Numerous studies that have been taken in Russia and abroad have proved convincingly that introduction of preventive methods into practice decreases levels of diseases’ spread significantly.
Social questionings have shown that only 21,3 % of the respondents had a partially correct opinion on methods and mean of oral cavity hygiene, and the rest 79,2 % – incorrect. Majority of respondents (96,7 %) have mentioned that before, while buying a toothpaste, they considered a lower price rather its characteristics. No one of the questioned used dental elixirs of gels.
65,0 % of the questioned brushed their teeth regularly two times a day, however, only 81,3 % of the total number of the questioned sent more than 1 minute brushing teeth, instead of recommended 2,5–3 minutes.
The objective of a dental hygienist is to develop and introduce individual programmes of hygienic training, instruction of population and taking actions to prevent dental diseases.
During the research process we have outlined three groups of major actions that are realized by a dental hygienist: preventative, training, and treating.
• Preventative actions:
– Inspect a patient and define his hygienic indexes.
– Take local applicative or injection anaesthetization.
– Remove accretions of dental tartar and thin raid with special equipment.
– Grind and polish necks and available areas of roots after the removal of dental tartar.
– Define hygienic indexes.
– Use fluorine preparations to improve the process of remineralization of enamel and dentine such as gels, lacqers, and rinsers. Deep fluoridation.
• Training actions:
1. Instruct a patient on methodics of individual hygiene of oral cavity and healthy way of life that includes:
– Information that a quality of care after oral cavity defines the success in treating parodontosis diseases, preservation of healthy teeth, fillings and restorations;
– Instructing a patient on anatomic structure of a tooth and gum, its physiology and functional peculiarities;
– Demonstrating sequence of moves with means of individual care and order of gum massage on a jaw phantom;
– Selecting means of individual care and recommendations on choosing a toothbrush, toothpaste, means for inter-teeth gaps and rinsers;
– Recommendations on healthy diet, usage of chewing gum to prevent caries;
– Providing a memo on care for teeth and oral cavity. At the end of the first visit a patient must discover a motivation to treat and keep individual hygiene of oral cavity.
2. Control of the efficiency of knowledge on problems of oral cavity hygiene and effectiveness of brushing teeth (with definition of hygienic indexes) takes place during the second and 9if necessary) further visists.
• Treatment-preventative actions:
– Anti-inflammatory treatment: applications, gum bands, films, etc.
– Physiotherapy treatment: hydric massage of gums, depoforesis, vacuum-therapy, etc.
– Filling immature fissures with temporal filling materials.
– Hermetization of fissures (invasive and non-invasive methods). All methods of fluoridation.
– Medical examination and rehabilitation of patients with decompensated form of caries, diseases of mucous tissue of oral cavity, parodontosis.
– Hygienic preparation for surgery on parodontosis, implantation, and taking rehabilitation measures during post-surgery period.
– Teeth whitening.
– Treating hyperesthesia of teeth.
– Examination of occlusion. Reveal of preliminary contacts. Selective re-polishing of teeth.
Dental hygienists are trained from dentists at the foundation of center of qualification increase for middle medical workers.
The cabinet is located in an adult dental polyclinic, and dental hygienists treat patients of all age groups, providing medical service for each member of a family. Apart from dental facility, the cabinet is equipped with 3 additional water sinks with mirrors, placed above, that is necessary to train patients to brush their teeth and take care after their oral cavity. A continuously active exhibition of objects and means of hygiene is located on the walls and in a special cupboard.
The analysis of visit rate of cabinet of prevention and hygiene of oral cavity has shown that 63,2 % of visitors were women.
Besides, the part of female visitors in all age groups prevails over the part of men.
Of total number of visits initial ones has formed 60,5 %, second – 39,5 %, while 50,5 % of visits were formed of preventive measures, 26,9 % – treatment-preventive measures, 22,6 % – training measures.
In the structure of treating-preventive measures the part of visits on fissures hermetization equaled 26,9 %; on teeth whitening – 31,8 %; control definition of hygienic indexes – 39,5 %; other measures – 1,8 %. Knowledge on methodics of individual hygiene of oral cavity (training measures) was given to all children and teenager visitors.
Availability of a dental hygienist, dynamic inspection, permanent correction of a prevention plan, individual approach towards each member of a family plays a favourable part in dental health of all family members.
Majority of patients (98 %) have been satisfied with a dental hygienist’s work. Besides, 59,5 % have outlined that they learned something new about the condition of their dental health (presence of caries spots, gingivitis, parodontitis, etc.) and were sent to a dentist for treatment.
The received results testify the necessity to intensify preventive work in dentist’s activity, increase people’s motivation to preserve their dental health. These problems can be solved by a dental hygienist.
Resume. The article presents organization forms of a dental hygienist’s work at basis of dental polyclinic, provides the volume of work, evaluates medical-social efficiency of such specialist’s work.
The work was submitted to International Scientific Conference «Fundamental and applied research in medicine», France (Paris), 14-21, October, 2012, came to the editorial office on 19.09.2012.