oral health

The optimal state of the mouth and normal functioning of the organs of the mouth without evidence of disease.

Our oral health Blogs

Power toothbrushes – Sonic or oscillating-rotating?

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This review of the efficacy of oscillating-rotating power toothbrush compared to high-frequency sonic power toothbrush includes 32 RCTs. The findings show moderate certainty evidence in favour of the oscillating-rotating however the clinical relevance may not be important.

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How to improve oral health in people with severe mental illness #MindYourSmile

Start tweeting your ideas to #MindYourSmile now!

Easter Joury summarises a recent systematic review on improving oral health in people with severe mental illness.

We are having a tweet chat at 8-9pm BST on Monday 11th July to discuss how best to support oral health in people with severe mental illness. You can join in by following the #MindYourSmile hashtag on Twitter.

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Psychological techniques for children with autism spectrum disorder

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This review of the effectiveness of behaviour management and modification strategies for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to overcome the anxiety and discomfort associated with receiving dental care includes 15 studies. The findings are inconclusive as the included studies had small sample sizes, several lacked control groups and the majority of studies were at high risk of bias.

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Antibiotics to prevent bacterial endocarditis following dental procedures

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This Cochrane review update of antibiotic prophylaxis before invasive dental procedures in people at risk or at high risk of bacterial endocarditis included one case-controlled study. Consequently, there is no clear evidence about whether antibiotic prophylaxis is effective or ineffective against bacterial endocarditis in at-risk people who are about to undergo an invasive dental procedure.

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Hypomineralised second primary molars and prenatal, perinatal and postnatal exposures

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This review of adverse health conditions in the prenatal, perinatal and postnatal periods and associations with hypomineralised second primary molars(HSPM) included 14 studies. The findings suggest associations between HSPM and a number of condition but findings should be interpreted cautiously.

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Traumatic dental injuries in primary teeth – prevalence of clinical and radiographic sequalae

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This review of the prevalence of clinical and radiographic sequelae following traumatic dental injuries to primary teeth included 25 cross-sectional studies. Crown discolouration followed by pulp necrosis with infection were the most common sequelae but the findings should be viewd with caution because the evidence is of very low certainty.

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Photodynamic therapy for denture stomatitis

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This review of comparing photodynamic therapy (PDT) and antifungals or the treatment of denture stomatitis included 5 studies involving a total of 218 patients. While the findings suggest that PDT is effective none of the the studies was at low risk of bias and the treatment protocols investigated differ.

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Social isolation and oral health

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In this blog Carly Ross takes a look at a review assessing the association between social isolation and oral health in adults. The findings suggested no strong association however, only 4 studies were included and these were of limited quality.

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Management of dental patients taking anticoagulants or antiplatelet drugs

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We take a look at the recently updated guidance on the Management of Dental Patients Taking Anticoagulants or Antiplatelet Drug from the Scottish Dental Clinical effectiveness programme (SDCEP).

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Chewing difficulty in older adults living in long-term care

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Carly Ross considers a review of the prevalence of chewing difficulty in older people in institutional long-term care. Only 10 cross-sectional studies were included in the review providing an estimated prevalence of chewing difficulties of 23% (95%CI; 1 to 53%) based on low certainty evidence.

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