Paediatric cariology

  • C. Deery,
  • M-T. Hosey &
  • P. Waterhouse
UK: Quintessence price £28, pp 140 ISBN 1850970734 | ISBN: 1-850-97073-4

With all good intentions, I planned to read Paediatric cariology while on holiday in Italy. Remarkably I did manage it, which is testimony enough to the readability of this excellent little textbook.

The authors set out to provide a comprehensive guide to the diagnosis and management of caries in children. They have certainly achieved this aim and have produced a very well illustrated, concise and practical book. General dental practitioners and professionals complementary to dentistry would undoubtedly find it a very useful addition to their reference collection. It was particularly encouraging that, right from the opening pages, the authors provide a strong argument for the need to be proactive in the management of the carious primary dentition.

The first four chapters essentially cover the diagnosis and prevention of dental caries. I found the sections on caries risk assessment (chapter 2) and the caries prevention toolkit (chapter 4) especially informative. I think readers would also appreciate the practical and sensible advice that is given on how to manage the child who presents with toothache (chapter 3).

The remaining five chapters provide extremely helpful instruction relating to restorative management of the carious primary dentition. One of the strengths of this book is that it offers such a good range of evidence-based and readily attainable treatment options. A nice example of such is atraumatic restorative treatment (chapter 5) which may be indicated for young, anxious or less compliant children.

The chapter on pulp therapy (chapter 7) proved very topical. There has been growing unease about the use of formocresol for vital primary molar pulp treatment and this controversial issue was thoroughly addressed. The authors discuss the rationale for a number of different pulp treatments and provide strong argument for use of ferric sulphate as a more biologically acceptable alternative to formocresol. Clear details and valuable clinical tips are given for each pulp therapy regimen.

Other infrequently employed techniques for children, such as preformed crowns and rubber dam, are also presented in such a simple and clear way that practitioners may well be persuaded to try them out in the future!

In summary, this is a brightly illustrated and well-written textbook, which provides contemporary and highly practical guidance on all aspects of caries management. It is a 'must' for anyone wanting to achieve stress-free and successful clinical management of their young patients.