Presentations 2020: Restorative

374 - A Two Cycle Audit on Compliance with Bitewing Radiography Guidelines within the Community Dental Service (CDS)

VE Murthy L McDougall E Franklin J Gillespie
Presented by: Vignesh Murthy
Community Dental Service CwmTaf

Introduction: Bitewing Radiography (BW-RG) is a recognized essential adjunct in the diagnosis of not only inter-proximal caries, but also in the diagnosis of ‘hidden’ occlusal caries. Current FGDP (Faculty of General Dental Practice) suggest that BW-RG should be considered for all children on their initial assessment, if they are deemed high caries risk. With the Radiographic-Recall (RG-R) being determined by caries risk. The aim of this audit was to assess compliance with these guidelines, as well as the European Academy of Paediatric Dentistry (EAPD) Guidelines. Methods: A total of 160 new patients were audited from March 2016 to September 2019, attending clinics within the CDS. Patients’ were stratified into the primary, mixed and permanent dentitions and the data was analysed descriptively, being stored on a secure excel worksheet. Further analysis was performed on the DMFT of the sample and data was obtained from the electronic dental software. Results: There was a 25% improvement in overall compliance from cycle 1 of this audit. This was reflected amongst all groups, with the greatest improvement (32%) being observed in the primary dentition. It was noticed on analysis of patient notes, that a formal Caries Risk Assessment (CRA) was not being performed and this forms the basis for RG-R. Quality improvement measures implemented included further education at departmental meetings, the introduction of a RG recall section within the template used to record examinations in the dental software and laminated cue cards are being introduced to prompt clinicians to take BW-RG when appropriate and to perform a formal CRA to determine the RG-R. Conclusion There has been a sizeable improvement in compliance over the course of this audit cycle. A final cycle of this audit is to be carried out to determine whether compliance remains high with regards to interval of BW taking and the completion of a formal CRA to determine the RGR
Consent Statement: There are no details on individual patients reported within the abstract.

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