The role of home care therapy in periodontal disease treatment and management.

Home care therapy is indispensable to manage periodontal disease successfully. Often, during and following initial periodontal treatment, it is unclear how much of the clinical improvement was due to patients' home care or to professional intervention, as these two therapeutic components are often amalgamated in clinical practice as well as in studies. In this case series, four patients with periodontal disease received education on using oral hygiene devices and used them competently prior to initiation of professional periodontal treatment. The changes in their clinical presentations, solely attributed to their home care therapy, were documented. The rationale and suggested clinical guidelines are also presented. Conclusion: Home care therapy is an indispensable but often overlooked step in the successful management of periodontal diseases. Ideally, this step should be solidified prior to proceeding with any professional treatment. By motivating patients to participate in the treatment more actively, clinicians can significantly improve the outcome and longevity of their professional interventions.

Influence of dental college funding and time established on the satisfaction of dental graduates with their undergraduate experience in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: With the emergence of graduates from all government and private-funded dental colleges in Saudi Arabia (SA), it is pressing to explore the graduates' satisfaction with the dental undergraduate education and training they received. The aim of the present study was to investigate the graduates' satisfaction with their education and training according to college funding arrangements (government vs private-funded) and time since establishment (established- >15 years vs new-<15 years). METHODS: A piloted, electronic questionnaire was emailed to all the members of the Saudi Dental Society who had graduated from government and and private dental colleges in SA (2,185 registrants). RESULTS: The response rate was 36.4%, with 580 government-funded college graduates (72.9%) and 216 private college graduates (27.1%) having completed and returned the questionnaire. The distribution of participants between established and new colleges was 'established' 396 (49.8%) and 'new' 400 (50.2%). Levels of dissatisfaction were recorded for graduates from established and new, government-funded and private colleges. The levels of dissatisfaction were greater amongst the graduates of established and government-funded colleges. CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study indicate concerning levels of dissatisfaction with important aspects of dental education in SA. It is suggested that there is a pressing need for more integration of basic and clinical sciences and an emphasis on hands-on training. National coordination of arrangements for dental curricula could make a major contribution to addressing the problems identified.

A nationwide survey assessing the satisfaction of dental colleges graduates with their undergraduate experience in Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVE: To date, there are no publications on the Saudi graduates' perceived value of their dental curriculum. The aim of this nation-wide survey was to investigate graduates' satisfaction with specific disciplines of their dental education and training. The first part of this study addressed findings according to the respondents' gender and the number of years of postgraduate experience (Graduate-related factors). METHODS: An electronic questionnaire was emailed to registrants of the Saudi Dental Society, specifically dental interns, general dentists, and specialized dentists who graduated from private and governmental dental colleges in Saudi Arabia (n = 2185). RESULTS: The response rate was 36.4 %. The number of male respondents was (n = 352, 44.2 %), the remainder being female (n = 444, 55.8 %). The number of recent dentists (≤ 5 years since graduation) was (n = 428, 53.8 %) and experienced dentists (n = 368, 46.2 %). There were statistically significant gender variations in satisfaction levels, and among dentists with different post-graduation experiences. Although male and female dental students are taught similar curriculums and have similar graduation requirements, there were statistically significant differences in various subjects covered. Similarly, recent and experienced dentists reported statistically significant differences in satisfaction in various subjects. CONCLUSION: This study provides graduates' perspectives on the strengths and weaknesses of their dental education in Saudi Arabia. The findings help in curriculum reform and collaborations between the dental colleges nationally. Ultimately this can lead to formulating a national dental accreditation and assessment body. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The findings of this study provide graduates' perspective on the dental education received in Saudi Arabia. This will help stimulate discussion and collaboration within and amongst the colleges on improving their curriculum in this fast-paced, evolving field of dentistry.

Nonsurgical and surgical management of biologic complications around dental implants: peri-implant mucositis and peri-implantitis.

Biologic complications around dental implants may be categorized into peri-implant mucositis and peri-implantitis. Peri-implant mucositis is defined as reversible inflammation in the peri-implant mucosa without any apparent bone destruction. Peri-implantitis refers to inflammatory process that resulted in destruction of alveolar bone and attachment. Potential etiologic and contributing factors to both diseases are discussed in this review. By targeting and eliminating the etiologic factors nonsurgically as well as surgically, dental implants presenting with peri-implant diseases may be rescued, and then maintained with proper long-term peri-implant supportive therapy. Furthermore, clinical cases and their management are presented to demonstrate the available treatment options. Implant therapy should be carefully planned and executed with consideration of potential etiologic and contributing factors to developing biologic complications. During the initial consideration, patients should be informed of the potential biologic complications in dental implant therapy. Clinicians should monitor implants for any development or recurrence of peri-implant disease to ensure timely therapeutic intervention.

Nonsurgical periodontal therapy based on the principles of cause-related therapy: rationale and case series.

Cause-related therapy is key in the management and resolution of the two most common oral diseases: dental caries and periodontal disease. This is the first phase of treatment for those diseases. The aim is to remove, reduce, or eliminate the main causes of the disease. When referring to caries and periodontal disease, the primary etiology is bacterial plaque so the cause-related therapy phase should include plaque control as a major component. This can be achieved by constantly and continuously educating patients about the pathophysiology of the diseases and by helping them develop proper daily plaque removal techniques. Furthermore, various professional therapeutic interventions are delivered as necessary to eliminate or suppress other etiologic or risk factors. In this case series, the principles of proper cause-related therapy are demonstrated through three cases that were successfully managed by nonsurgical periodontal therapy. Biologic and clinical rationales are also discussed.