Ronnie Levine and Catherine Stillman-Lowe; 2019; Springer Nature; £63.99 (eBook); pp. 96; ISBN: 978-3-319-98207-6

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Written with the aid of a panel of expert advisors - with the intended audience of those involved in the teaching of oral health promoters such as dental students, dental care professionals and those involved in general healthcare - The scientific basic of oral health promotion is important for those wanting to update their knowledge regarding how to deliver the highest standard of oral health education.

This 8th edition is intended for both domestic and overseas use, through incorporating more resources and evidence from international sources and updating the constantly evolving research base. There is a strong evidence-based approach to the book, with references to the latest scientific papers for those seeking further information and consistency with national guidance for dental teams in preventing oral disease.

Divided into 12 chapters focusing on a variety of topics including dental diseases, guidance for age groups, recall advice and trauma management, each topic is easily navigable through the table of contents with specific headings and subheadings. The summaries in the key points section highlight the take-home messages for each chapter and explain the relative strength of these statements compared to current research data, on an evidence-based scale from A-C, based upon the Centre of Evidence-Based Medicine levels.

The book is presented well with the appropriate use of clinical photographs and graphs to illustrate points made. The writing style is easy to follow with the ability to make complex physiological processes easy to understand and subsequently explain to laypeople, without compromising any scientific integrity.

Aiming to not cover the entire scope of oral health promotion - by its own admission - aware that this would significantly increase the length of the book, it primarily focuses on being a handy information guide to update knowledge and standardise the information delivered while signposting to other relevant published works.

Overall, this book provides a helpful overview of oral health conditions and their management with the potential to be a good resource for oral health promoters to help individuals improve their own health, reduce health inequalities and encourage healthy development in future generations.

Roshni Patel