Clinical Research Directory

Effect of Apical Patency on Periapical Lesion Healing

This non-randomized clinical study aims to evaluate the effect of apical patency during root canal treatment on the healing of periapical lesions in maxillary anterior teeth. Participants will be assigned to either an apical patency group or a non-patency group. Changes in periapical lesion volume will be assessed using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) one year after treatment. The study aims to provide an objective volumetric assessment of the potential contribution of apical patency to periapical healing.

Optical Sensor for Photodynamic Detection of Oral Pathology

Overall objective of this work is to develop better ways of detecting, diagnosing and measuring oral diseases and structures using light and optical approaches. All different areas of the mouth will be imaged, including healthy, diseased, dysplastic and malignant, as well as oral biofilm, and the imaging data compared against conventional diagnostic approaches such clinical and histopathological and molecular evaluations to (1) gain a better understanding of processes involved in oral pathology and (2) develop a combined patient specific, non-invasive method for the detection, diagnosis and screening of oral pathology and biofilm. Thus our goal is to identify and evaluate microstructural, metabolic, vascular, protein, genomic and metabolomics biomarkers of oral pathology can be used to detect, predict and map oral pathology, especially neoplasia. We are recruiting patients with a wide range of oral conditions including plaque, dry mouth, toothache, root canal treatments, gum disease, oral sores, dysplasia and cancer, autoimmune conditions and others as well as healthy control subjects. We will use a range of non-invasive imaging modalities to obtain information on the ways in which the oral health status affects optical properties, and determine means of detecting and quantifying these factors.. Imaging modalities to be utilized include: 1. Coherence and Doppler Tomography 2. Laser Speckle Imaging 3. Various forms of Spectroscopy 4. Fluorescence

Evaluation of Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders (OPMDs) with STRATICYTE™

The purpose of this study is to validate the ability of the STRATICYTE™ predictive model to predict the transformation of oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMDs) to oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) in a retrospective cohort of patients who received biopsies.

Evaluation of the Use of a Novel Oral Health Screening Instrument by Caregivers in Nursing Homes

BACKGROUND: Oral health of nursing home residents is often poor. Oral health is related to general health, quality of life and well-being. Health care providers in nursing homes can be seen as important intermediaries to improve oral health as they are responsible for the residents' daily care and as they could regularly check resident's oral health. The goal of this interventional study is to evaluate the use of a new oral health screening tool for older adults in nursing homes (OHS-interRAI) in an everyday context. This tool is included in the Belgian version of the International Resident Assessment Instrument for long-term care facilities and will be used by healthcare providers without a dental background. The evaluation will be done at different levels using mixed methods. The main questions this study aims to answer at level of the residents are: * What is the effect of regular oral health assessment on oral health of the residents? * How do residents perceive oral health and experience the regular oral health assessments? At level of the health care providers the main questions are: * How do they experience the use of the OHS-interRAI for oral health assessments? * To what extent are the assessments by health care providers comparable to assessments performed by oral health professionals? METHODS: This research will compare the outcomes of nursing homes using the OHS-interRAI with outcomes of nursing homes using the oral health screening tool which is currently used in Belgian nursing homes. Nursing homes will be assigned randomly to the different groups. Both healthcare providers and residents assign for participation. Healthcare providers will follow a training on how to perform the screening with the OHS-interRAI and to monitor residents' oral health. Residents agree to regular oral health assessments by their healthcare providers every six months over a 2-years period.