THE GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE PAGE

D

Student Activity

Graduates

The CAPD/ACDP recognizes that the future national voice of pediatric dentistry in Canada lies within its graduate student population. Whether students are participating in a program within Canada or in the United States, there is one common thread amongst them all - they are linked together and with their active CAPD/ACDP member colleagues through the CAPD/ACDP website.

Students are welcome to submit announcements and/or news that they wish to share on the website about their activities relating to student affairs, meetings or scientific research by contacting the site administrator.

Undergraduates

CAPD/ACPD also recognizes the importance of our undergraduate students in Dentistry who have taken an active interest in Paediatric Dentistry. CAPD/ACPD, through the establishment of the Norm Levine Undergraduate Student scholarship, continues to encourage and support the development of these young learners.

This scholarship is available for each of the dental schools in Canada.

Abstract Submission

There are set guidelines that graduate students need to follow in order to attend and/or submit abstracts for the 3M ESPE Graduate Student Research presentations. The following PDF file contains the information necessary for students' participation:

 

2023 Instructions for Submission of Scientific Abstracts

Please note that the 2023 deadline for submission of Abstracts is July 6, 2023

Research Presentations 

The annual 3M Oral Care Graduate Student Research Presentations and Awards are a result of the partnership formed between 3M Oral Care and CAPD/ACDP. The money 3M Oral Care generously donated goes to Canadian graduate students in pediatric dentistry who present their research topics at the CAPD/ACDP Annual General Meeting.

Each year, 5 Graduate students will be invited to the Annual Conference to present their research. Invited students are eligible for the 3M Oral Care CAPD/ACDP Graduate Student Award of $1000 which is awarded to the best presenter as determined by a panel of judges. 3M Oral Care also awards a sample of their product line to all graduate student presenters.

In addition to qualifying for the 3M Oral Care Award, CAPD/ACDP will provide each presenter with Complimentary registration for the Conference Scientific Sessions.

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CAPD/ACDP Congratulates the winner of the 2022 3M Presentations

Dr. Alexandra Rabalski

The 2023 Presenters and Topics 

Dr. Kevin Amaniampong,  University of British Columbia

A Comparison of Virtual Health and In-Person Consultation for Full Mouth Rehabilitation in BC Children’s Hospital

Authors and affiliations –

Kevin O. Amaniampong1,2, Jennifer C. Park1,2 and Joy M. Richman1,2 Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia1 , British Columbia Children’s Hospital2,

Vancouver, Canada

Objectives

The Covid-19 pandemic resulted in a drastic change in dental care across the globe, particularly in the area of virtual consultations or teledentistry. Our primary objective was to determine if differences exist between the estimated and actual numbers of teeth requiring treatment and the time required under general anesthesia for treatment in virtual and in-person dental consultations. Secondarily, we assessed the distance from the primary residence to BC Children’s Hospital (BCCH) for families who used virtual consults and in-person consultations.

Methods:

A retrospective chart review was conducted on patients aged 1.3 -18.7 years who underwent fullmouth dental rehabilitation under general anesthesia at BCCH. Charts were gathered for July 2020, November 2020, March 2021, and June 2021. Data were collected for both types of consultations and included patient demographics, estimated treatment information (predicted treatment time, number of teeth planned for treatment), presence of caregiver-obtained pretreatment photographs, and actual treatment outcomes. The average percent difference was calculated by determining the difference between predicted and actual values and expressing this difference as a percentage of the predicted value. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s post hoc testing and unpaired T-tests were performed using Prism V10.0. Human ethics # H21-02433.

Results:

A total of 321 patients [Mean Age = 76.277± 49.4 months] were included. There were 183 (57%) in-person and 138 (43%) virtual consultations. Out of the virtual consultations, 97 (70%) included pretreatment photographs, while 41 (30%) did not include pretreatment photographs. The average difference in the predicted versus the actual time needed for treatment was significantly higher in virtual consultations without pretreatment photographs (31.2%) compared to both in-person consultations (22.3%, p-value = 0.007) and virtual consultations with pretreatment photographs (21.9%, p = 0.01; Figure 1). No significant differences were found in the percentage difference in teeth treated between the conditions. Significant differences (p = 0.003) were observed between the average distance traveled to the hospital between all virtual (138km) and in-person (60.8km) patient consultations. 

Conclusions:

Our findings suggest that virtual dental consultations can be effective for planning dental treatment under general anesthesia, especially for families who live farther away. Our study highlights the importance of photographs in treatment planning for VH patients. Our study may lead to the more widespread adoption of virtual consultations for a variety of dental treatments.

Dr. Mayhay Ho, University of British Columbia

Primary Caregiver Satisfaction with Virtual Health versus In-Person Consultations for Full Mouth Rehabilitation in Children

Mayhay Ho, Jennifer C. Park and Joy M. Richman

Faculty of Dentistry, University of British Columbia and British Columbia Children’s Hospital, Vancouver, Canada

Objectives:

The COVID-19 pandemic imposed clinic closures at the B.C. Children’s Hospital (BCCH) and greatly reduced capacity due to public health guidelines. The Dental Department implemented virtual health (VH) consultations for children who were referred for full mouth dental rehabilitation under general anaesthesia (GA). The objectives of this study are:

1. To determine the satisfaction and perception of primary caregivers with VH vs. in-person (IP) dental consultations

2. To evaluate whether improvements can be made to the current VH visit format

3. To determine whether families would like VH consultations to continue post-pandemic

Methods:

Participants were primary caregivers of children (1-17-years) who attended an IP or VH consultation at BCCH from January 2021 to July 2023. Caregivers were excluded if they attended both IP and VH consultations within 1 year, attended a VH consultation by telephone only, or if they did not consent to be contacted by email.

Participants were emailed the link to the BCCH QI/QA REDCap site. The anonymous survey contained questions about demographics, caregiver satisfaction and perceptions. Participants in the VH group also completed a standardized telehealth usability questionnaire (TUQ; Fung et al., 2020). In addition, caregivers who attended IP consultations were invited to complete the survey in person.

Results:

A total of 238 caregivers completed the survey of which 185 were complete (response rate of 22.0%).

VH families (N=45) are mostly from rural settings compared to IP families (N=140). IP caregivers ‘completely’ agreed with the 10 satisfaction statements 70.5-85.3% of the time similar to VH caregivers (66.7-84.6% of the time). The average TUQ score (scale 1-4) was 3.55. Once a family had used VH, they were very likely to use this format again (89.8% would use VH services again, vs. 24.8% in the IP group). The most common benefits in the VH group were time savings, ease of scheduling, and cost savings whereas the most common barrier was difficulty taking intraoral photos. The benefits felt by the IP group were meeting the dental team and ease of communication with the dental clinic whereas the most common barriers were parking and behavioural challenges of their child during the consultation.

Conclusions:

The format of both IP and VH consultations is well-accepted by families. At BCCH the VH visits are continuing to the present day however in future, VH consultations will need to be made more user friendly to ensure all families can access this type of visit.

Dr. Aaron Miller,  University of Toronto

A Survey of Trends in Teaching and Practice of Primary Molar Vital and Non-Vital Pulp Therapy among North American Pediatric Dental Program Directors and Pediatric Dentists.

Miller, A.,1 Andrews, P.,2 Tenenbaum, H.,3 Basrani, B.,4 Lawrence, H.1

Department of Pediatric Dentistry

University of Toronto, Faculty of Dentistry

OBJECTIVES: In 1997, Primosch et al and in 2005, Dunston and Coll reported disagreement among both dentists and dental educators regarding primary tooth pulp therapy. Neither study included the use of MTA or biosilicates. The present study will provide an update regarding trends in teaching and practice of vital and non-vital pulp therapy in primary molars with deep carious lesions.

METHODS: A Redcap internet survey, was sent to pediatric program directors and a second for pediatric dentists currently in clinical practice. The surveys were designed as modified versions of those published by Primosch in 1997. Three follow-up requests were sent to 6700 pediatric dentists and 89 program directors in Canada and the United States. Results were summarized and analyzed using chi-square tests to allow for comparison to previous studies.

RESULTS: 841 pediatric dentists and 19 program directors completed surveys. Among dentists graduating after 2010, 76.5% reported performing an indirect pulp cap for an imminent pulp exposure, 23.5% reported performing a pulpotomy. Graduates from 2000-2009 selected indirect pulp cap and pulpotomy 49% and 51% respectively, and those graduating from 1960-1999, 56.6% and 43.4% respectively. The most popular pulpotomy medicament among pediatric dentists is MTA (39.2%) followed by formocresol (34.4%). 62% of pediatric dentists reported a change in their pulpotomy medicament since graduation, and 69.9% of those currently using MTA report having used it for 5 years or less. The most commonly taught pulpotomy medicament in training programs is MTA (56.3%) followed by formocresol (12.5%). While 95% of program directors teach pulpectomy, only 55% of practitioners perform the procedure in clinical practice. In a situation during a pulpotomy procedure in which radicular pulp is hemorrhagic and hemostasis is not achieved, dentists report initiating pulpectomy was 36% of 1960-1999 graduates, 31.5% of 2000-2009 graduates, and 22% of graduates 2010-present. In the same clinical situation, the proportion of dentists who reported extraction and appropriate space maintenance was 26.4% of 1960-1999 graduates, 37.8% of 2000-2009 graduates, and 52.7% of graduates 2010-present.

CONCLUSION: There is a shift towards minimally invasive approaches among pediatric dentists for pulp therapy in primary teeth. MTA has marginally overtaken formocresol as the most popular pulpotomy medicament. Although pulpectomy and primary tooth root canal are being taught in training programs, a declining number of dentists perform the procedures in clinical practice, with an increasing number of clinicians opting for extraction and space maintenance for teeth with necrotic or irreversibly inflamed pulps.

Dr. Antonette Spagnuolo, University of Toronto

LAB813, a Novel Probiotic, Reduces Dental Hard Tissue Demineralization in Mice

Spagnuolo. A., Liu A., Nainar H., Lévesque C., Gong S.G.

University of Toronto, Faculty of Dentistry

Background: Despite the availability of oral preventive modalities, dental caries remains one of the most common chronic conditions affecting children worldwide. Innovative oral preventive therapeutics are urgently needed. One such modality is the use of “friendly” bacteria or probiotics. We identified a novel strain of the oral commensal Streptococcus salivarius LAB813 from the mouth of a healthy child. We have extensive in vitro data showing that LAB813 is highly effective in inhibiting cariogenic bacteria such as Streptococcus mutans. Before initiating human clinical trials, pre-clinical studies are needed to test the effectiveness of LAB813 probiotic against caries.

Objectives: To test the efficacy of LAB813 in reducing dental hard tissue demineralization and its ability to colonize dental hard tissues in an in vivo mouse model of caries.

Methods: BALB/cJ mice were fed a high sucrose diet and inoculated with either S. mutans, LAB813 or both for 5 consecutive days. Groups of mice (n=3) included: G1- sham control, G2 – carrier alone, G3 – S. mutans alone, G4 – S. mutans followed by LAB813, and G5 – LAB813 alone. After 21 days, the mandibles were dissected and processed for micro-computed tomographic scans, which were used to analyze the enamel mineral densities (EMD) of the first mandibular molars. An additional 5 mice were used to test the dental colonization ability of LAB813 and S. mutans by selective plating of bacteria on agar plates.

Results: Comparison of the mineral densities of the first molars showed that G3 (S. mutans) and G5 (LAB813) exhibited the lowest (1.88 g/cm3) and highest (1.94 g/cm3) EMD, respectively. Statistically significant differences in the EMD were observed between G3 (S. mutans) and G5 (LAB813) (p=0.002), and between G3 (S. mutans) and G4 (S. mutans and LAB813) (p=0.025). Inoculated LAB813 and S. mutans were found to be still present in the dental hard tissues 5 days after inoculation.

Conclusions: Our findings provided evidence for the ability of LAB813 to decrease enamel demineralization, suggesting the potential of LAB813 to be used as an anti-caries agent. Further studies are currently underway to test the effectiveness of LAB813 in different delivery systems, e.g., as a non-invasive topical agent, followed by the initiation of clinical trials. LAB813, therefore, offers significant potential in reducing childhood caries, a serious chronic disease.

Dr. Michael Wong,  University of British Columbia

Teledentistry Perceptions and Practices among British Columbia Dentists

Dr. Michael Wong

UBC Pediatric Dental Resident

Research Committee Members:

• Dr. Mario Brondani
• Dr Jolanta Aleksejuniene
• Dr. Leeann Donnelly

Objectives: This study aims to understand the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of dentists in British Columbia towards teledentistry, if/how they implemented teledentistry in their practices during COVID-19, and if they intend to continue to use teledentistry.

Methods: A 21-item online anonymous survey consisting of multiple choice and agreement level questions was developed using previously validated surveys on teledentistry in addition to newly created questions. Inclusion criteria were dentists or certified dental specialists who were licensed to practice during the recommendation to suspend elective dental care in British Columbia on March 16, 2020. After piloting, the survey was distributed to 3751 dentists in British Columbia between July 18, 2022, to October 24, 2022 through the British Columbia Dental Association, and to all University of British Columbia Faculty of Dentistry clinical faculty instructors from the listserv. Sample size was set at 660. Descriptive statistics, bivariate chi-square analysis, and binary logistic regression analyses were performed. Statistical significance was set at p<0.001.

Results: A total of 268 surveys were returned, and 198 met the inclusion criteria for data analysis. The majority of dentists agreed on the benefits of teledentistry. Just over half (53.6%) of participants had used a form of teledentistry at the time of survey. Over three quarters (75.8%) of the respondents had no prior training in teledentistry. Of those who had used teledentistry, the majority had used telephone (74.2%) or email (62.1%) as the teledentistry modality of administering care while less than 15% had used video conferencing. Just over half (51.6%) felt unprepared to use teledentistry at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, while 70.7% of participants felt comfortable using teledentistry. Clinicians with over 22 years of clinical practice experience felt more comfortable diagnosing dental conditions using teledentistry. Participants who were comfortable and felt prepared with teledentistry were significantly more likely to continue using teledentistry. Comfort level was found to be a predictor for future teledentistry use.

Conclusion: Dentists in British Columbia were unprepared for the provision of care using teledentistry at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, although they had felt comfortable in using such technology at the time of being surveyed. Future research should focus on how to best implement teledentistry into dental school curriculum and continuing education resources.

Winners of the 3M Oral Care -CAPD/ACDP Graduate Student Research Presentation Award