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Criteria have been defined to quantify a personality characteristic-termed locus of control. The criterion at one extreme of this range was referred to as external, indicating a belief that health was determined by a variety of other factors such as powerful other individuals or by chance. The criterion at the other extreme was termed internal, indicating a belief that health might be modified by the behaviour pattern of the individual. Locus of control scales have been used to relate psychological factors to physical disease, and the response of patients to disease. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether locus of control could be used to anticipate the response of subjects to a plaque control programme. A study was carried out on 14 males and 46 females to investigate the relationship between the multidimensional health locus of control (MHLC) and the response of a group of office workers to a plaque control programme. It was found that there was significant correlation between the external MHLC dimension of powerful others and improvement in some of the clinical criteria; a similar result was found for the internal dimension of the MHLC. In contrast, there was minimal correlation between the external dimension of the MHLC termed chance and the clinical results. It was concluded that subjects who perceive their susceptibility to disease being influenced by powerful external factors or who believe that susceptibility can be controlled by their own actions, respond more positively to a plaque control regime than those subjects who consider that susceptibility to disease is an event of chance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to assess the response of patients to a course of instruction in plaque control as influenced by friends and relatives. The subjects in the study were 41 patients who had been referred to a dental hospital for treatment. There was a major reduction in plaque and gingivitis levels in the subjects at both the 10th and 14th weeks of the study. There was a greater proportional reduction in gingivitis levels in those subjects who had a higher number of reported discussions with their friends. The effect of discussions with members of the family was less clear. Lower values for gingivitis levels at 10 weeks were associated with a higher number of discussions with parents. However the levels of gingivitis tended to be adversely affected by discussions between the subjects and their spouses. The importance of recognising the influence of family and friendship networks needs to be understood when preventive programmes are designed, especially where high levels of self-care are sought as outcomes. Further work is in progress on a group of office workers being treated in a dental practice environment. This will allow the type of advice being obtained from the various contacts to be investigated in more detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of the conventional gingivectomy procedure is indicated to achieve optimum gingival contour and to eliminate supra-alveolar pockets where these do not extend beyond the muco-gingival junction. The instrument of choice for the procedure is a gingivectomy knife. Where a blood-free field is required, electrosurgery may be used provided the instrument is not brought into contact with bone. The maintenance of good oral hygiene is essential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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