P Y Coward

The prevalence of tooth wear in a cluster sample of adolescent schoolchildren and its relationship with potential explanatory factors

Objective: To assess the prevalence of tooth wear in adolescents and its relationship with diet, saliva and gastro-oesophageal reflux.Design: Single centre cluster sample epidemiological study.Setting: A school in London in the summer of 1996.Subjects: 11-14-year-old schoolchildren.Main outcome measures: The Smith and Knight tooth wear index (TWI), salivary factors, diet and symptoms of gastro-oesophageal reflux were recorded for all subjects.Results: Results were obtained from 210 subjects. One subject refused to provide a saliva sample and 11 subjects provided insufficient saliva for analysis of buffering power (n = 198). 57% (95% confidence intervals 50.3–63.7%) of subjects had tooth wear on more than ten teeth and a median 12% (interquartile range 6–18%, 95% confidence intervals 8–14%) of surfaces were affected. However, dentine involvement was rare. The median intake of carbonated drinks was 2 cans (interquartile range 1–3) a day. However, there was no correlation with TWI (r = −0.09, P = 0.19). There was no relationship between tooth wear index (TWI) and salivary flow rate (r = −0.02, P = 0.78) or buffering capacity (r = −0.02, P = 0.76). A trend was observed for those with a reported history of regurgitation (n = 27) to have a higher maxillary TWI (median 8, interquartile range 2–13) compared with those who did not (5, 2–9, P = 0.06).Conclusions: Tooth wear is common in adolescents and the relationship with dietary acid, salivary buffering and symptoms of gastro-oesophageal reflux is complex and requires further investigation

Experience of undergraduates from three London dental schools and trainers from the south east of England on interviews for vocational training in 1996

Objective: To assess the current perceptions, motivations and expectations of trainers and vocational dental practitioners (VDPs) of vocational training (VT) interviews.Design: Questionnaire based study.Setting: General practice study carried out in 1996.Subjects: Undergraduates from three London dental schools and vocational trainers from south-east England.Main Outcome Measures: Perceptions, motivation and experiences were assessed by a questionnaire.Results: 111 questionnaires were posted to trainers with 72 (65%) returned. 108 (70%) were returned from the dental schools after 155 were posted. Graduates employed in hospital training posts, armed forces and community dentistry were eliminated from the results. Most trainers (74%) had previous experience of VT and 89% of trainers thought that a CV was important for their choice of VDPs. However, only 11% of trainers sought references before interviewing. 34% of VDPs preferred jobs close to their dental school but 75% considered location to be vital to their choice. 67% of VDPs made 10 or more applications and 57% visited 10 or more practices for interviews. 78% of VDPs considered that either genderism or racism was likely to or possibly influenced the trainers choice. However, the converse was not true, 62% of trainers considered it unlikely that the VDPs were influenced by their gender or race.Conclusions: Trainers and VDPs have different perceptions concerning the protocol of interviews for VT