Intro

Question 1

Explain the term “Evidence based dentistry”

Answer 1

Process enabling clinical decisions to be made taking into account best available evidence,
clinical expertise, patient preferences.

Question 2

What are three main aspects of EBD

Answer 2

Clinical evidence
Relevant scientific evidence
Patients values and preferences

Question 3

Where can you find evidence? (5)

Answer 3

Colleagues
Textbooks
Dental journals
Internet
Conferences and courses

Question 4

What is the strongest type of scientific evidence

Answer 4

Meta-analyses and systematic reviews

Question 5

What is the weakest type of evidence?

Answer 5

Case reports
Animal/lab studies

Question 6

What is the 2nd strongest type in hierarchy?

Answer 6

RCTs

Question 7

What type is 3rd strongest?

Answer 7

Cohort

Question 8

What type is 4th strongest?

Answer 8

Case-control

Question 9

What type is 5th strongest?

Answer 9

Cross sectional

Question 10

Why is research undertaken?

Answer 10

Finding out new knowledge

Research might be concerned with:
- preventing disease
- promoting good health
- people’s experience of different services

Question 11

How is research undertaken? (8)

Answer 11

Define the problem
Review the literature
Select a research design
Formulate a hypothesis
Carry out research
Interpret results
Report the findings
Repeat

Question 12

Advantages of applying evidence based dentistry to clinical practice? (4)

Answer 12

• An increase in confidence when it comes to diagnosis and treatment
• Able to offer more treatment options
• Effective and efficient treatment processes that save time and money
• Increased treatment acceptance, as the dental healthcare professional is able to share
  meaningful evidence with the patient in support of proposed care.

Question 13

Disadvantages of applying evidence based dentistry to clinical practice? (5)

Answer 13

• The information overflow can often overwhelm a clinician
• Systematic reviews produce insufficient evidence
• Challenging clinicians
• Clinician may not be trained in an appropriate procedure
• Lack of resources can restrict choices available

Question 14

What are some examples of the use of EBD in contemporary clinical practice? (3)

Answer 14

NICE
SIGN
Cochrane

Question 15

What’s the advantages and disadvantages of speaking to colleagues to find evidence? (3 each)

Answer 15

Adv: info based on clinical experience
Easily accessible
Often more directly relevant

Disadv: may not be up to date
Conflicting between colleagues
May have limited or no experience

Question 16

What’s the advantages and disadvantages of using textbooks for evidence

Answer 16

Advantages:
➢ Easily accessible
➢ Written by experts in a field

Disadvantages:
➢ May not be up to date
➢ Often not peer reviewed before publishing so rigour of evidence not assessed

Question 17

What are the advantages (4) and disadvantages (3) of using dental journals for evidence?

Answer 17

+s: ➢ Written by experts in a field
➢ Most (not all) are peer reviewed
➢ Up to date
➢ Open access

-s: ➢ Usually specialty based
➢ Often “niche” topics
➢ Expensive

Question 18

What are the pros and cons of using the internet for evidence? (3 each)

Answer 18

Pros: ➢ Electronic databases like Pubmed, NICE, Cochrane
➢ Professional sites e.g. Royal Colleges
➢ A few free access journals

Cons: ➢ Volume of material
➢ Lack of quality control if not from peer-reviewed journals
➢ Multiple commercial websites

Question 19

What are the pros and cons of using conference proceedings for evidence?

Answer 19

Pros:
➢ The World Workshop on Oral Medicine (WWOM)
➢ Group of experts in Oral Medicine
➢ Review the current literature
➢ Publications

Cons:
• Time consuming
• Expensive to attend