Why evidence-based dentistry is so important

Today’s dental patients have easy access to plenty of information, but not all of it is factual and not all the advice found online is always what’s best for them.

That’s why evidence-based dentistry (EBD) is so important and that’s why events like the first Colgate^® “Science to Cities” Educational Tour can help educate dental teams and therefore help them better inform their patients.

Dr. John Comisi, DDS, MAGD

, recently presented at a "Science to Cities" stop in Chicago, along with

JoAnn Gurenlian, RDH, PhD

. He was thrilled to see a great turnout and equally excited to be asked to help spread the word on the importance of EBD. 

“Patients are going to ask us about various things and if we are unaware of what the real facts are, how do we help educate them?” said Dr. Comisi, a member of the Dental Products Report editorial advisory board. “It was an educational event for the doctors and the hygiene team. To help to explain why we in the dental profession need to look at the science behind things we believe the media talks about. That was pretty much what we did on this tour.”

Entitled, “New Perspectives on Evidence-Based Dentistry,” the lectures offered timely, applicable and educational information featuring new approaches to the practical application of evidence-based dentistry in clinical practice. Each lecture revealed the ongoing prevalence of the gum disease epidemic among the U.S. population while helping dental professionals make informed evidence-based recommendations for patient home care. The fundamentals of systematic reviews were also discussed including how to interpret results and the role these reviews play in evidence-based dentistry. 

The Chicago event, held Dec. 10, was one of five presentations with Colgate also holding the educational lectures in Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco and Houston. Combined more than 600 dentists and hygienists from across the U.S. gathered together to learn about the latest perspectives on evidence-based dentistry, making Colgate^®’s first “Science to Cities” five-city educational lecture tour a big success. 

“There were great questions, and every one of the cities that the groups were at were very well attended,” Dr. Comisi said. “There was a lot of great interchanging of ideas and an increased awareness of what we need to be doing when we’re looking at the facts and looking at the science. We need to know that there are resources out there to help us be more aware, and we need to know why you need to look at the evidence-based science when you’re evaluating everything that is going on in the media today, because there’s so much hype.”

“We were extremely pleased with the number of attendees and the interest in the lectures,” remarked Dr. Barbara Shearer, Director of Scientific Affairs for Colgate Oral Pharmaceuticals. “Attendees in all cities were extremely engaged in the presentations which in turn created a truly interactive environment. The information was delivered by some of the most dynamic speakers in our profession today and they were all very effective in providing the most current, relevant information pertaining to evidence-based dentistry in a detailed yet interesting manner. We received extremely positive feedback and we hope to continue our efforts throughout even more cities in the near future.”

The lectures covered the gum disease epidemic among the U.S. population and were designed to help dental professionals make informed evidence-based recommendations for patient home care of both natural teeth and implants. In addition, discussions included the technology behind dentifrice containing triclosan/copolymer along with the mode of action, clinical benefits and safety.

For information about upcoming Colgate events, please visit colgateoralhealthnetwork.com.