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Kenneth A Eaton

Publications and source records attributed to Kenneth A Eaton.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

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General Practice, Dental↗
PubMed2004

The application of multilevel modeling in the analysis of longitudinal periodontal data--part I: absolute levels of disease.

BACKGROUND: Statistical analyses of periodontal data that average site measurements to subject mean values are unable to explore the site-specific nature of periodontal diseases. Multilevel modeling (MLM) overcomes this, taking hierarchical structure into account. MLM was used to investigate longitudinal relationships between the outcomes of lifetime cumulative attachment loss (LCAL) and probing depth (PD) in relation to potential risk factors for periodontal disease progression. METHODS: One hundred males (mean age 17 years) received a comprehensive periodontal examination at baseline and at 12 and 30 months. The resulting data were analyzed in two stages. In stage one (reported here), the absolute levels of disease were analyzed in relation to potential risk factors; in stage two (reported in a second paper), changes in disease patterns over time were analyzed in relation to the same risk factors. Each approach yielded substantially different insights. RESULTS: For absolute levels of disease, subject-level risk factors (covariates) had limited prediction for LCAL/PD throughout the 30-month observation period. Tooth position demonstrated a near linear relationship for both outcomes, with disease increasing from anterior to posterior teeth. Sites with subgingival calculus and bleeding on probing demonstrated more LCAL and PD, and supragingival calculus had an apparently protective effect. Covariates had more "explanatory power" for the variation in PD than for the variation in LCAL, suggesting that LCAL and PD might be generally associated with a different profile of covariates. CONCLUSION: This study provides, for a relatively young cohort, considerable insights into the factors associated with early-life periodontal disease and its progression at all levels of the natural hierarchy of sites within teeth within subjects.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

The application of multilevel modeling in the analysis of longitudinal periodontal data--part II: changes in disease levels over time.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate the longitudinal relationships between the outcome measurements of changes in lifetime cumulative attachment loss (cLCAL) and changes in probing depth (cPD) in relation to potential risk factors or other risk markers for periodontal disease progression from a cohort of 100 young males. In order to account for the hierarchical data structure, and to explore explicitly the site, tooth, and subject levels simultaneously, multilevel modeling was undertaken. METHODS: The analyses were undertaken in two parts. Within a previous article, the absolute levels of disease were analyzed in relation to potential risk factors; within this article, changes in disease are analyzed in relation to these factors. Each analytical approach yielded substantively different insights. RESULTS: Subject-level risk factors had limited predictive value for cLCAL/cPD throughout the 30-month observation period. Tooth position demonstrated a near linear relationship for both outcomes, with disease increasing from anterior to posterior teeth. Supragingival plaque had no significant effect on cLCAL/cPD, while subgingival calculus and bleeding on probing were negatively associated with cLCAL/cPD. In contrast to the outcomes LCAL/PD, supragingival calculus had no significant protective effect on cLCAL/cPD. There was no significant influence of smoking in this cohort. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides, for a relatively young cohort, considerable insights into the factors associated with longitudinal patterns of early-life periodontal disease at all levels of the natural hierarchy of sites within teeth within subjects. Furthermore, it is demonstrated how multilevel modeling can provide considerable insight into some of the inconsistencies and controversies found in the previous periodontal literature.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

The clinical innovations conference.

At the end of May, an impressive team of speakers from North America and the United Kingdom provided two days of lectures and hands-on sessions that updated delegates on practice management, team dentistry, fixed and removable prosthodontics, endodontics and implantology, with the emphasis on new materials and techniques.

Congresses as Topic↗
PubMed2004

Oral healthcare systems in the extended European union.

UNLABELLED: This article reports a survey of the systems for the provision of oral healthcare in the 28 member and accession states of the EU/EEA in 2003. Descriptions of the systems were collected from the principal dental advisers to governments in the individual states. In many states these were the Chief Dental Officers (CDOs). In states without a CDO, descriptions were gathered from CDO equivalents or senior academics. A template (model description) was used to guide all respondents. Additional statistical information on oral healthcare costs and workforce was collected from the Council of European Chief Dental Officers, WHO and World Bank websites. The study showed that in broad terms there were six patterns (Beveridgian, Bismarkian, The Eastern European (in transition), Nordic, Southern European and Hybrid) for the administration and financing of oral healthcare in the expanding EU. The extent and nature of government involvement in planning and coordinating oral healthcare services and the numbers and pay of the oral healthcare workforce varied between the different models. The biggest recent changes in European oral healthcare were found to have occurred in Eastern Europe, where there has been wide scale privatization of the previously public dental services. However, most of the EU accession (Eastern European) states seemed to be slowly developing insurance systems to cover oral health treatment costs. In the existing EU/EEA, the public dental services such as those in the Nordic countries still have strong political support and some expansion has occurred. In Southern Europe public dental services seemed to have gained some acceptance for the treatment of children and special needs groups. In UK, which has a unique public dental service system, there are plans to make big changes in the delivery, commissioning and remuneration of dental services in the near future. Some EU member states which operate the Bismarkian system with health insurances offering wide population coverage, comprehensive treatment and benefits connected with frequent dental visits, were reported to be experiencing financial problems. The study also indicated that at present, with the exception of Portugal and Spain, where there is dynamic growth in the numbers of dentists, the overall size of the EU/EEA oral health workforce is expanding fairly slowly. Only a minority of member states appeared to collect data on uptake of services and care costs and there were great difficulties in assessing outcomes of care. The data on costs appeared to show wide variations from member state to member state in per capita spending on oral healthcare. In the majority of states, however, costs, especially those in the private sector, could only be estimated. Nevertheless, at a 'macro' level, the study indicated that, in 2000, the 28 member and accession states of the EU/EEA had a total population of 456 million and an oral health workforce of 900,000 (some 300,000 of whom were dentists) and that the cost of oral healthcare was about EUR 54,000,000,000. CONCLUSION: The study showed wide variations in oral healthcare provision systems between EU/EEA member and accession states and no evidence of harmonization in the past.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Comparison of dental licensure, specialization and continuing education in five countries.

Dental practice and education are becoming more globalized. Greater practitioner and patient mobility, the free flow of information, increasingly global standards of care and new legal and economic frameworks (such as European Union [EU] legislation) are forcing a review of dental licensure, specialization and continuing education systems. The objective of this study was to compare these systems in Canada, France, Germany, the UK and the US. Representatives from the five countries completed a 29-item questionnaire, and the information was collated and summarized qualitatively. Statutory bodies are responsible for licensing and re-licensing in all countries. In the two North American countries, this responsibility rests with individual states, and in Europe, with the countries themselves, mainly governed by the legal framework of the EU. In some countries, re-licensure requires completion of continuing education credits. Approaches to dental specialization tend to differ widely with regard to definition of specialities, course and duration of training, training facilities, and accreditation of training programmes. In most countries, continuing education is provided by a number of different entities, such as universities, dental associations, companies, institutes and private individuals. Accreditation and recognition of continuing education is primarily process-driven, not outcome-orientated. Working towards a global infrastructure for dental licensing, specialization and continuing education depends on a thorough understanding of the international commonalities and differences identified in this article.

Canada↗