artificial intelligence (AI) in dentistry. The null hypothesis was a lack of foundational understanding of AI in dentistry.
METHODS
This systematic review following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines was conducted in May 2023. The eligibility criteria included cross-sectional studies published in English until July 2023, focusing solely on dentists or dental students. Data on AI knowledge, use, and perceptions were extracted and assessed for bias risk with the Joanna Briggs Institute checklist.
RESULTS
Of 408 publications, 22 relevant articles were identified, and 13 studies were included in the review. The average basic AI knowledge score was 58.62 % among dental students and 71.75 % among dentists. More dental students (72.01 %) than dentists (62.60 %) believed in AI's potential for advancing dentistry.
CONCLUSIONS
Thorough AI instruction in dental schools and continuing education programs for practitioners are urgently needed to maximize AI's potential benefits in dentistry. An integrated PhD program could drive revolutionary discoveries and improve patient care globally. Embracing AI with informed understanding and training will position dental professionals at the forefront of technological advancements in the field.
PubMed: 38293587
DOI: 10.1016/j.jtumed.2023.12.010 -
Evidence-based Dentistry Dec 2022Introduction UK dentists experience high levels of stress, anxiety and burnout. Poor mental health can lead practitioners to exit the profession, contributing to... (Review)
Review
Introduction UK dentists experience high levels of stress, anxiety and burnout. Poor mental health can lead practitioners to exit the profession, contributing to workforce and service loss. Therefore, there is a need to focus on interventions to protect the mental health and wellbeing of dental teams. Three levels of intervention can be deployed in the workplace to support mental health and wellbeing: primary prevention, secondary prevention, and tertiary prevention.Aim The aim of this systematic review was to identify evidence on interventions used to prevent, improve or tackle mental health issues among dental team members and dental profession students in countries of very high development.Methods This systematic review was conducted according to a predefined protocol and reported according to PRISMA guidelines. The MEDLINE, Embase CINAHL, DOSS, Scopus, and PsycINFO databases were searched. Prospective empirical studies were considered for inclusion. The Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool (EPHPP) was used to assess the methodological quality of the included studies. The identified interventions were categorised according to level of prevention.Results The search yielded 12,919 results. Eight studies met the inclusion criteria. All of the studies concerned dentists or dental students. There were no studies for other groups of dental professionals. No primary prevention-level studies were identified. Secondary prevention-level studies (n = 4) included various psychoeducational interventions aiming to raise awareness and improve coping skills and led to significant improvements in stress levels and burnout of dentists and dental students. Tertiary prevention-level studies (n = 4) mainly employed counselling which was shown to be beneficial for dentists and students experiencing psychological ill-health.Conclusions Mental wellbeing awareness should be put at the centre of dental education and the workplace. Leadership and innovation are required to design primary-level interventions which can be implemented in the UK dental sector, with its distinct organisational and service characteristics.
PubMed: 36477677
DOI: 10.1038/s41432-022-0831-0 -
Clinical Oral Investigations Feb 2022We present this systematic review and meta-analyses to evaluate current evidence on the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in patients with oral lichen planus... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis
OBJECTIVES
We present this systematic review and meta-analyses to evaluate current evidence on the prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress in patients with oral lichen planus and their magnitude of association.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycInfo, and Google Scholar for studies published before January 2021. We evaluated the quality of studies using a specific method for systematic reviews addressing prevalence questions, designed by the Joanna Briggs Institute. We carried out meta-analyses and performed heterogeneity, subgroups, meta-regression, and small-study effects analyses.
RESULTS
Fifty-one studies (which recruited 6,815 patients) met the inclusion criteria. Our results reveal a high prevalence of depression (31.19%), anxiety (54.76%), and stress (41.10%) in oral lichen planus. Furthermore, OLP patients presented a significantly higher relative frequency than control group without OLP for depression (OR = 6.15, 95% CI = 2.73-13.89, p < 0.001), anxiety (OR = 3.51, 95% CI = 2.10-5.85, p < 0.001), and stress (OR = 3.64, 95% CI = 1.48-8.94, p = 0.005), showing large effect sizes. Subgroups meta-analyses showed the relevance of the participation of psychologists and psychiatrists in the diagnosis of depression, anxiety, and stress in patients with OLP. Multivariable meta-regression analysis showed the importance of the comorbidity of depression-anxiety in patients with OLP.
CONCLUSIONS
Our systematic review and meta-analysis show that patients with OLP suffer a higher prevalence of depression, anxiety, and stress, being more frequent than in general population. Clinical relevance In the dental clinic, especially dentists should be aware of depression, anxiety, and stress in OLP patients to achieve a correct referral.
Topics: Anxiety; Depression; Humans; Lichen Planus, Oral; Prevalence
PubMed: 34460001
DOI: 10.1007/s00784-021-04114-0 -
Dental and Medical Problems 2022Bullying is a social problem that affects children and adolescents in particular. It deteriorates the selfesteem of its victims, decreases their quality of life and... (Review)
Review
Bullying is a social problem that affects children and adolescents in particular. It deteriorates the selfesteem of its victims, decreases their quality of life and generates future psychological problems. The aim of this review was to determine the influence of dentofacial characteristics on the appearance of selfreported bullying through a literature review. A systematic search was carried out in the databases of international scientific literature on health sciences, including MEDLINE via PubMed, Scopus, LILACS, and SciELO. Up to October 10, 2020, a total of 348 articles were identified, but only 36 were ultimately selected for the review. Specific keywords in English were used in the search: "dentofacial features"; "soft tissue"; and "malocclusion". It was found that the appearance of bullying was associated with altered facial profiles, namely the presence of different classes of malocclusion, with class II or class III malocclusion being the most impactful. Altered dentofacial characteristics can make an individual the target of harassment, leading to low quality of life, emotional instability, low self-esteem, and the lack of confidence with regard to dentofacial appearance as well as poor long-term social and academic performance. There is a need to develop preventive measures that would be applied by both parents and authorities, with disseminating information on bullying in schools as well as on adequate oral hygiene and the importance of going to the dentist. Traditional and cybernetic bullying share similarities. While working out strategies against bullying, it is essential to raise awareness among victims and bullies, families, and society, and to determine how bullying is perceived by children and teenagers.
Topics: Adolescent; Child; Humans; Bullying; Malocclusion; Quality of Life; Schools; Self Report
PubMed: 36421048
DOI: 10.17219/dmp/138636 -
Journal of Clinical Medicine Jan 2024The period of pregnancy is characterized by a multitude of diverse changes that exert a notable impact on the oral cavity of women. During this gestational phase,... (Review)
Review
The period of pregnancy is characterized by a multitude of diverse changes that exert a notable impact on the oral cavity of women. During this gestational phase, patients necessitate tailored oral care and specific recommendations to preempt and address potential oral diseases. This systematic review aimed to perform a detailed analysis of the research studies that focused on the oral manifestations observed in pregnant women. A meticulous search was conducted in the databases Medline, Scopus, and Scielo by employing the following search terms: ((pregnant OR pregnancy)) AND (("oral manifestation*") OR ("oral health")). Articles that were published between 2013 and 2023 and written in English or Spanish and studies that scrutinized oral manifestations in pregnant women and included a diagnosis conducted by a qualified dentist were selected; we excluded articles published before 2013, articles that could not be accessed in full text, studies whose patients were not pregnant women at the time of the study, studies where patients were selected because they had a specific disease, studies where the clinical examination was not performed by a dentist, and articles written in languages other than English or Spanish. Subsequently, the risk of bias in the chosen articles was assessed in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) scale. A total of 20 studies were included in the analysis, following the exclusion and inclusion criteria. These studies were categorized as cross-sectional, cohort, longitudinal, or case-control. Various oral manifestations in pregnant women were examined, with five studies comparing these manifestations with those observed in nonpregnant women. The most prevalent oral manifestations associated with pregnancy encompass dental caries, periodontitis, gingivitis, pyogenic granuloma, and candidiasis. Nonetheless, less common lesions may also emerge during the course of pregnancy.
PubMed: 38337401
DOI: 10.3390/jcm13030707 -
Primary Dental Journal Jun 2022There has been much research relating to stressors in the dental environment and concerns over dentists' health and wellbeing. The determinants of dentists' health and...
BACKGROUND
There has been much research relating to stressors in the dental environment and concerns over dentists' health and wellbeing. The determinants of dentists' health and wellbeing within the UK include factors, such as healthcare systems and regulation; factors, such as job specification and workplace characteristics; and factors, such as personal aspects, professional career level, and personal and professional relationships. Given the challenges in dentistry, research is needed to investigate the key determinants relating to the health and wellbeing of clinical dental care professionals (DCPs) nationally.
AIM
To review the literature on the key determinants of health and wellbeing among dental hygienists, dental therapists, clinical dental technicians, and orthodontic therapists in the UK.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A systematic review of the literature was conducted across seven databases. The records were screened by title, abstract and full text based on the study inclusion criteria. Extraction of data and a qualitative synthesis of the included studies was performed. A mixed methods appraisal tool was used to quality assess for risk of bias.
RESULTS
Twelve studies were included in this review, eleven of which were medium to high quality (5*, 4*) and one low quality (2*). Ten studies focused on dental therapists, and/or hygienists, with only one each on orthodontic therapists and clinical dental technicians. Job satisfaction and professional careers were the primary factors explored in the included studies and clearly identified as determinants of health and wellbeing. However, there was evidence of these being associated and linked with a range of determinants at macro-, meso-, and micro-levels, with a general lack of evidence on the overall health and wellbeing.
CONCLUSION
There is currently very limited evidence on the key determinants of health and wellbeing of clinical DCPs within the UK, but the available evidence maps to the same domains as dentists. Further well conducted research examining the overall health and wellbeing is required, with consideration of the full matrix of possible factors.
Topics: Dental Care; Humans; Job Satisfaction; Workplace
PubMed: 35658664
DOI: 10.1177/20501684221101663 -
Dental Research Journal 2021Since the symptoms of child abuse and neglect often manifest in the orofacial region, the dental team has a key role in identifying children subjected to abuse. This... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
Since the symptoms of child abuse and neglect often manifest in the orofacial region, the dental team has a key role in identifying children subjected to abuse. This study was aimed to explore the prevalence of failure to take history as a barrier to reporting child abuse by dentist around the world.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
In this systematic review and meta-analysis, PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Google Scholar, ProQuest, Cochrane, and ISI databases were searched for the cross-sectional articles in English languages on barriers to reporting child abuse and lack of knowledge about referral procedures by dentists since 1985 using Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). The full-texts of all included articles were obtained and assessed for quality according to Newcastle-Ottawa Scale adapted for cross-sectional studies. The qualified articles were then studied thoroughly and results were extracted. Data were analyzed by Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software using meta-analysis and random effects model. Heterogeneity was determined by Q-test and I-square index.
RESULTS
A total of 17 articles were included in the meta-analysis. The prevalence of lack of knowledge about referral procedures as a barrier was determined according to the meta-analysis of the number of relevant articles and was (55%, confidence interval: 0.48, 0.62).
CONCLUSION
The analysis of various studies revealed lack of information about referral procedures as an important barrier to report child abuse by dentists.
PubMed: 34429861
DOI: No ID Found -
Journal of Clinical Medicine Nov 2020Dental caries is the most prevalent dental disease worldwide, and neural networks and artificial intelligence are increasingly being used in the field of dentistry. This... (Review)
Review
Dental caries is the most prevalent dental disease worldwide, and neural networks and artificial intelligence are increasingly being used in the field of dentistry. This systematic review aims to identify the state of the art of neural networks in caries detection and diagnosis. A search was conducted in PubMed, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Xplore, and ScienceDirect. Data extraction was performed independently by two reviewers. The quality of the selected studies was assessed using the Cochrane Handbook tool. Thirteen studies were included. Most of the included studies employed periapical, near-infrared light transillumination, and bitewing radiography. The image databases ranged from 87 to 3000 images, with a mean of 669 images. Seven of the included studies labeled the dental caries in each image by experienced dentists. Not all of the studies detailed how caries was defined, and not all detailed the type of carious lesion detected. Each study included in this review used a different neural network and different outcome metrics. All this variability complicates the conclusions that can be made about the reliability or not of a neural network to detect and diagnose caries. A comparison between neural network and dentist results is also necessary.
PubMed: 33172056
DOI: 10.3390/jcm9113579 -
The Cochrane Database of Systematic... Jul 2022In school dental screening, a dental health professional visually inspects children's oral cavities in a school setting and provides information for parents on their... (Meta-Analysis)
Meta-Analysis Review
BACKGROUND
In school dental screening, a dental health professional visually inspects children's oral cavities in a school setting and provides information for parents on their child's current oral health status and treatment needs. Screening at school aims to identify potential problems before symptomatic disease presentation, hence prompting preventive and therapeutic oral health care for the children. This review evaluates the effectiveness of school dental screening for improving oral health status. It is the second update of a review originally published in December 2017 and first updated in August 2019.
OBJECTIVES
To assess the effectiveness of school dental screening programmes on overall oral health status and use of dental services.
SEARCH METHODS
An information specialist searched four bibliographic databases up to 15 October 2021 and used additional search methods to identify published, unpublished and ongoing studies.
SELECTION CRITERIA
We included randomised controlled trials (RCTs; cluster- or individually randomised) that evaluated school dental screening compared with no intervention, or that compared two different types of screening.
DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
We used standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane.
MAIN RESULTS
The previous version of this review included seven RCTs, and our updated search identified one additional trial. Therefore, this update included eight trials (six cluster-RCTs) with 21,290 children aged 4 to 15 years. Four trials were conducted in the UK, two in India, one in the USA and one in Saudi Arabia. We rated two trials at low risk of bias, three at high risk of bias and three at unclear risk of bias. No trials had long-term follow-up to ascertain the lasting effects of school dental screening. The trials assessed outcomes at 3 to 11 months of follow-up. No trials reported the proportion of children with treated or untreated oral diseases other than caries. Neither did they report on cost-effectiveness or adverse events. Four trials evaluated traditional screening versus no screening. We performed a meta-analysis for the outcome 'dental attendance' and found an inconclusive result with high heterogeneity. The heterogeneity was partly due to study design (three cluster-RCTs and one individually randomised trial). Due to this inconsistency, and unclear risk of bias, we downgraded the evidence to very low certainty, and we are unable to draw conclusions about this comparison. Two cluster-RCTs (both four-arm trials) evaluated criteria-based screening versus no screening, suggesting a possible small benefit (pooled risk ratio (RR) 1.07, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.99 to 1.16; low-certainty evidence). There was no evidence of a difference when comparing criteria-based screening to traditional screening (RR 1.01, 95% CI 0.94 to 1.08; very low-certainty evidence). One trial compared a specific (personalised) referral letter to a non-specific letter. Results favoured the specific referral letter for increasing attendance at general dentist services (RR 1.39, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.77; very low-certainty evidence) and attendance at specialist orthodontist services (RR 1.90, 95% CI 1.18 to 3.06; very low-certainty evidence). One trial compared screening supplemented with motivation to screening alone. Dental attendance was more likely after screening supplemented with motivation (RR 3.08, 95% CI 2.57 to 3.71; very low-certainty evidence). One trial compared referral to a specific dental treatment facility with advice to attend a dentist. There was no evidence of a difference in dental attendance between these two referrals (RR 0.91, 95% CI 0.34 to 2.47; very low-certainty evidence). Only one trial reported the proportion of children with treated dental caries. This trial evaluated a post-screening referral letter based on the common-sense model of self-regulation (a theoretical framework that explains how people understand and respond to threats to their health), with or without a dental information guide, compared to a standard referral letter. The findings were inconclusive. Due to high risk of bias, indirectness and imprecision, we assessed the evidence as very low certainty.
AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
The evidence is insufficient to draw conclusions about whether there is a role for school dental screening in improving dental attendance. We are uncertain whether traditional screening is better than no screening (very low-certainty evidence). Criteria-based screening may improve dental attendance when compared to no screening (low-certainty evidence). However, when compared to traditional screening, there is no evidence of a difference in dental attendance (very low-certainty evidence). For children requiring treatment, personalised or specific referral letters may improve dental attendance when compared to non-specific referral letters (very low-certainty evidence). Screening supplemented with motivation (oral health education and offer of free treatment) may improve dental attendance in comparison to screening alone (very low-certainty evidence). We are uncertain whether a referral letter based on the 'common-sense model of self-regulation' is better than a standard referral letter (very low-certainty evidence) or whether specific referral to a dental treatment facility is better than a generic advice letter to visit the dentist (very low-certainty evidence). The trials included in this review evaluated effects of school dental screening in the short term. None of them evaluated its effectiveness for improving oral health or addressed possible adverse effects or costs.
Topics: Child; Dental Caries; Health Education, Dental; Humans; Oral Health; Parents; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Schools
PubMed: 35894680
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD012595.pub4 -
Dentistry Journal Dec 2019In recent scientific literature, oral infections and systemic manifestations, or correlations between oral health and systemic diseases are a topic of discussion. is... (Review)
Review
In recent scientific literature, oral infections and systemic manifestations, or correlations between oral health and systemic diseases are a topic of discussion. is one of the bacteria implicated in the biofilm formation of bacterial plaque, and plays an important role in the progression of periodontal disease. In this systematic review authors have evaluated the literature of the last 10 years on and all the systemic implications proven. This study therefore evaluates all the districts of the organism in which this bacterium may have implications. From the results it emerges that has implications in the onset of different systemic pathologies, including rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular pathologies, and neurodegenerative pathologies. Surely, understanding the mechanisms of diffusion of this bacterium, it would be possible to prevent a series of pathologies. Thus, putting the dentist clinician at the center of prevention for these diseases.
PubMed: 31835888
DOI: 10.3390/dj7040114