Biomedical subjects

Raman Bedi

Publications and source records attributed to Raman Bedi.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2002

Erosion, caries and rampant caries in preschool children in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of dental erosion in preschool children in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and to relate this to caries and rampant caries in the same children. METHODS: A sample of 987 children (2-5 years) was drawn from 17 kindergartens. Clinical examinations were carried out under standardised conditions by a trained and calibrated examiner (M.Al-M.). Measurement of erosion was confined to primary maxillary incisors and used a scoring system and criteria based on those used in the UK National Survey of Child Dental Health. Caries was diagnosed using BASCD criteria. Rampant caries was defined as caries affecting the smooth surfaces of two or more maxillary incisors. RESULTS: Of the 987 children, 309 (31%) had evidence of erosion. For 186 children this was confined to enamel but for 123 it involved dentine and/or pulp. Caries were diagnosed in 720 (73%) of the children and rampant caries in 336 (34%). The mean dmft for the 987 children was 4.80 (+/-4.87). Of the 384 children who had caries but not rampant caries, 141 (37%) had erosion, a significantly higher proportion than the 72 (27%) out of 267 who were clinically caries free (SND=2.61, P<0.01). Of the 336 with rampant caries, 96 (29%) also had evidence of erosion. CONCLUSIONS: The level of erosion was similar to that seen in children of an equivalent age in the UK. Caries was a risk factor for erosion in this group of children.

Age Factors↗

PubMed2002

Measuring the impact of oral health on life quality in two national surveys - functionalist versus hermeneutic approaches.

OBJECTIVES: This study compares a functionalist (quantitative) versus a hermeneutic (qualitative) approach to assessing the impact of oral health on life quality in two United Kingdom national surveys. METHODS: The vehicles for this study were two Office for National Statistics' Omnibus Surveys completed in 1998 and 1999. In both studies a random probability sample of 3000 household addresses was selected from the British Postcode Address File (PAF). The data were collected by face-to-face interviews with respondents in their homes about how their oral health status affected their quality of life employing a qualitative, hermeneutic approach (1998) and a functionalist, quantitative approach using a battery of questions (1999). RESULTS: Irrespective of study design, in both studies it was apparent that the majority of the public perceived their oral health as affecting their life quality (P > 0.05). Likewise, both approaches identified that oral health affected life quality most frequently through physical aspects of oral health rather than social or psychological. However, using the hermeneutic approach, respondents were less likely to cite that their oral health affected specific aspects of their oral health compared to when a battery of questions were used (P < 0.01). Furthermore, socio-demographic variations in oral health-related quality of life were more apparent when a battery of questions were employed compared to an open-ended approach. CONCLUSIONS: Different approaches to assessing oral health-related quality of life yield similar findings in terms of prevalence of oral health's impact and affected ways (domains). However, the different methods influenced the ability to identify socio-demographic disparities.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Influences of social support on the oral health of older people in Britain.

A national UK study involving a random sample of 876 non-institutionalized older people (aged 65 or older) were recruited, to identify the association between social support (living alone), self-reported oral health status and oral health behaviour (use of services). Home interviews were undertaken exploring oral health behaviour (time and reason for last dental visit) and oral health status measures (self-reported number of teeth possessed and denture status). In addition, socio-demographic characteristics were collected. Bivariate analysis identified that social support was associated with time since last dental visit (P < 0.01), reason for last dental visit (P < 0.01), self-reported number of teeth possessed (P < 0.01) and denture status (P < 0.01). In regression analysis, social support emerged as an important predictor of reason for last dental visit and denture status having accounted for other factors in the model (age, gender, social class and educational attainment). Social support is associated with oral health status and oral health behaviour of older people in Britain and is likely to influence both the decision making process of when to seek dental care and what type of treatment to opt for.

Aged↗

PubMed2002

Introducing problem-based learning to special needs dentistry--a case study.

INTRODUCTION: In order to promote training and education in special-needs dentistry an attempt was made to introduce problem-based learning (PBL) as a method of postgraduate dental education. The aim of this paper was to review the principles of PBL and report on a case study using this methodology. METHOD: The case study was of a PBL session, on the subject of 'problems of obtaining appropriate dental care for people with epilepsy', undertaken at a national conference. Delegates were asked to complete a pre- and post-session questionnaire on PBL and their attitudes to the session. RESULTS: The session received a mixed response. Only 33 (35%) thought the session was valuable and only 20 (31%) thought it was better than conventional teaching methods and yet over half (55%) said they would like to attend more PBL in special-needs dentistry. Professionals complementary to dentistry were more likely to find the PBL session of value and to prefer the method to a more conventional format than dentists were (chi-square = 5.5, df = 1, p < 0.05 and chi-square = 5.9, df = 1, p < 0.05 respectively). CONCLUSION: Valuable feedback was received from delegates. This will enable improvements to be made in future courses so that the effectiveness of PBL can be optimised.

Dental Care for Chronically Ill↗

PubMed2001

Agreement between normative and perceived orthodontic need amongst deprived multiethnic school children in London.

The Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN) has been used in dental epidemiology and to prioritize orthodontic treatment. The aim of this paper was to use the aesthetic component (AC) of the IOTN to measure agreement between normative and perceived orthodontic need amongst school children. Three hundred and seventy-eight children aged 11-14 years, enrolled in London UK state schools participated in this survey. The study focused on three ethnic groups: white, black and South Asian. Townsend deprivation scores suggested that the children were from areas of high socio-economic deprivation. Logistic regression analysis was carried out for agreement between normative and perceived need at each threshold value. Perceived need for braces, ethnic background, social class and hours of television viewing were significant variables. Black pupils were significantly less likely to concur on normative and perceived need scores, tending to perceive less need for treatment than did the dentist. Subjects from lower social classes were significantly more likely to concur on normative and perceived need scores. In conclusion, the study showed that using the IOTN AC at various points along the scale, different influences play a significant role in agreement/disagreement between normative and perceived needs, indicating that patient-clinician agreement regards orthodontic treatment is sensitive to several cultural factors.

Journal Article↗