Non-carious cervical lesions (NCCLs) are often encountered in clinical practice and their aetiology attributed to toothbrush abrasion, erosion and tooth flexure. This paper aims to determine the prevalence and severity of NCCLs in a sample of patients attending a university clinic in Trinidad and to investigate the relationship with medical and dental histories, oral hygiene practices, dietary habits and occlusion. Data were collected via a questionnaire and clinical examination. Odds ratios were used to determine the association of the presence of lesions and the factors examined. One hundred and fifty-six patients with a mean age of 40.6 years were examined of whom 62.2% had one or more NCCLs. Forty five per cent of the lesions were sensitive to compressed air. Younger age groups had a significantly lower correlation with the presence of NCCLs than older age groups. Other significant factors included patients who reported heartburn, gastric reflux, headaches, bruxism, sensitive teeth and swimming or had a history of broken restorations in the last year. There was also significant correlation of NCCLs in patients who brushed more than once a day or used a medium or hard toothbrush. Patients with vegetarian diets and those who reported consuming citrus fruits, soft drinks, alcohol, yoghurt and vitamin C drinks were associated with the presence of lesions. Significant associations were also found in patients with group function, faceting, clicking joints or those who wore occlusal splints.
In this group of students, video-clips were the preferred method of demonstration of tooth preparations in the preclinical environment. However, students perceived their learning to be facilitated more by one-to-one supervision. The students preferred to have the video-clips made available to them online instead of in the form of a DVD. The introduction of this educational aide did not make a difference in practical examination results.
This study shows that although the taper achieved by dental students in the University of the West Indies when preparing teeth for full-veneer crowns was outside the ideal range of 4° to 14°, it is comparable to those achieved by dental students in other schools.
Perceived Competency at Graduation Among Dental Alumni of the University of the West Indies Reisha N. Rafeek, M.Sc., F.D.S.R.C.S.; Shivaughn M. Marchan, M.Sc.; Rahul S. Naidu, M.Sc.; Peter V. Carrotte, M.D.S., M.Ed.Abstract: The aims of this study were to describe levels of self-rated competency of dental graduates from the University of the West Indies (UWI) and to investigate relationships with gender and the effect of curriculum change. A thirty-two item selfreported postal questionnaire was sent to UWI dental alumni (1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002). The questionnaire included twenty-eight competencies that could be rated on a 5-point scale: 1 (not at all competent) to 5 (very competent). Overall preparedness for practice could also be rated from 1 (not at all prepared) to 5 (very prepared). The response rate was 77.4 percent, with a mean age of 29.3 years. Items with the highest mean scores were taking an adequate medical history (4.49), recognizing and treating dental caries (4.46), oral examination (4.36), and giving dental health education (4.35). Those with the lowest rating were designing and undertaking clinical research (2.29), dealing with practice management issues (2.52), designing and delivering crown and bridge work (3.33), and recognizing pathologic occlusions (3.33). Overall preparedness for practice was rated as 3.27. Female graduates rated four competencies significantly higher than males. Graduates exposed to the new curriculum perceived greater overall preparedness for general dental practice, suggesting the change to a competency-based curriculum was effective.
The objective of this study was to evaluate radiographically the technical quality of root canal fillings performed by dental students at the School of Dentistry, University of the West Indies. The school's database between 2000 and 2004 was investigated for patients with completed root canal treatment. The final sample consisted of 198 patients with 288 root-filled teeth and 460 canals. The length, presence of voids, taper, curvature of canal and fractured instruments were recorded and scored. Chi-squared analysis was used to determine statistically significant differences between the technical quality of root fillings and tooth type. Sixty-three per cent, 27.6% and 72.2% of root-filled canals had adequate length, density and taper respectively. The overall acceptability of root fillings having adequate length and taper, absence of voids and no fractured instruments was found in 10.9% of canals. Changes in teaching methods may be required to improve the technical quality of root canal treatment done by dental students.
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