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Dental care for cardiac transplant patients in the UK

British Dental Journal volume 236, pages 30–34 (2024)Cite this article

Abstract

Cardiac transplantation replaces a severely damaged non-functioning heart with a healthy heart from a donor. Within the UK, the number of cardiac transplants being performed each year is increasing, with significant improvements in longer-term survival. Dental professionals are therefore more likely to see and manage these patients in the pre- and post-transplant periods. This paper proposes a protocol for the dental management of these patients, reinforced by a case series from Scotland and London.

Key points

  • Provides dental teams with knowledge on the background and process of cardiac transplant.

  • Explains the implications for oral health and dental management.

  • Provides dental teams with advice on the assessment and treatment of pre- and post-cardiac transplant patients, using a proposed protocol with illustrative clinical cases.

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References

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  4. Statista. Number of heart transplants in the United Kingdom (UK) in the year to March 2022. 2023. Available at https://www.statista.com/statistics/518763/number-of-heart-transplants-united-kingdom-uk/#:~:text=In%202021%2F22.,in%20England%20at%20137%20procedures (accessed November 2023).

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Acknowledgements

With thanks to the Scottish National Advanced Heart Failure Service.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinical Lecturer and Honorary Speciality Registrar in Special Care Dentistry, University of Glasgow, Glasgow Dental Hospital, Glasgow, Scotland, UK

    Emma O’Donnell

  2. Consultant in Special Care Dentistry, Guy´s and St Thomas´, NHS Foundation Trust, Special Care Dentistry, Great Maze Pond, London, UK

    Shazia Kaka

  3. Consultant in Special Care Dentistry, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Golden Jubilee National Hospital, Glasgow, UK

    Helen Patterson

  4. Consultant in Special Care Dentistry, Guy´s and St Thomas´, NHS Foundation Trust, UK

    Carole Ann Boyle

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  1. Emma O’Donnell
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  2. Shazia Kaka
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  3. Helen Patterson
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  4. Carole Ann Boyle
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Contributions

Emma O'Donnell, Shazia Kaka, Helen Patterson and Carole Ann Boyle all fulfil the following criteria: substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work, or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; final approval of the version to be published; and agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

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Correspondence to Emma O’Donnell.

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Cite this article

O’Donnell, E., Kaka, S., Patterson, H. et al. Dental care for cardiac transplant patients in the UK. Br Dent J 236, 30–34 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41415-023-6613-z

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