A large component of philosophy consists of various approaches to the concept and implication of ethics. A philosophical study of moral issues of right and wrong is called ethics, and deals with the moral duties of the professional dental surgeons toward their patients, society or community and their colleagues. Ethical delivery of dental healthcare assumes greater relevance with the rapid advances in dental healthcare technologies and innovations in several areas of investigations and treatment. This article reviews the philosophy of ethics and ethical principles that the dental surgeon should follow.

Great advances have been made in the curriculum of dentistry since the start of the first dental college in West Bengal in the early 1900s. Yet the pattern of learning till today has been predominantly lecture oriented. Problem based learning (PBL) is a relatively new pedagogy with a potential to be adopted in the dental curriculum. In PBL, instead of the traditional pattern of teaching, learning is achieved proactively by involving the students. The students learn the many aspects of dentistry by solving problems. The teacher is more of a spectator than an active participant. PBL is very suited to professional education programmes such as dentistry where contextualized learning represents a more accurate reflection of the real-life situation that is presented to practitioners on a daily basis.

Background: The Riyadh Colleges of Dentistry and Pharmacy (RCSDP) is in the process of implementing a total computer based information system to improve the delivery of curricula, clinical teaching and administration. In order to measure the level of acceptance and the degree of training that would be required, a survey was undertaken to investigate the current knowledge and skills of students with respect to information communication technology (ICT). Materials and Methods: Data collection took place by means of a questionnaire which included items on computer access, computer skills and training, computer activities used for study at college, internet access and activities involving the internet and dentistry. Results: An overall response rate of 81.8% (226 out of 276) was obtained. Besides having free and unlimited access to computers at the college, 82.7% of the students had access to computers at home also and 93% owned their own laptop. About 63.7% students gained their knowledge about computers from personal study and experience. Academic uses of the computer were mainly by PowerPoint programs (61%) and 91% had access to Internet. Around 85% preferred lectures to be available on the college website. Google was the most commonly used search engine (60%), and only 10% accessed PubMed or other medical and dental sites for academic purposes. Conclusion: It can thus be concluded that students of RCSDP had adequate access to substantial ICT resources and demonstrated an excellent attitude towards the computer and Internet technology. However, the educational use of ICT among these students has great scope for improvement.

Background: Injury to both, primary and the permanent dentitions and their supporting structures is one of the most common dental problems seen in children. Studies on dental trauma have shown that most dental accidents in children occur at home, followed by school. The prognosis of traumatized teeth depends on prompt and appropriate treatment, which often relies on people such as the child's parents and school teachers who are present at the site of accident, prior to the initial dental contact, and who may have only little information about the prompt steps that need to be taken incase such a traumatic injury occurs. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge of upper primary and secondary school Physical Education instructors in Davangere city, India, about emergency management of dental trauma. Materials and Methods: A total of 109 physical education instructors from 87 upper primary and secondary schools were included in the questionnaire based survey. Results: Majority of the respondents said that their training included first aid training. Only 10.1% recalled that their course covered management of dental trauma. Although about 70% of the respondents were aware about management of fractured tooth, the knowledge regarding avulsed tooth was poor. Vast majority of the respondents felt that they required further training to manage such trauma cases. Over 70% of teachers indicated that it was urgent to seek professional help for tooth avulsion; however, they had little knowledge regarding correct procedures for replanting and storing avulsed tooth. Conclusion: Although the upper primary and secondary school physical education teachers in Davangere city had good knowledge of first aid, the knowledge on management of dental trauma remained inadequate.

Objective: Dentists should build their reputation on their professional ability and integrity and should abide by the regulations put forth by the Dental Council of India (DCI). The aim of the study is to find out whether the code of ethics is followed in clinical practice by the dental practitioners in Chennai. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a sample of 1128 dental clinics in Chennai and data with respect to the name boards and advertisement were collected by means of a personalized survey. Results: The size of the sign board exceeded in 69% of the dental clinics. The sign board contained attractive symbols, pictures, and wordings in 68% of the dental clinics visited. 9% of the dental practitioners used abbreviations other than academic qualifications recognized by DCI in their clinic board. There were signboards in places other than the clinic in 22% of the clinics surveyed. 26% of the clinics used visual or printed media for advertisements. Conclusion: This study concludes that ethics are not strictly followed by the dental practitioners in their clinical practice. A proper ethical committee should be formed by the state dental councils to monitor the practitioners and dental clinics. Also, regulatory bodies like state dental councils and DCI should think about the revision/modification of certain codes of ethics, particularly with respect to the name boards, as these were framed almost three decades ago.

Context: An audit of the patients attending outpatient services of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department was carried out. Aims: The aim was to study the present process and functioning of the OPD and to formulate suggestions and methods to improve the OPD services. Settings and Design: A stratified random sampling procedure was used in this study design with a sample size of 100 patients. Materials and Methods: The study subjects were patients attending the OPD of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and were randomly selected for the study and were given a questionnaire to fill. The patients who were not able to understand the language were verbally communicated and made to understand the questionnaire and then duly filled it. Data collectors were the doctors of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Results: The results are depicted by text, tables, and figures. Conclusions: The effect of communication and interpersonal behavior between patients and providers has been shown to affect patient satisfaction, perceptions of care, and even health outcomes in medicine and dentistry. Our study provides evidence for the broad scope of verbal interactions that occur during the dental visit and that these behaviors can be reliably recognized and quantified.

Introduction: With the recent shift in paradigm, dentistry has moved from restorations, replacements or extractions, toward early diagnosis, risk assessment, and prevention of dental diseases in children. Teachers can play a crucial role during the mentor years of the child by imparting oral health knowledge and inculcating positive health attitudes. Aim: This study aims to relate the oral health status of teachers with children in different age groups and to demarcate a time when children would be most receptive to instructions. Materials and Methods: One hundred and nineteen teachers (mean age 32.6 ± 3.4 years) and 1500 children divided into six age groups, from 4-10 years, of 250 each, attending selected schools, were examined and their decayed, missing, and filled teeth (dmft/DMFT) scores was recorded using the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria, by trained examiners. Results: The results were statistically analyzed using the Pearson's correlation coefficient. A significant positive correlation was seen between the DMFT of teachers and children in the seven-to-nine-year age group. Conclusion: This points out the fact that awareness among teachers can play a pivotal role in health promotion among pupils. They are ideally positioned to inculcate a positive health attitude and refer children to a dental home in a timely manner.