…more tooth wear

Readers will, hopefully, recall that last issue's Comment was a rallying call to the funders of NHS dentistry in England and Wales to consider a method of payment whereby clinicians would feel that the payments which they would receive, would reflect the time which they spent on treating worn anterior teeth using adhesive resin composite restorations placed at an increased occlusal vertical dimension (OVD). In an effort to kickstart this process, I have sent my Comment to the Chief Dental Officers of England and Wales, Drs Sara Hurley and Colette Bridgman, even though I am aware that, in the current pandemic, they have other matters to occupy their minds. Hopefully, they might take note of the situation in Scotland where additional fees are available for treatment of tooth wear (TW), but, alas, I am not ‘holding my breath’!

For the first time that I can recall, there is now a substantial volume of research being published on TW, in particular from teams at King's College London (with Dr Shamir Mehta being prevalent there) and the Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands. This, perhaps, reflects the increasing incidence of the problem. I will therefore summarize several recent relevant papers for you.