Dental Practice-Based Research Networks

In March 2005,  NIDCR awarded three seven-year grants, totaling $75 million, to establish practice-based research networks that investigate with greater scientific rigor everyday issues in the delivery of oral healthcare. The impetus behind the networks is the frequent lack of research data to guide treatment decisions in the dentist’s office.

Each regional network will conduct approximately 15 to 20 short-term clinical studies over the next seven years, comparing the benefits of different dental procedures, dental materials, and prevention strategies under a range of patient and clinical conditions.  The networks also will perform anonymous chart reviews, as allowed by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), to generate data on disease, treatment trends, and the prevalence of less common oral conditions.

PBRN Web Sites

To learn more, please visit the network web sites:  

• Practitioners Engaged in Applied Research and Learning (PEARL) Network (administered by the New York University College of Dentistry)
  
  
• Dental Practice-Based Research Network (DPBRN) (administered by the University of Alabama at Birmingham)
  
  
• Northwest PRECEDENT (administered by the University of  Washington)

PBRN News

• PBRN Offers Overview of Clinical Research Primer (March 2008)
  Also see Preparing Practicing Dentists to Engage in Practice-Based Research
  
  
• PBRN Completes First Randomized Clinical Trial (RCT) on Tobacco Cessation Counseling In Dental Practices 
  (August 2008)
  
  
• PBRN Announces Study of Analgesic Use and Effectiveness (2008)
  
  
• Survey Examines Treating Deep Caries (May 2007)
  
  
• Building a Dental Practice-Based Research Network (June 2005)
  Interview with the principal investigators of the Practice-Based Research Networks
   
  
• NIDCR Awards Grants for New Practice-Based Initiative (March 2005)

Resources

American Dental Association (ADA) Evidence-Based Dentistry website
The ADA has received a grant from the NIDCR and the National Library of Medicine to develop an Evidence-based Dentistry website.  See the interim resource above.

Additional Information

For additional information about the Practice-Based Research Networks, please contact:

Donald J. DeNucci, D.D.S., M.S.
Program Director
Practice-Based Research Networks
Center for Clinical Research
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
6701 Democracy Blvd., Room 632, Mail Stop 4878
Bethesda, MD  20892-4878
Telephone: 301-451-5096
Fax: 301-480-8322
E-mail:  denuccid@nidcr.nih.gov