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Biomedical subjects

K J Drage

Publications and source records attributed to K J Drage.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1993

Consultant opinion on orthodontic treatment plans used by dental practitioners: a pilot study.

Prior to 1987, dental practitioners in England and Wales intending to carry out all but the simplest orthodontic treatment within the National Health Service, were required to submit pretreatment study models, details of the orthodontic assessment and the proposed treatment plan to the Dental Estimates Board prior to starting treatment. Models taken at the end of treatment were required by the Board to enable payment to be made. In this pilot study, the acceptability of orthodontic treatment plans used by practitioners working in the General Dental Services was assessed by eight hospital consultants, using information about 40 cases submitted to the Dental Estimates Board in 1987/88. All consultants considered a high proportion of plans to be unacceptable, but agreement between the consultants was variable and some agreed with one another on very few plans. A single scorer used the weighted PAR (Peer Assessment Rating) index to assess the degree of departure from normal occlusion of both pre- and post-treatment models. Using accepted standards, only nine cases were greatly improved (PAR reduction > 70%) and the mean percentage reduction in PAR score was low. Consultant opinion on the appropriateness of treatment planning was not related to the outcome of orthodontic treatment.

Clinical Competence↗
PubMed1991

Method errors recorded by inexperienced operators of the reflex microscope.

The Reflex Microscope has become a standard instrument for the precision measurement of orthodontic record models. In this study, 31 individuals with no previous experience of the microscope were assessed for their precision at identifying well defined landmarks. Considerable initial variation existed in the precision of landmark identification, but despite only a limited training period, some of the novices tested achieved a high standard of precision. Mean errors were greatest in the z axis, i.e. along the axis of the eye, and astigmatism was common amongst those recording the greatest errors in this axis. A group of individuals who performed poorly initially, were retested after additional training and practice with the microscope. Method errors were significantly reduced for the majority of those retested, but the test apparatus identified two individuals for whom further measurement with the microscope would be inadvisable.

Astigmatism↗
PubMed1990

Overjet relapse following functional appliance therapy.

This cephalometric study of individuals with Class II Division 1 malocclusion investigated changes occurring during and following treatment for 49 patients treated with either the Andresen activator or the Bionator (mean age initially 12.1 +/- 1.1 years). The treated cases were compared with an untreated group of 24 patients (mean age initially 11.8 +/- 0.5 years). Overjet reduction was found to occur mainly as a result of dento-alveolar change. Mean overjet relapse following treatment was small (0.8 mm), but individual variation was considerable (+5.2 to -3.7 mm). Changes in incisor inclination rather than antero-posterior skeletal change contributed to relapse. No evidence was found to suggest that vertical facial pattern or growth influenced relapse. Small, but significant correlations were found between the magnitude of overjet relapse and the reduction achieved during treatment (r = -0.42) and between the magnitude of upper incisor retroclination during treatment and proclination post-treatment (upper incisor to SN plane, r = -0.42). The only initial variable showing a significant correlation with overjet relapse was initial overjet and the value for this correlation was low (r = 0.31).

Activator Appliances↗