A systematic review of the research evidence for the benefits of teledentistry.

Objective This review is designed to inform future decisions about the benefits of integrating teledentistry into routine health services, by presenting an overview of the evidence for the effectiveness and economic impact of teledentistry. Methods Two reviewers searched PubMed, EMBASE and CINAHL databases through November 2016 to identify published peer-reviewed studies in English. Teledentistry studies were included if they were; (a) controlled (randomised or non-randomised) assessment studies; and (b) compared outcomes of a teledentistry intervention in terms of clinical or economic evaluation with the outcomes of traditional clinical alternatives. The quality of the studies was evaluated using a quality appraisal tool that considered study performance and design. Results This review identified 385 publications, of which 217 full-text articles were retrieved for further inspection. Of these, only 11 articles met the inclusion criteria. Nine of the included articles showed some clinical outcomes; the other two were primarily economic analyses. The balance of these studies assesed the efficacy of teledentistry interventions rather than their effectiveness. Four studies (36%) achieved higher quality scores and have greater potential to influence health-care decision-making. To date, the most convincing published evidence regarding the efficacy of teledentistry was provided by studies on paediatric dentistry, orthodontics and oral medicine. The economic analysis referred only to cost-minimisation, suggesting that the use of teleconsultation in dentistry can be cost-saving when compared to a conventional consultation. However, high-quality economic studies on teledentistry are rare. Conclusion There is emerging evidence supporting the efficacy of teledentistry. However, there is not yet enough conclusive evidence, particularly for its effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and long-term use, to make evidence-based policy decisions on teledentistry.

Importancia del conocimiento del costo para el Estomatólogo General Integral / Importance of cost awareness for the Integral General Stomatologist

Se realizó un estudio descriptivo transversal con el propósito de conocer el nivel de conocimiento acerca del costo-beneficio, costo- efectividad, costo-utilidad de la especialidad de Estomatología, en residentes de dicha especialidad en la provincia Guantánamo, durante el primer trimestre del año 2017. El universo quedó constituido por 76 residentes, a los que se les aplicó una encuesta, con el objetivo de obtener un diagnóstico acerca del tema y trazar estrategias de trabajo para eliminar las deficiencias identificadas. Entre los resultados se encontró: mayor el número de residentes femeninas, en el grupo de 23-27 años se concentró el conocimiento superior sobre el tema. Las conclusiones indicaron que en la población estudiada existe desconocimiento acerca del costo y necesidad de capacitarlos(AU)

A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out due to the following problem: What is the knowledge about cost / benefit, cost / effectiveness, cost / utility, of residents of the specialty of General Intensive Stomatology (EGI) in Guantanamo province during the first quarter of 2017? The universe was constituted by 76 residents, who were surveyed, with the objective of obtaining a diagnosis on the subject and drawing up work strategies to eliminate, identified deficiencies. Among the results was found: greater the number of female residents, in the group of (23-27) concentrated the superior knowledge on the subject. The conclusions indicated that in the studied population, there is a lack of knowledge about the cost and the need to train them(AU)

Importancia del conocimiento del costo para el Estomatólogo General Integral / Importance of cost awareness for the Integral General Stomatologist

Se realizó un estudio descriptivo transversal con el propósito de conocer el nivel de conocimiento acerca del costo-beneficio, costo- efectividad, costo-utilidad de la especialidad de Estomatología, en residentes de dicha especialidad en la provincia Guantánamo, durante el primer trimestre del año 2017. El universo quedó constituido por 76 residentes, a los que se les aplicó una encuesta, con el objetivo de obtener un diagnóstico acerca del tema y trazar estrategias de trabajo para eliminar las deficiencias identificadas. Entre los resultados se encontró: mayor el número de residentes femeninas, en el grupo de 23-27 años se concentró el conocimiento superior sobre el tema. Las conclusiones indicaron que en la población estudiada existe desconocimiento acerca del costo y necesidad de capacitarlos(AU)

A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out due to the following problem: What is the knowledge about cost / benefit, cost /effectiveness, cost / utility, of residents of the specialty of General Intensive Stomatology (EGI) in Guantanamo province during the first quarter of 2017? The universe was constituted by 76 residents, who were surveyed, with the objective of obtaining a diagnosis on the subject and drawing up work strategies to eliminate, identified deficiencies. Among the results was found: greater the number of female residents, in the group of (23-27) concentrated the superior knowledge on the subject. The conclusions indicated that in the studied population, there is a lack of knowledge about the cost and the need to train them(AU)

Cost of illness of oral lichen planus in a U.K. population--a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the economic burden of oral lichen planus (OLP) from the perspective of the healthcare provider in a U.K. population. METHODS: This prevalence-based cost-of-illness analysis was carried out via a cross-sectional study conducted in the Oral Medicine Unit of the Eastman Dental Hospital. This study was conducted in three phases - phase 1 involved framing of the cost-of-illness analysis, development of the cost inventory and design of the patient questionnaire for ease of data collection. Data collected from patients were inputted during phase 2, and costings were determined. The final phase consisted of the calculation of the cost of illness of OLP. RESULTS: One hundred patients were enrolled in the study, 30 males and 70 females, with an average age of 59.9 years (±13.4 years). The average OLP patient, based on our cohort, attends the oral medicine unit 2.64 times per year, their general medical practitioner 1.13 times annually, their general dental practitioner 0.82 times in a year and fills on average 3.37 prescriptions annually. This leads to an average annual cost of £398.58 (€541.16) per patient per year from the perspective of the healthcare provider. CONCLUSION: The annual average cost of OLP to the healthcare provider in the U.K. is substantial. The prevalence-based cost-of-illness data generated in this study will facilitate comparison with other chronic oral mucosal diseases and with chronic diseases managed in allied medical specialties.

[The situation of stomatological basic research supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China in the past decade].

OBJECTIVE: To review the situation of stomatological research projects supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) and to analyze the status of stomatological research and obtained achievements in the past decade. METHODS: The internet-based science information system of NSFC together with Yearbook of Chinese Stomatology was served as the basis of data collection. All of the data were arranged and analyzed by Excel. RESULTS: A total of 866 projects and 234.4054 billion Yuan were supported by NSFC during the past decade, and they were increasing continuously. The average supportive strength of each single project was also enhanced. The percentage of projects supported by the NSFC for young scientists accounted for the biggest proportion. The approved projects of stomatology were covering an increasingly wide area of the subjects. The projects number of different areas kept growing, and further investigations were done in these projects. The areas number were from 10 increasing to 26. CONCLUSIONS: With the support of NSFC, great progress has been made in stomatology, and the interdisciplinary research between stomatology and other disciplines is more active.

[The support of National Natural Science Foundation of China prompts the progress and development of basic research of dental and craniofacial research: a 25 years review].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) on the progress of dental research from 1986 to 2010. METHODS: The data regarding the NSFC allocated to dental and craniofacial research from 1986 to 2010 were collected. Total expenses and numbers of the majority of programs and the situation of completed program finished in recent 7 years were provided. RESULTS: From 1986 to 2010, a total of 922 projects and 204 401 thousands Chinese Yuan supported by NSFC were allocated to dental research. The detailed allocations were as follows: general program (564), young scientists fund (258), regional fund (40), key program (11), national science fund for distinguished young scholars (5), major international (regional) joint research program (1), others (43). The grants of talent training increased dramatically. Taking the projects (307) completed between 2003 and 2009 for example, 307 papers were published in Science Citation Index (SCI) included journals and 1049 papers were published on Chinese journals. By the time of completion of the projects, 39 post-doctoral students, 590 students for PhD degree and 670 students for Master degree had been trained. CONCLUSIONS: Over the past 25 years, the continuous increase of NSF on dental research has led to substantial achievement, resulting in great progress of dental oral-cranio-facial research.

Access to oral health care for elders: mere words or action?

For many years, the health care community has used a silo approach to oral health, with little exception, treating the oral cavity as the sole province of the dentist, with no interaction with the medical profession. However, as research shows links between periodontal disease and diabetes, stroke, heart disease, and peripheral arterial disease, it seems clear that the silo approach to oral health should be replaced with a new paradigm-that of including dental care in comprehensive medical benefits. Retirees who have limited or no access to traditional employer-based dental benefits should be among the early beneficiaries of this paradigm shift. The federal government should consider social insurance mechanisms to ensure that retirees have access to oral health care.