Dentistry

Ask a Specialist: When Should Primary Care Providers Refer Dental Injuries to the Emergency Department?
Ask a Specialist: When Should Primary Care Providers Refer Dental Injuries to the Emergency Department? 150 150 Ehsan N. Azadani, DDS, MS

An expert reveals the most common red flag dental injuries that should be referred to the ED and what precautions PCPs can take before sending the child.   The most time-sensitive dental injury is the avulsion of a permanent tooth; that is, when the permanent tooth is completely knocked out of its socket (and the…

Quality Improvement in Primary Care Improves Dental Utilization and Oral Health Outcomes in Children
Quality Improvement in Primary Care Improves Dental Utilization and Oral Health Outcomes in Children 1024 680 JoAnna Pendergrass, DVM
toddler brushing teeth

Quality improvement provides an effective, standardized approach to increasing pediatric dental utilization and improving oral health outcomes in primary care settings. According to a recent study by pediatric dentist David Danesh, DMD, MPH, MS, and his research team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, children receiving fluoride varnish at medical practices with an oral health quality improvement…

Pediatricians Offer Valuable Oral Health Services for the Very Young, Before and Throughout Pandemic
Pediatricians Offer Valuable Oral Health Services for the Very Young, Before and Throughout Pandemic 1024 680 Katie Brind'Amour, PhD, MS, CHES
toddler brushing teeth

Medical professionals see very young children much more frequently during the first several years of life than dentists, and many states’ Medicaid programs have seized the opportunity to reimburse pediatricians for preventive oral care, such as fluoride application and oral hygiene education. Despite reimbursement options and national guidelines recommending dental care begin by age 1,…

Immersive Virtual Reality-Based Training Improves Empathy Among Health Care Providers
Immersive Virtual Reality-Based Training Improves Empathy Among Health Care Providers 414 224 Lauren Dembeck

A novel VR-based training program helps providers develop knowledge, skills, and attitudes to understand how social determinants of health affect patients and how to mitigate their effects. Researchers recently reported their novel virtual reality (VR)-based empathy training program, Making Professionals Able THrough Immersion (MPATHI), improved knowledge, skills, and attitudes of health care providers for care…

Dentists Heeded FDA Warning on Codeine
Dentists Heeded FDA Warning on Codeine 1024 683 Mary Bates, PhD
open bottle of pills

An FDA black box warning directed at ENT doctors performing tonsil and adenoid surgeries also affected prescribing patterns by dentists. Codeine, an opioid analgesic, was popular in pediatrics because it was thought to be a safe alternative to morphine. However, in recent years, the drug has been found to have variability in therapeutic doses, with…