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December 2009 | dentalproductsreport.com Specs that matter: Risk assessment Why you should be looking into adding these tools to your practice. 
It all comes down to patient motivation. Patients need a reason to change their habits or accept a treatment plan designed to improve their oral health. Sure, you and your hygienist can explain to them why they need it, but all too often your words and explanations are forgotten once patients are no longer in the chair. But if you can actually show them what’s going on in their mouths, real evidence that it’s time for a change, they’re more likely to comply. There are plenty of diagnostic/risk assessment tools on the market that can help with patient understanding as well as treatment planning. Here’s a rundown of some of those products, what they test for and why you might want to offer them in your practice: Biofilm diagnostics This quick, simple, non-invasisve screening tool is valuable because it gives clinicians a baseline for each patient, but more importantly it’s a way to measure the progress of recommended treatment outcomes, Cady said. “Doctors take blood pressure on every patient they see, not just those who may appear at first glance to be at risk for cardiovascular disease. A lot of times there are people at risk you wouldn’t think would be,” Cady said. “This painless screening tool gives you the information to keep the patient in a state of health and wellness rather than continual repair as a result of untreated disease.” Salivary risk assessment Once the tests are complete, both patient and doctor can evaluate the results and determine the appropriate treatment plan to help improve oral health. GC America also offers Saliva-Check Mutans, a chairside risk assessment tool that tests for high levels of streptococcus mutans. The test is easy to administer and like the Saliva-Check BUFFER Kit, anyone in the office can administer it. It’s just another way to help your patients see what’s going on in their mouths and for you to determine the best treatment plan for the patient, and it only takes about 15 minutes to complete. "These tests are easy and it just makes sense to take the time to administer them," Durkin said. "The saliva is really where it all starts; a person’s whole body health can be reliant upon how healthy his or her saliva is." “More and more attention is being focused on saliva and caries risk,” Durkin said. “These products are coming slowly but surely into the forefront.” Salivary diagnostics “Saliva has the opportunity to be a more simplified testing modality as opposed to blood. It’s simpler to collect and easier to transport,” Senior Vice President and General Manager Robert Walker said. “Who is better qualified and who has more accessibility to collect saliva samples than the dentist? We’re able to tell things from saliva that allows us to diagnose and treat patients in a better fashion.” Typically, clinicians aren’t diagnosing problems such as periodontal disease and oral cancer early enough, Dr. Nabors said, mainly because they’re only using visual signs to alert them to any problems. These tests help clinicians see what they can’t see on their own, which in turn leads to catching problems much earlier. “At the present time, we use subjective rational when we decide who to treat,” Dr. Nabors said. “With salivary diagnostics we can diagnose the disease before there’s irreversible damage. We can diagnose much ealier when it’s fully reversible. The main advantage is we know who has an infection or who is most susceptible to infection so we can diagnose early and prevent damage.” And for patients who already have damage, these easy-to-use tests can help you treat their problem more effectively because you know what caused it, Dr. Nabors said. Rather than just treating the symptoms of the infection, you’re treating the cause of the infection. Beyond that, you can make a personalized treatment strategy for each patient rather than treating everyone the same way and getting different results. Not only are clinicians finding problems earlier with these tests, they’re also seeing more case acceptance than they were when they used more traditional methods, Walker said. When patients see the lab reports come back, the problem becomes more real to them. It’s not a pocket depth that hasn’t changed much since the last time they were there. It’s something they can see and relate to. Keeping it simple “As we work toward shifting from a drill and fill surgical model, having screening tools that make the transition as smooth as possible is important just in terms of making it happen,” Cady said. “If it’s too difficult or too invasive, it’s tougher to make that change.” It’s important for you and your staff to understand the tools so you can talk with your patients about them and other staff members can administer the test if that’s an option. Training is an important piece, as is doing the research to make sure the product meets your standards. Make sure the scientific evidence is there, Cady said, and ask yourself if this is something you’d want to use in your own mouth or for a family member. If it is, chances are it’s something you should offer to your patients. Why it’s important These tests and assessments will only continue to improve and offer you more insight into patient risk and disease state. They make it easier for you to customize effective treatment plans and really show your patients what is going on in their mouth. It also promotes dental professional/patient teamwork in the ongoing maintenance of good oral health. That’s huge when it comes to case acceptance. “It’s all about getting the patient involved,” Durkin said. “Showing a visual indicator and motivating patients to want to change it up. They don’t want to feel it’s only drill-and-fill and then you send them home. They want to know what’s going on and how to make it better.” Renee Knight is a senior editor for DPR. Contact her at rknight@advanstar.com.
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