Effectiveness of Tobacco Counseling in the Dental Office

Abstract

This article describes the results of studies among dental care providers regarding tobacco cessation in the past two decades. In the early period, surveys described what dentists were doing in their own practices. The results suggested that they were not adequately communicating to their patients the importance of quitting. There is good evidence that brief interventions from health professionals can increase rates of smoking cessation. The outcome from a number of trials that examined the feasibility of conducting smoking cessation in dental practices is reviewed here. The pivotal role of a team approach is highlighted in many studies. Dentists who implement an effective smoking cessation program can expect to achieve quit rates up to 10-15 percent each year among their patients who smoke or use smokeless tobacco. 020 7 346 3608 phone; 020 7 346 3624 fax; s.warne@kcl.ac.uk.

Tobacco education in dentistry and dental hygiene

“…Other studies, including our own work, have shown that dentists and dental hygienists can be effective in helping their patients quit both smoking and using chewing tobacco [7,8,46,47]. In a review of six smoking cessation studies conducted in dental settings, Warnakulasuriya reported modest yet consistent increases in abstinence rates for interventions including behavioural and pharmacological treatments for tobacco dependence [8].…”

“…Tobacco plays a major role in the development and treatment of many oral diseases [1–4], and the repeated nature of dental treatment provides multiple opportunities for information, advice and brief counselling [5,6]. However, most dentists and dental hygienists in practice report lack of training in effective tobacco cessation skills as a significant barrier to incorporating these behaviours into routine care [7,8]. In this paper, we summarise the rationale for addressing tobacco use within dentistry and dental hygiene, review the extant policies regarding provision of tobacco‐related education, and make recommendations for the content and format of training in treatment of tobacco dependence in undergraduate and graduate curricula and continuing education courses.…”

Screening for substance misuse in the dental care setting: findings from a nationally representative survey of dentists

“…Training programs for dentists and dental students have been implemented to include evidence‐based techniques in such areas as motivational interviewing, smoking cessation counseling, dental treatment of HIV+ patients and early detection of child abuse and neglect. These have been accompanied by documented changes in dentists’ confidence, behaviors and practices . Within the medical community, brief training for medical residents in the management of substance misuse has shown improvements in substance misuse inquiry, due notably to increased provider confidence and treatment optimism .…”

Smoking cessation and response to periodontal treatment

“…A brief motivational intervention during the dental visit has been reported to be more successful in motivating patients not intending to cease smoking than patients considering cessation within the next 6 months . Similar smoking cessation rates (10–15% per year) may be achieved for dental and general medical practices, in case the dental practice offers the patient structured cessation programmes . The odds of tobacco cessation are increased by interventions offered by oral health professionals .…”