Intervention and Management

The 'Intervention and Management' program will develop treatments to reduce the severity and impact of common oral health issues. It is also concerned with improving the skills of the dental workforce. 

Four major project areas have been established:

• Novel therapeutics and dental professional products
• Minimal intervention
• Dental workforce
• eviDent 

Periodontal disease vaccine 

Approximately 20-30% of Australian adults have some degree of the gum disease, periodontitis. Severe cases of the disease destroy the tissue and bone that supports teeth. At present, periodontal disease can only be detected once damage has occurred, and it is costly and time-consuming to contain. There is also growing evidence linking periodontal disease with systemic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Researchers at the Oral Health CRC are working on a vaccine to treat periodontitis, investigating links between periodontal disease and bacteria (specifically P.gingivalis) and inflammation. For updates on the periodontal disease vaccine, or to be involved in clinical trials, please use the Contact Us page of this website.

Antibiofilm approach

Dental caries and periodontal diseases are caused by specific bacteria in plaque that accumulates on the hard surface of the tooth. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that over 65% of human disease is caused by biofilm-forming bacteria.

Researchers with the Oral Health CRC are working to understand how bacterium form biofilm on the tooth surface and ways of reducing levels of harmful bacteria.

Minimal intervention dentistry is a modern dentistry practice designed to manage the cause of oral health problems (e.g. bacterial growth), with a focus on prevention of future issues. Researchers in the Oral Health CRC are investigating new processes, treatments and products which can provide increased benefits to dental practitioners and patients.

Oral Health CRC researchers are assessing the current dental workforce and investigating ways of attracting members to the profession and assisting dental practitioners to stay up to date with the latest oral health research. These activities will assist in ensuring there are sufficient numbers of dental practitioners, educators and researchers to meet future patient and community needs. 

evident network

The eviDent dental practice based research network is a consortium of dental care providers committed to advancing the knowledge of dental practice and ways to improve it. eviDent is an initiative of the Oral Health CRC and the Australian Dental Association Victorian Branch. For more information, please visit the eviDent website.