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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Oral. Health
Sec. Preventive Dentistry
Volume 5 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/froh.2024.1487879

Dentists' Knowledge, Attitude and Practice towards Silver Diamine Fluoride therapy in Hong Kong: A mixed-method study

Provisionally accepted
Hollis Haotian Chai Hollis Haotian Chai 1Ivy Guofang Sun Ivy Guofang Sun 1Jasmine Cheuk Ying Ho Jasmine Cheuk Ying Ho 1Sherry Shiqian Gao Sherry Shiqian Gao 1,2Edward C. Lo Edward C. Lo 1Chun Hung Chu Chun Hung Chu 1*
  • 1 The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, SAR China
  • 2 Department of Stomatology, School of Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiang'an, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    This study explored the knowledge, attitude, and practice towards silver diamine fluoride (SDF) therapy among dentists in Hong Kong. The quantitative component was an online closed-ended questionnaire survey through the Society of Preventive Dentistry of Hong Kong. The qualitative component involved individual in-depth interviews with selected dentists. Descriptive analysis was performed on the quantitative data, whereas thematic analysis was performed on the qualitative data. The quantitative study invited 173 dentists, and 86 completed the questionnaire survey (86/173; 50%). All respondents were familiar with SDF and 73 (73/86; 85%) used SDF. They agreed that SDF therapy was simple (84/86; 98%), non-invasive (84/86; 98%), timesaving (82/86; 96%), effective (81/86; 94%), and painless (79/86; 92%). However, they expressed concerns about SDF's unaesthetic staining (81/86; 94%) and used it for primary teeth (77/86; 89%). The qualitative study conducted 12 individual interviews. Dentists asserted that SDF therapy is an evidence-based practice for arresting caries, including root caries. They acknowledged SDF therapy is straightforward and cost-effective. It is particularly useful for children or people with disabilities and can be used in community service. They considered the application skills, close monitoring and maintaining good oral hygiene to be vital for the success of SDF therapy. However, they noted that black staining of the carious lesions could cause patient dissatisfaction. They suggested that a guideline is warranted for SDF use. Hong Kong dentists are aware of the indications, merits and limitations of SDF therapy. They use SDF therapy for caries control, especially for children, elderly and those with disabilities, and consider it cost-effective for community dental care.

    Keywords: Silver diamine fluoride, caries, Children, mixed methods research, Dentists

    Received: 28 Aug 2024; Accepted: 05 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Chai, Sun, Ho, Gao, Lo and Chu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Chun Hung Chu, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, SAR China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.