European Journal of Dental Education最新文献

Introduction: The International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS) is a standardised method for recording caries severity. Effective training in ICDAS is essential for dental faculty and students. This pilot study aimed to compare the effectiveness of photographic images versus extracted teeth in ICDAS training and to assess whether restorative and nonrestorative dental faculty achieve similar accuracy in ICDAS coding.

Methods: Following comprehensive ICDAS training, dental faculty participated in a rotation through diagnostic stations, where they assigned ICDAS codes to tooth surfaces. The specimens consisted of either extracted adult teeth or their corresponding photographic images, each was preassigned a gold standard ICDAS code. Faculty members were categorised as belonging to either restorative or nonrestorative disciplines. After each rotation, individual performance was assessed by calculating linearly weighted Kappa (k_w) values comparing each participant's coding to the gold standard. Data were analysed using nonpaired, nonparametric, statistical methods. The study was completed over two end-of-training sessions, one of which included a repeat circuit of stations following a 1 h rest period.

Results: With k_w scores as measures of ability, dental faculty coded more accurately with extracted teeth carious surfaces than with photographic images (p = 0.0005). When grouped by specialities, there were nearly identical median k_w scores (p = 0.482), with extracted teeth suggesting that dental faculty of all types of speciality can use ICDAS effectively.

Conclusions: Extracted teeth appear to have value in training ICDAS as well as photographic images. Dental faculty of all types of specialities can use ICDAS effectively after similar amounts of training.

Clinical relevance: This study contributes to the refinement of training strategies for the ICDAS caries detection system, an important component of the dental curriculum and a system which is widely recognised as facilitating effective early reversal of dental caries lesions. Specifically, in this pilot study, the use of extracted teeth as teaching tools appeared to offer additional diagnostic value compared to photographic images, possibly by improving the correct identification of ICDAS codes for early lesions. Also, the study demonstrates that dentists from both restorative and nonrestorative disciplines should be able to successfully adopt, apply and teach ICDAS coding, thereby promoting interdisciplinary collaboration and fostering uniformity in caries management practices.

Aim: To assess whether the use of centring rings for intraoral radiographic imaging reduces the number of retakes or the frequency and size of cone cuts in intraoral images performed by dental students.

Material and methods: Seventy-three dental students were randomly allocated to either a test or control group before training intraoral imaging on a phantom. Both groups used phosphor plate holders for periapical imaging of anterior and posterior teeth and for bitewings. Additionally, the test group used dedicated centring rings mounted to the holder (Kerr, Hawe, USA). After phantom training, the students performed intraoral imaging in 127 patients. Before patient examination, the number of planned periapical images and bitewings was recorded. After patient examination, the percentage of retakes was calculated in addition to the frequency and size of cone cuts. Differences between the two groups were tested with the Mann-Whitney U test (percentage of retakes and size of cone cuts) and chi-squared test (frequency of cone cuts).

Results: The test group performed 920 intraoral images and the control 835. The percentage of bitewing retakes was significantly lower in the test group (p = 0.014), whereas there was no difference in periapical retakes (p = 0.37) between the groups. The frequency of cone cuts was significantly lower in the test group for both periapical images and bitewings (p < 0.001). The size of cone cuts was lower in the test group, although this was not significant (p > 0.20).

Conclusion: In general, it seems beneficial to use centring rings for dental students when learning to perform intraoral imaging since the percentage of retakes as well as the frequency and size of cone cuts were reduced.

Introduction: Empathy is an attribute that allows an intersubjective connection between dental students and their patients, which benefits both. Empathy can be affected by stress, depression and distress, which can have consequences for empathic capacity. One factor attributed to the ability to inhibit this negative influence is resilience.

Objective: To determine the predictive capacity of resilience on empathy.

Materials and methods: A total of 3893 dental students from five Latin American countries participated. Resilience and empathy scales were applied. Univariate descriptive measures were estimated for both scales. Full psychometric analysis was performed, including Confirmatory Factor Analysis, reliability, measurement invariance and Structural Equation Modelling to determine the predictive capacity of resilience on empathy and cut-off points for both attributes.

Results: The theoretical model was supported in both scales. Invariance was observed between groups (sex). Resilience was found to have predictive capacity for empathy. Ecological resilience positively predicted all three dimensions of empathy; likewise, engineering resilience negatively predicted the 'compassionate care' and 'walking in the patient's shoes' dimensions and adaptive resilience negatively predicted all three dimensions of empathy.

Conclusions: Resilience has predictive capacity for empathy.

Introduction: Although some studies have investigated the application of large language models (LLMs) in generating dental-related multiple-choice questions (MCQs), they have primarily focused on ChatGPT and Gemini. This study aims to evaluate and compare the performance of five of the LLMs in generating dental board-style questions.

Materials and methods: This prospective cross-sectional study evaluated five of the advanced LLMs as of August 2024, including ChatGPT-4o (OpenAI), Claude 3.5 Sonnet (Anthropic), Copilot Pro (Microsoft), Gemini 1.5 Pro (Google) and Mistral Large 2 (Mistral AI). The five most recent clinical guidelines published by The Journal of the American Dental Association were used to generate a total of 350 questions (70 questions per LLM). Each question was independently evaluated by two investigators based on five criteria: clarity, relevance, suitability, distractor and rationale, using a 10-point Likert scale.

Result: Inter-rater reliability was substantial (kappa score: 0.7-0.8). Median scores for clarity, relevance and rationale were above 9 across all five LLMs. Suitability and distractor had median scores ranging from 8 to 9. Within each LLM, clarity and relevance scored higher than other criteria (p < 0.05). No significant difference was observed between models regarding clarity, relevance and suitability (p > 0.05). Claude 3.5 Sonnet outperformed other models in providing rationales for answers (p < 0.01).

Conclusion: LLMs demonstrate strong capabilities in generating high-quality, clinically relevant dental board-style questions. Among them, Claude 3.5 Sonnet exhibited the best performance in providing rationales for answers.

Introduction: Mentoring oral health students as a faculty mentor potentially yields numerous benefits for the mentor's professional development, and very little is known about the role mentoring plays in the professional development of early career faculty. This program's aim was to explore the impact of mentoring oral health students on the professional development of seven early-career dental faculty members.

Materials and methods: Seven early-career faculty members were engaged as mentors to provide additional support to oral health students. Throughout the mentoring programme, each faculty mentor reflected on their experience and on completion met to discuss experiences. By exploring the reflective data, the common themes from the programme were identified.

Results: The faculty were unfamiliar with providing academic mentoring for students and learned to develop important personal qualities such as openness and patience. Faculty identified a sense of 'imposter syndrome' in their role as new faculty and experienced conflicting feelings: guilt associated with time pressures, lack of perceived usefulness, and pride and satisfaction from the rewarding experience.

Discussion: It appears that mentoring students can support faculty development, feasibly translating into improved teaching abilities and enhanced interpersonal competencies. Early-career faculty identified further opportunities for faculty development, focused mostly on student wellbeing and study strategies.

Conclusion: The mentoring program demonstrated that supporting early-career oral health faculty helped facilitate their transition from clinical practice to academia. By providing a structured environment for growth and reflective practice, the program significantly contributed to the mentors' professional development.

Background: Anxiety, pain and medical emergencies are crucial concepts in the dental field. Dental students need training, but little is known of their competence on these topics.

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the current state of Italian dental students' preparation for, attitudes to, and perceptions of medical emergency, anxiety and pain management.

Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on Italian dental students with the collaboration of the Italian Association of Dentistry Students. Students were sent a questionnaire, the contents of which were as follows: Part I (demographic information); Part II (22 questions: 12 on Knowledge, 8 on Attitude and 2 on Practice, relating to three domains: treatment of anxiety, pain and medical emergencies). The Knowledge section consisted of 12 multiple-choice questions, each with five answer options, only one of which was correct; a score of 1 was assigned for each correct answer and 0 for incorrect answers, resulting in a total score ranging from 0 to 12. The Attitude section included 8 questions, each with five possible answers scored from 0 to 4, for a total score range of 0 to 32. The Practice section comprised 2 questions with three response options, evaluated with scores from 0 to 1, yielding a total possible score between 0 and 2.

Results: From the 38 participating universities, a total of 232 eligible questionnaires were received with an average of 6.11 questionnaires per university site. Knowledge section: The mean score was 3.51 ± 1.79 points without geographical differences. For the anxiety domain, the mean total score was 0.54 ± 0.66 points. A geographical difference (p-value: 0.049) was observed between the North (0.41 ± 0.59) and the South of Italy (0.65 ± 0.67). For the pain domain, the mean result was 1.31 ± 0.98 points. For the medical emergency domain, the mean result was 1.65 ± 1.01 points. No geographical differences were found in the pain and emergency domains. Attitude section: The mean total score was 17.45 ± 3.68 without geographical differences. Practice section: 53.45% of students stated that they had never taken courses in anxiety management. Regarding emergencies, 25.43% had never attended BLS courses. No geographical differences were found.

Conclusion: There is a clear need to improve the effectiveness of university training to guarantee the skills to identify/prevent medical complications related to anxiety and pain in clinical practice.

Introduction: Surgical extraction of horizontally impacted mandibular third molars, particularly those requiring osteotomy, is highly sensitive to the surgeons' experience and poses challenges for residents to master. This study introduces the Cross-sectioning method developed through digital measurement and resistance analysis to minimise bone removal during extraction.

Materials and methods: A comparative study of 400 patients (200 per group) undergoing either Cross-sectioning or Traditional method was conducted. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT)-based digital measurements validated an odontosection depth of 9 mm through the distomarginal ridge at a 75° angle to the occlusal plane for the Cross-sectioning protocol. The Cross-sectioning protocol involved dividing the tooth into four segments (distolingual, mesiolingual, mesiobuccal, distobuccal) for sequential removal, whereas the Traditional method involved bifurcation with root extraction before crown.

Results: The Cross-sectioning group demonstrated significantly shorter operation times, reduced postoperative pain, and swelling compared to the traditional group (p < 0.01). Subgroup analysis (Pell and Gregory classification) revealed superior outcomes for Cross-sectioning: in Horizontal-IIA cases, shorter operation time (p < 0.01) and reduced swelling (p < 0.05); in Horizontal-IIB cases, superior outcomes in operation time and complications (p < 0.01); in Horizontal-IIC cases, shorter operation time (p < 0.05).

Discussion: The Cross-sectioning method effectively reduces bone and adjacent tooth resistance, offering a structured approach for resident training to enhance procedural efficiency and minimise complications.

Conclusion: The Cross-sectioning method represents a precise, clinically advantageous technique for impacted third molar extraction, emphasising targeted odontosection depth and improved postoperative outcomes.

Oral health professional curricula require continuous evolution to meet the needs of the population. The development of existing curricula to incorporate new topics is rarely considered in the dental education literature, and practical guidance will support educators in achieving changes locally. This paper aimed to present an evidence-based curriculum development model grounded in current dental and oral health professional education practices. To illustrate and validate this model, the integration of environmental sustainability (ES) into the curriculum will be used as a case study, offering practical insights into a real-world curriculum development process.