Is Dental Students' Clinical Productivity Associated with Their Personality Profile?

The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between personality preferences of incoming fourth-year dental students at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio as measured by the Keirsey Temperament Sorter II and their third-year clinical productivity and percentage of broken appointments. All 105 incoming fourth-year dental students in 2016 were invited to participate in the study, and 92 students completed the temperament questionnaire, for a response rate of 87.5%. Those students' clinical activity during their third year was measured by production points and percentage of broken appointments extracted from the electronic health record. The results showed that the majority of the respondents were extroverts rather than introverts and that the extroverts had significantly higher production points and significantly fewer broken appointments than the introverts. The most common personality preferences were sensing and judging. More than two-thirds of the respondents represented the Guardian temperament, one of four categories on the temperament measure. These findings help highlight the traits that may contribute to success in clinical training during dental school and support the notion that clinical success may be influenced by certain personality characteristics as well as the technical and specialized skills of dentistry.

Diagnosing, managing, and preventing cracked tooth syndrome.

Cracked tooth syndrome (CTS) can be a perplexing disorder to diagnose and manage. Many practitioners wonder whether the latest dental materials and adhesives can or should be used when restoring these teeth. The authors reviewed the literature and developed recommendations for how to diagnose and manage CTS and prevent it in susceptible teeth. As the population continues to age and people retain their teeth longer, it is anticipated that patients will present even more frequently with symptoms of CTS.

Fluoride release from newly marketed fluoride varnishes.

OBJECTIVE: New fluoride varnishes have been marketed that reportedly release more fluoride (Enamel Pro) or release fluoride more slowly (Vanish XT). The purpose of this study was to compare the amount and rate of fluoride release of new fluoride varnishes with other traditional fluoride varnishes. METHOD AND MATERIALS: Extracted molars were cut into block sections. The enamel surfaces of the sections were painted with Enamel Pro, Duraphat, Vanish, or Vanish XT fluoride varnishes. One group was not treated and served as a negative control. The tooth sections were immersed in artificial saliva. The concentration of fluoride in parts per million was measured after the first 30 minutes, daily for the first week, and weekly until the level was below the limit of detection. Fluoride release was plotted over time. Cumulative fluoride release and rate of release (slope) were analyzed using one-way ANOVA/Tukey (α = .05). RESULTS: Enamel Pro had the greatest cumulative fluoride release. There was no significant difference between Duraphat and Vanish. Vanish XT had the lowest cumulative fluoride release. The rate of fluoride release from 1 week to limit of detection was Enamel Pro > Vanish > Duraphat > Vanish XT. CONCLUSION: The two newly marketed fluoride varnishes (Enamel Pro and Vanish XT) had significantly different fluoride release from the two conventional fluoride varnishes (Duraphat and Vanish).

Degree of microleakage of a self-etch sealant.

The purpose of this study was to compare the microleakage of a new self-etch sealant (Enamel Loc), with and without acid etching, to a traditional sealant (UltraSeal XT Plus) with acid etching in occlusal fissures. The self-etch sealant had significantly more microleakage than the traditional sealant or the self-etch sealant with acid-etching of the enamel.

Maternal acculturation: could it impact oral health practices of mexican-american mothers and their children?

A mother's cultural beliefs can affect her infant's health, but the influence of acculturation of Mexican-American women on their young children's oral health is unknown. The authors hypothesized that maternal acculturation impacts very young children's oral health practices favoring, in particular, the mothers who are more Anglo-oriented. A convenience sample of 204 predominantly Mexican-American women attending the Women, Infants, and Children Clinic in San Antonio, Texas, completed the Knowledge, Attitudes, Beliefs, Social Support, and Self-Efficacy of Oral Health (KASE-OH) and Acculturation Questionnaires. Results indicated that mothers with strong Anglo orientation were more likely educated in the United States, first visited a dentist while in elementary school, and breast-fed their children. Children belonging to Anglo-oriented Mexican-American mothers had stronger oral health practices, were more likely to breast-feed, were exposed to more sugary and acidic drinks, consumed higher levels of candy, had Medicaid coverage, and had stronger supervisions of tooth brushing practices.

Comparison of in-office dental unit waterline test kits.

The authors conducted a study to determine the validity of two commercially available in-office dental unit waterline test kits compared to the gold standard, R2A agar. Samples were collected from the air/water syringes of dental units and cultured on HPC Samplers, Petrifilm AC Plates, and R2A agar plates. HPC Samplers and R2A agar plates were incubated for 7 days and counted manually using magnification. Petrifilm AC Plates were counted after incubation time of 5 and 7 days using an electronic-plate reader. Validity measurements were calculated using a cutoff value < or = 500 colony-forming units per milliliter. The accuracy for the HPC Sampler compared to R2A agar was 71%. The accuracy for the Petrifilm AC Plates at 5 and 7 days was 79% and 87% compared to R2A agar. The Petrifilm AC Plate (7-day incubation) demonstrated higher sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, and accuracy than the HPC Sampler kit.

Retrospective analysis of dental implants among United States Air Force basic military trainees.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of dental implants among the Air Force basic military trainees and to radiographically identify the type of dental implant systems. METHODS: All digital panoramic radiographic images acquired from Oct 1, 2006 through July 31, 2007 of newly recruited Air Force trainees were evaluated for evidence of dental implants. The following data were collected: total number of implants per radiograph, gender and age of subjects, implant location, type of implant retention method, and restorative implant status. The implants identified were categorized as Nobel Biocare/3i type or non-Nobel Biocare/3i type. RESULTS: A total of 47 radiographs were identified with 63 dental implants being detected out of 26,293 panoramic radiographs surveyed. Of the 63 identified dental implants, 34 were Nobel Biocare/3i type and 29 were non-Nobel Biocare/3i type. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of dental implants among Air Force basic military trainees was 0.24% with 54% of the implants being identified as Nobel Biocare/3i type.

Dental caries risk in the U.S. Air Force.

BACKGROUND: This study describes the dental caries risk in the active duty U.S. Air Force population from October 2000 through September 2004. METHODS: The authors used data collected from two Air Force databases (personnel and dental files) by cross-referencing Social Security numbers from both databases with date. RESULTS: During the study period, the percentages of people at high and moderate risk of developing caries decreased by 31 percent and 12 percent, respectively, while the percentage of people at low risk of developing caries increased by 9 percent. Among Air Force members who were enrolled continuously during the study period, the percentages at high and moderate risk of developing caries decreased by 57 percent and 18 percent, respectively, while the percentage at low risk of developing caries increased by 14 percent. The authors observed improvement in caries risk in 83 percent and 73 percent of the people at high and moderate caries risk, respectively, for those continuously enrolled. High caries risk was related inversely to age, rank, education and years in service. Also, tobacco users had an elevated risk of developing caries. CONCLUSIONS: The Air Force Dental Service has made great strides in improving the oral health of the Air Force population. The results of this study suggest that caries risk is decreasing in the Air Force population, but oral health disparities still exist and require further evaluation. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: This investigation suggests that a caries risk assessment can be conducted successfully, and caries risk can be reduced by using a comprehensive population-based prevention program. This caries risk assessment also can identify factors associated with dental caries disparities in a large-scale population.

Measuring the validity of two in-office water test kits.

BACKGROUND: The authors conducted a study to determine the validity of two commercially available in-office water test kits compared with a spread plate technique using the gold standard dehydrated culture medium R2A agar for monitoring the quality of dental treatment water. METHODS: Over a 12-week period, one author monitored nine dental units in a dental school that each were equipped with an independent water reservoir. The author collected 351 split samples, cultured them using three test methods, counted bacterial colonies manually and assessed validity using two cutoff values: < or = 200 colony-forming units per milliliter (CFU/mL) (an American Dental Association goal) and < or = 500 CFU/mL (a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] recommendation and a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] mandate). RESULTS: Of the 351 split samples processed, the in-office test kits' accuracy ranged from 25 to 69 percent, according to the ADA and CDC/EPA recommendations, compared with the R2A agar. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the in-office test kits underestimated bacteria levels, producing inaccurate measurements of bacterial levels compared with the R2A agar. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The data suggest that use of the two in-office test kits could result in a lack of compliance, owing to underestimating bacterial contamination with recognized recommendations for dental unit waterline quality.

Infection control practices in dental radiology.

The potential for cross-contamination in dental radiology is extremely high, especially when intraoral radiographs are exposed and processed. This report describes specific infection control practices that are recommended to decrease the potential for cross-contamination in dental radiology and reduce the likelihood of disease transmission.