Open AccessDentists’ Dietary Perception and Practice Patterns in a Dental Practice-Based Research Network
Author(s) -
Yoko Yokoyama,
Naoki Kakudate,
Futoshi Sumida,
Yuki Matsumoto,
Gregg H. Gilbert,
Valeria V. Gordan
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0059615
Subject(s) - medicine , logistic regression , family medicine , cross sectional study , clinical practice , perception , oral health , dental practice , medline , dentistry , psychology , pathology , neuroscience , political science , law
Background Dental caries are largely preventable, and epidemiological evidence for a relationship between diet and oral health is abundant. To date, however, dentists’ perceptions about the role of diet and dentists’ practice patterns regarding diet counseling have not been clarified. Objective The purposes of this study were to: (1) examine discordance between dentists’ perception of the importance of diet in caries treatment planning and their actual provision of diet counseling to patients, and (2) identify dentists’ characteristics associated with their provision of diet counseling. Design The study used a cross-sectional study design consisting of a questionnaire survey in Japan. Participants The study queried dentists working in outpatient dental practices who were affiliated with the Dental Practice-Based Research Network Japan (JDPBRN), which aims to allow dentists to investigate research questions and share experiences and expertise (n = 282). Measurement Dentists were asked about their perceptions on the importance of diet and their practice patterns regarding diet counseling, as well as patient, practice, and dentist background data. Results The majority of participants (n = 116, 63%) recognized that diet is “more important” to oral health. However, among participants who think diet is “more important” (n = 116), only 48% (n = 56) provide diet counseling to more than 20% of their patients. Multiple logistic regression analysis suggested that several variables were associated with providing diet counseling; dentist gender, practice busyness, percentage of patients interested in caries prevention, caries risk assessment, and percentage of patients who receive blood pressure screening. Conclusions Some discordance exists between dentists’ perception of the importance of diet in caries treatment planning and their actual practice pattern regarding diet counseling to patients. Reducing this discordance may require additional dentist education, including nutritional and systemic disease concepts; patient education to increase perception of the importance of caries prevention; or removing barriers to practices’ implementation of counseling. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01680848