The PAAS study will evaluate the effectiveness of adjunctive antibiotics in the treatment of periodontal disease. Antibiotic stewardship calls for optimizing antibiotic prescribing to effectively treat infections, and to reduce antibiotic misuse to prevent the development of antibiotic-resistant microbial strains.
The National Dental Practice-Based Research Network, founded and hosted at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry, is now home to the nation’s first dental implant registry.
The results from this cross-sectional study were recently published in JADA, and we interviewed Dr. M. Marianne Jurasic, the study principal investigator, for our blog. Dr. Jurasic is the Director of the Center for Clinical Research as well as a Clinical Professor of General Dentistry and Health Policy and Health Services Research at the Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine. “Treating teeth with deep carious lesions with a more conservative approach such as selective caries removal has the potential to extend the longevity of the tooth and affect a patient’s oral health and quality of life. I therefore wanted to know to what extent this more conservative approach to caries management has been adopted by Network dentists.”
“Being a member of the network gives me a fresh outlook on dentistry. I believe it cuts down on burnout. To be involved in practice-based research network makes the daily practice more interesting to be involved in the studies. Plus, I think it provides so real life, real practice information that is helpful for the research that is being done. My patients always have a positive attitude about being participants. We have not had many people decline participation.”
Mental health screening can improve quality of life and treatment engagement. Unlike primary medical services, where screening for mental health concerns is standard practice, dental offices rarely perform this as part of routine dental care. The MSDP pilot study will evaluate the feasibility of integrating mental health screening and referral to mental health services into dental practice workflows. Five practitioners from the South-Central Region of the National Dental PBRN will be recruited to enroll between 5 and 8 patients in each dental office.
Oral health practitioners rarely treat tobacco use. The FreSH study tests a simple tobacco treatment approach called Nicotine Replacement Therapy Sampling. In this study, practices will provide a brief intervention for tobacco cessation recommended by the American Dental Hygienist’s Association called Ask-Advise-Refer (Ask all patients if they smoke, advise them to quit, and refer to the state quitline).
POPS is a longitudinal, prospective cohort study seeking to provide insight into post-operative dental pain experienced by patients after dental procedures.
If you are interested in participating, contact us!
