CariesCare International adapted for the pandemic in children: Caries OUT multicentre single-group interventional study protocol

Preventive management of carious lesions: from non-invasive to micro-invasive operative interventions

Understanding that dental carious lesions occur as a result of the action of micro-organisms in the dental plaque biofilm, where demineralisation on the tooth surface is the first sign of the disease, such incipient lesions can be treated using preventive, non-operative and minimally invasive operative dentistry. If the caries process is left unmanaged, the lesions progress towards cavitation, leading to more invasive treatments. This article discusses the principles of preventive, non-invasive and micro-invasive treatments of early carious lesions, outlining the clinical situations where these therapies can be applied.

Impact of COVID-19 Dentistry-Related Literature: An Altmetric Study

INTRODUCTION

Scientific literature on COVID-19 has grown rapidly during the pandemic. The aim of this study was to provide a comprehensive overview of the popularity on the web of the available dental publications on COVID-19 and to examine associations amongst article characteristics, online mentions, and citations.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

An Altmetric Explorer search was conducted for COVID-19 articles published in dental journals using 3 keywords: COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, and pandemic. The following Altmetric data were collected: Altmetric attention score (AAS), mentions by news outlets, tweets, Mendeley readers, and Web of Science citations. Additionally, article title, type, topic, origin and open access status, journal title, quartile of impact factor (IF) distribution, and time lapse between COVID-19 pandemic onset and publication date were analysed.

RESULTS

In all, 253 articles published in 48 dental journals were eligible for the study. AAS was significantly influenced by article topic, type, origin, and journal IF quartile. There was a negligible correlation between AAS and Web of Science citations. Mendeley was the only Altmetric source highly correlated with citations.

CONCLUSIONS

There was substantial online interest in COVID-19 dentistry-related literature, as depicted by the AAS of the reviewed articles and social media metrics. Mendeley reader counts were highly correlated with citations, and they may therefore be valuable in research impact evaluation.

Caries and collaborations in context

Dental caries is the most prevalent non-communicable disease globally and affects all age groups across the life course. Caries (and the dental cavities it produces) create very significant personal, societal and economic burdens across the world, despite dental cavities being largely preventable. This is why so many individuals and groups are collaborating to do something to improve the world landscape of avoidable cavities. Over the past 20 years, a series of international partnerships have been developed in caries research, education and management, which have paved the way for a shift towards collaborative, inter-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder approaches to caries. This paper: 1) discusses the motivation for individuals and organisations to collaborate towards 'service to society'/'making a difference'/'making the world a better place'; 2) explains that collaboration to make an impact is undeniably complicated, but highly desirable; 3) suggests that successful collaborations typically need to be sustainable and long-term; 4) provides some examples from the caries world of the range and depth of collaborations making a difference; and 5) suggests that we now seem to be at multiple 'tipping points' to accelerate the progress of integration, intersectoral and interprofessional collaboration and of aligning caries control with the broader context of oral health and general health globally.

Despite a lack of incentives, individuals and organisations are often motivated to collaborate towards 'making the world a better place'. To be successful, such collaborations typically need to be long-term.

In the caries world, the Global Collaboratory for Caries Management, run from King's College London, has been designed as collaborative and structure-based on best evidence and consensus.

The Global Collaboratory for Caries Management also brings together two charities: the International Caries Detection and Assessment System Foundation, developing resources to aid dental practitioners, educators and teams; and the Alliance for a Cavity-Free Future, operating multiple international advocacy and policy initiatives.

From 'ICDAS' to 'CariesCare International': the 20-year journey building international consensus to take caries evidence into clinical practice

This paper charts the 20-year collaborative journey made by international teams of dental researchers, educators and practitioners. Following the initial development of the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) in 2002, the International Caries Classification and Management System (ICCMS) was collaboratively developed between 2010-2017 with several dental research and practice organisations, and influenced by best evidence judged via SIGN methodology, the UNEP Minamata Treaty (and linked phasing down of dental amalgam), three Dental Policy Labs and an international movement in operative dentistry to move towards minimally invasive dentistry. The FDI World Dental Federation publicised and advocated the ICCMS in 2019, when the 'CariesCare International' Consensus Guide and 4D caries management system was published to aid the delivery of ICCMS into practice. This system, which is designed to help practitioners deliver optimal caries care for patients, is now being adapted internationally for post-pandemic use in the 'Caries OUT' study. It is also being used as a vehicle for implementing the updated Delivering better oral health guidance on caries, as part of the minimum intervention oral healthcare delivery framework in the UK.

The International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) has synthesised and harmonised international evidence on caries detection and assessment in order to enable better integration/communication of knowledge across caries research, education, public health and clinical practice.

The International Caries Classification and Management System (ICCMS) has built on the ICDAS to provide an international consensus on comprehensive, risk-based, minimally invasive and preventively orientated caries management.

CariesCare International 4D Caries Management has again been built through international consensus on how best to deliver ICCMS in dental practice and is now being adapted internationally for post-pandemic use and for implementing the updated Delivering better oral health guidance on caries, as part of the minimum intervention oral healthcare delivery framework, in the UK.

Practical Applicability of Teledentistry in Pediatric Patients Amidst Pandemic : A Narrative Review

The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has imposed a situation where all healthcare facilities except emergency services remain suspended. These times generated the necessity for the implementation of a healthcare delivery system that can be accessed digitally and, thus, benefit the majority of children as well as healthcare professionals. This review aims to propose a sound model of less technique sensitive, safe and handy strategies for dental traumatic injuries, endodontic and restorative concerns, and orthodontic urgencies until complete clinical help can be sought. Five hundred thirty articles were obtained from the PubMed, Google Scholar, Embase, Lilacs, and Cochrane databases published from 2011 to 2021. Nineteen articles that described teledentistry in the COVID-19 era were included. Teledentistry can serve as a vital patient management strategy that can aid in triaging urgent and elective patient treatment needs, ultimately easing the burden of clinics and at the same time providing a safer means of consultation.