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Volume2 Issue7
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• Alternativedental settings suchdental hygieneclinicsmight bemoreconducive to such
screening, aswearecurrentlyfinding inanother study.
• All patientswhoaccepted tobe screenedwereHIVnegativeat the time.
Werethesefindingssurprisingorsomewhatexpected?
Aswithany study,wehadcontainedexpectations about its feasibilityandpositive impact.
Wewereexpectingpatients tobeopen to the ideaofHIV screeningaspart of routine
dental care,which75%of thosewhofilledout thequestionnaireswere. However,wewere
expectinga larger number of patients accepting toget screened; less than10%of those
initiallyapproachedwereactually screened.
Whatarethenextsteps?
Our findingshighlighted theneed to includea larger number of patients andclinics, both
across andoutsideBC. Perhapswe shouldalsoconsider analternativedental setting such
asdental hygieneclinics, given that hygienists tend tohave longer appointmentswith
patients and see themmultiple times ayear. In fact,wearenowoffering theHIV screening
inundergraduatedental hygieneclinics. Theuptake seemshigher thanour pilot study
suggested.
Another stepwouldbe for our professional associations and the insurancecarriers todevelop
acode that dental professionals canuse to facilitateclaimprocessingand reimbursement.
Whether or not thatwould increase thedentists’ interest inofferingHIV screeningor
patients’ uptakehas yet tobedetermined.
Whatarethe implicationsfordentistsanddentalpractices?
Asweconcluded inour article, “without buy-in from thedental profession, there is little
hopeof successfully implantingHIV rapid screening inadental setting.” Itmight be time
for us, as aprofession, tocome together andconsider screening for infectionswhichfirst
manifestations are in themouthand sometimes appear before thepatient getsdiagnosed.
There is, for example, ahepatitisC screening test available todentists in theUS.Monitoring
our patients’ glucose levels andbloodpressure, aswell asdiscussingoral cancer prevention,
arealso just as important.
What’sonetakeawaymessageforyourcolleaguesaboutthisstudy?
Thispilot initiative introducedprofessional-initiatedHIV screeningaspoint-of-care inadental
setting, andproved it canbedone. It alsoallowed for theevaluationof the initiative, its
feasibility inadental setting, and someof thebarriers and facilitators for screeninguptake.
As anHIV status isno longer considereda “death sentence” but rather amanageablechronic
condition, earlydiagnosis equates toahealthier life, offers amore favourable response to
therapies, is cost-effectiveover the long term, andcan reduceHIV transmission.
a
Itmight be time forus, as a profession, to come together
and consider screening for infectionswhichfirst
manifestations are in themouthand sometimes appear
before the patient gets diagnosed.
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