Stumbling into the Age of Evidence
This article presents personal observations on how the concept of evidence-based dentistry is faring in the profession. It considers how the dental profession’s concept of evidence has matured, how evidence-based…
Home Oral Health Practice: The Foundation for Desensitization and Dental Care for Special Needs
As oral health is increasingly recognized as a foundation for health and wellness, caregivers for special needs patients are an essential component of the oral health team and must become…
Evaluation, Scheduling, and Management of Dental Care Under General Anesthesia for Special Needs Patients
Dental care in the operating room requires expertise to be efficient, effective, and comprehensive. By gathering appropriate information preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively, the dentist can assume the leadership role that…
Treatment of Mentally Disabled Patients with Intravenous Sedation in a Dental Clinic Outpatient Setting
Treating the special care patient is challenging for the treating dentist and dentist anesthesiologist. The goal is to have a patient free of disease and pain restored with aesthetic and…
Behavioral Management for Patients with Intellectual and Developmental Disorders
Intellectual and developmental disorders can severely impair a patient’s ability to communicate and socialize. Individuals with such disorders tend to have unusual ways of learning, paying attention, and reacting to…
HIV: Medical Milestones and Clinical Challenges
Since its discovery in the 1980s, HIV has infected every continent on the globe by crossing socioeconomic, racial, ethnic, and gender barriers, and it continues to contribute to human morbidity…
Oral Self-Injurious Behaviors in Patients with Developmental Disabilities
Self-injurious behaviors (SIB) in patients who have developmental disabilities is a complex disorder, and its underlying etiologies are poorly understood. SIB is a significant factor in hospitalizations, decisions to use…
Minimal and Moderate Oral Sedation in the Adult Special Needs Patient
Oral minimal/moderate sedation can be an effective tool to aid in the dental management of adult special needs patients. Specific sedative drugs must be chosen by the dentist that can…
Oral Health Burden in Children with Systemic Diseases
Children who have systemic diseases face a burden of disease distinctly greater than their healthy counterparts. Neglect or delay of addressing this burden can lead not only to significant morbidity…
Dental Management of Special Needs Patients Who Have Epilepsy
Patients who have developmental disabilities and epilepsy can be safely treated in a general dental practice. A thorough medical history should be taken and updated at every visit. A good…
Treatment Planning Considerations for Adult Oral Rehabilitation Cases in the Operating Room
Treatment planning for adult oral rehabilitation starts before cases are scheduled and continues after the discharge phase. Practitioners providing dental care must be competent in all phases of dentistry and…
Managing Older Patients Who Have Neurologic Disease: Alzheimer Disease and Cerebrovascular Accident
Neurologic diseases represent some of the most common disabling and costly conditions in older age. Alzheimer disease and cerebrovascular accidents (strokes) are two of the most common neurologic conditions, and…
A Review of Cerebral Palsy for the Oral Health Professional
Individuals who have cerebral palsy (CP) face many physical challenges throughout their lifetimes in addition to societal barriers that can have an impact on quality of life. The ability to…
Special Needs of Anxious and Phobic Dental Patients
Dentally anxious and phobic individuals are an underserved special needs population because of their avoidance of treatment. Dentists and their auxiliary staff, with an understanding of the etiologies leading to…
Dental Care for Patients Who Are Unable to Open Their Mouths
There are a number of diseases and conditions that prevent the sufferer from adequately opening the mouth. The danger of inanition, malnutrition, chronic periodontal disease, caries, and abscessed teeth are…
Planning Dental Treatment for People with Special Needs
People with disabilities and other special needs present unique challenges for oral health professionals in planning and carrying out dental treatment. This article presents a schema for planning dental treatment…
Health Related Issues for Individuals with Special Health Care Needs
More than 50 million individuals in the United States with developmental disabilities, complex medical problems, significant physical limitations, and a vast array of other conditions considered under the rubric of…
Issues in Access to Oral Health Care for Special Care Patients
Access to oral health care for persons with special health care needs is quite limited. Psychologic, economic, and physical barriers exist that prevent these patients, who may have complex medical…
Public Programs, Insurance, and Dental Access
Disparities remain among the United States population with regard to who receives dental treatment. This article assesses current programs designed to provide dental insurance coverage. This assessment examines person-level use…
Why Public Policy Matters in Improving Access to Dental Care
The executive and legislative branches of state government have broad authority that provides the underpinning for the dental health care system. This article describes four principal areas in which policy…
