Biomedical subjects

P J van Wyk

Publications and source records attributed to P J van Wyk.

14 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Orthodontic status and treatment need of 12-year-old children in South Africa using the Dental Aesthetic Index.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and severity of malocclusion and orthodontic treatment needs in a sample of 12-year-old South African school children using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI), and to assess the relationship between malocclusion and certain socio-demographic variables. METHODOLOGY: The sample comprised 6142, 12-year-old children attending school in seven of the nine provinces of South Africa. For each subject the standard demographic information such as gender, population group, location type and employment status of the parents was collected, after which an intra-oral examination for occlusal status using the DAI was performed. Before the survey, the examiners were calibrated and trained and only examiners with an agreement score greater or equal to 80 per cent were included in the final study. RESULTS: The results showed that 47.7 per cent of the children in the sample presented with good occlusion or minor malocclusion, just over 52.3 per cent presented with identifiable malocclusion, a DAI score larger than 26. Of these, 21.2 per cent had definite malocclusion, 14.1 per cent had severe malocclusion and 16.9 per cent had very severe or handicapping malocclusion. Malocclusion as defined in this study was found to be significantly associated with the different population groups in South Africa, with gender and with dentition stage, but not with the location type or the employment status of parents. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show a high prevalence of malocclusion in 12-year-old South African children. The findings provide reliable base-line data regarding the prevalence, distribution and severity of malocclusion as well as useful epidemiological data on the orthodontic treatment needs of 12-year-old children in South Africa.

Child↗

PubMed2004

Caries status and treatment needs in South Africa: report of the 1999-2002 National Children's Oral Health Survey.

A third national children's oral health survey was conducted in South Africa between July 1999 and June 2002. OBJECTIVE AND METHODOLOGY: One of the objectives of the survey was to determine the prevalence and severity of dental caries and the treatment needs for dental caries in 4- to 5-, 6-, 12- and 15-year-old South African school children. The sample comprised 30876 children from the nine provinces of South Africa. RESULTS: The results of the survey show that 39.7 per cent of the 6-year-old group were caries free. This figure, 39.7 per cent, is below the goal of 50 per cent set by the Department of Health for 6-year-old children in South Africa for the year 2000. The DMFT of 1.1 for the 12-year-old group on the other hand was below the goal of 1.5 set for South Africa for the year 2000. The highest DMFT/dmft scores were recorded in the Western Cape Province and the lowest in the Limpopo Province. More than 80 per cent of caries in children go untreated while the greatest need for treatment in South African school children was for preventive services, restorations and extractions. The results for the 12-year-old-group show a reduction in dental caries severity in the permanent dentition in that the DMFT decreased from 2.5 in 1982 to 1.1 for the current survey. CONCLUSIONS: Although dental caries severity in South Africa is classified as low by WHO standards, the high levels of untreated caries in all age groups in South Africa is a cause for concern.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2001

Cost evaluation for the implementation of water fluoridation in Gauteng.

Regulations to implement water fluoridation in South Africa were promulgated in September 2000. Water providers are now compelled to fluoridate public water sources. In terms of Regulation 5(c) of the regulations, certain information regarding the cost of water fluoridation must be submitted to the Director General of Health. The purpose of this survey was to evaluate the cost of water fluoridation in Gauteng and to provide a model for similar calculations in other provinces. The following criteria were used to evaluate the cost of water fluoridation in Gauteng--per capita cost per year, cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) and cost-benefit analysis (CBA). The calculated cost per capita per year was R0.73 while CEA showed that R3.95 will be spent to save 1 DMFT. The cost-benefit ratio based on the scale of benefits cost of a 2 surface plastic restoration was 0.04. Evaluation of cost for the implementation of water fluoridation in Gauteng was extremely favourable and a model to estimate the per capita figure is provided.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗

PubMed1999

Reasons why South African qualified dentists are working in the UK.

Various reasons are provided why professional people are leaving or had left the country since 1990. A substantial number of these emigrants were dentists who went to practise their profession in the United Kingdom (UK). The purpose of this study was to determine, by way of a questionnaire, why some South African qualified dentists prefer to practise their profession in the UK. The results showed that the high level of crime and violence in South Africa is the most important reason why South African qualified dentists are leaving or have left the country. Economical considerations, either their own financial position or the general economy of the country also appear to be an important reason why South African qualified dentists are moving abroad.

Crime↗

PubMed1997

From SA to UK: a profile of South African qualified dentists registered with the General Dental Council.

During the past five years, the media were inundated with reports of professional people leaving the country. A number of the emigrants were dentists who went to the United Kingdom to practise their profession. The purpose of this study was to gather data on South African qualified dentists registered with the General Dental Council (GDC) in the United Kingdom and to provide baseline information on this group of health professionals. The results of the study showed a steady increase in the number of South African qualified dentists registered with the GDC in the period 1990 to 1995. Attrition of South African qualified dentists is, however, not entirely due to emigration to the United Kingdom.

Dentists↗

PubMed1997

Medical scheme expenditure on dental care--a smaller slice of the pie.

Medical schemes play an important part in financing dental care in the private sector and provide many dental practitioners with a substantial source of income. Data on medical scheme expenditure indicates a steady decline in their proportional pay-out for dental care during the period 1985 to 1994. In 1985 more than 12 per cent of total medical scheme expenditure was spent on dental care. In 1994 this had reduced to 8.37 per cent. In the present study, the historical trend (1985-1994) of medical scheme expenditure on dental care is analysed. By using the least squares method, the annual medical scheme expenditure on dental care is computed for the next eleven years (1995-2005). If the secular trend continues, less than 4 per cent of medical scheme expenditure will be paid for dental care by the year 2005.

Dental Care↗

PubMed1994

Geographical distribution of dental operators in South Africa over the period 1972-1992.

Using data available on dentists for 1972, 1982 and 1992 and on dental therapists for 1992 the geographical distribution of dental operators (dentists/dental therapists) in South Africa was determined and the dental operator to population ratios were calculated. Over a period of 20 years the number of dentists in South Africa has increased by 135,6 per cent while the total population of the area has increased by 59,8 per cent. The lowest operator to population ratio was 1:4517 found in the PWV region, and the highest ratio was 1:48730, recorded in the Northern Transvaal. The greatest decrease in dental operator to population ratios occurred in Natal and Transvaal. The study shows that there is an imbalance in the geographic distribution of dental operators favouring large urban areas.

Dentists↗

PubMed1989

[Semi-microanalytical method of fluoride determination in enamel biopsies].

When making use of potentiometric micro-analytical methods in fluoride determination, only a portion of the lantanium fluoride (LaF) crystal of the fluoride electrode is employed. Although there is no difference in sensitivity when using either the total surface or a part of the surface of the LaF crystal, there are advantages in using the total surface of the crystal. For the purpose of utilizing these advantages to a maximum, a semi-micro-analytical method of fluoride determination was developed. A perspex electrode container with a specimen capacity of 50 microliters was designed and constructed in order to bring the total surface of the LaF crystal into contact with the testing solution. Due to the inexpensive and simple design of the containers there are practically no restrictions on the number that could be employed. The solution obtained from a single enamel biopsy could be used for at least two or three analyses. The results obtained by employing the technique described, showed that the method is precise and accurate. The semi-microanalytical method offers an alternative to the micro-analytical method of fluoride determination in enamel biopsies.

Dental Enamel↗

PubMed1987