Clinical cases in pediatric dentistry

  • A. M. Moursi
(ed) UK: Wiley-Blackwell price £66.95; pp 380 ISBN 9780813807614 | ISBN: 978-0-8138-0761-4

Like fast food outlets and shopping malls this book originates in North America. As such the book's editors, the majority of the contributors and the nomenclature used derive from the States. While this in no way detracts from the contents it does require a quick web search to reacquaint oneself with the Universal Numbering System. More importantly the potential reader should be aware that protocols regarding certain treatments derive from guidelines produced by the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, which do appear to vary somewhat when compared with UK guidelines.

Putting this aside, the book offers the reader a very thorough guide to many of the key aspects of paediatric dentistry, covering a wide and comprehensive variety of topics. As the title suggests, the book presents information in the form of case studies, providing details of 64 clinical scenarios. These are grouped logically into nine chapters including, amongst other things, management of the medically compromised patient and dental trauma, as well as sections on pulp therapies, orthodontic considerations and restorative dentistry.

Each case uses the same basic format starting from the patient history, clinical and radiographic examination, through to differential diagnosis, treatment plan and discussion. In addition to providing details of the case, each section also features a series of text boxes that highlight specific information pertinent to the clinical situation under discussion. I found this to be an excellent feature of the book, which helps to put into context the management of each patient as well as discussing related issues and, where appropriate, providing a step-by-step guide to certain clinical procedures. At the end of each clinical case there are a series of questions that test knowledge gained within that particular section.

I was also impressed that the book features recent developments in the management of non-vital immature incisors including most notably the revascularisation technique.

For those involved in education, the authors of the book suggest that the case examples can be used to aid teaching as part of problem-based learning. I put this to the test and found undergraduate students responded positively when presented with scenarios from the book to troubleshoot.

In conclusion, this book presents a wide variety of fundamental aspects related to the holistic management of paediatric dental patients in a concise and thought-provoking manner.