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Objective: Few studies of patient harm and harm-prevention methods in dentistry exist. This study aimed to identify and characterize dental patient safety incidents (PSIs) in a national sample of closed dental cases reported to the Regional State Administrative Agencies (AVIs) and the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira) in Finland.Materials and Methods: The sample included all available fully resolved dental cases (n = 948) during 2000-2012 (initiated by the end of 2011). Cases included both patient and next of kin complaints and notifications from other authorities, employers, pharmacies, etc. The cases analyzed concerned both public and private dentistry and included incident reports lodged against dentists and other dental-care professionals. Data also include the most severe cases since these are reported to Valvira. PSIs were categorized according to common incident types and preventability and severity assessments were based on expert opinions in the decisions from closed cases.Results: Most alleged PSIs were proven valid and evaluated as potentially preventable. PSIs were most often related to different dental treatment procedures or diagnostics. More than half of all PSIs were assessed as severe, posing severe risk or as causing permanent or long-lasting harm to patients. The risk for PSI was highest among male general dental practitioners with recurring complaints and notifications.Conclusions: Despite some limitations, this register-based study identifies new perspectives on improving safety in dental care. Many PSIs could be prevented through the proper and more systematic use of already available error-prevention methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. There is little information on antibiotic prescribing habits among dentists in general. In 1992 we reported a study among Norwegian dentists, and the present investigation was undertaken to find out if the patterns of antibiotic prescription had changed since then. Material and methods. A total of 470 randomly selected dentists (10% of total) received a questionnaire and a letter describing the survey and 313 responded. Results. Results indicated that 35% did not issue any prescriptions in a typical week, while 3% issued ≥⃒5. Fifty percent reported that they might prescribe antibiotics when treating periodontal diseases, but only 3.4% reported the use of microbial diagnosis before selecting an antibiotic; 71% of the respondents reported use of antibiotics occasionally to prevent general complications of dental treatment; 80% prescribed antibiotics for prophylactic use if the patient revealed a history of endocarditis, while 5% reported never doing so. Conclusion. These findings are in concert with the results obtained 11 years ago, but indicating that dentists who had attended postgraduate courses on antibiotics prescribed such drugs more frequently. This was not statistically significant. However, it is of great concern that 5% never prescribed antibiotics when treating patients with a history of endocarditis, and that 20% did not know that amoxicillin was a penicillin. Such lack of knowledge may cause fatal results of therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to elucidate whether a premaxilla with a supernumerary tooth has additional dental abnormalities. The study does not include premaxillas with a mesiodens, only premaxillas with parasagittally located supernumerary teeth. Radiographs from eight children, followed from 1 year and 5 months to 11 years and 5 months in the municipal dental health service in Denmark, were analyzed. One patient was seen only once. Dental abnormalities recorded included: invaginations on permanent incisors, resorption of roots of incisors, curved roots of incisors, delayed eruption, and delayed formation of roots. The study shows that there are dental abnormalities within the premaxillary region where the supernumerary tooth is located. This indicates that, apart from the supernumerary tooth, a more widespread deviation from normal conditions including tooth malformation, arrested eruption, and root resorption occur within the premaxillary region. The most important outcome of this study is that in the region with a supernumerary tooth the adjacent incisor shows delayed eruption after surgical removal of the supernumerary tooth. The deviations in root morphology, including root resorption, are not limited to patients who have had orthodontic treatment, but patients who did not receive orthodontic treatment also revealed deviations in root morphology. Therefore the treatment outcome can be different from the expected outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]