Newcastle University

Dentistry: Unit of Assessment 10

The majority of research in the Dentistry UoA is officially classified as world-leading or internationally excellent in terms of originality, significance and rigour, having most of its evidence assessed as being in the 4* and 3* categories for quality in the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise.

We aim to generate research of international excellence that leads to new scientific knowledge and improvements in disease prevention and patient care. Our success in meeting our aims is indicated by the fact that five of our staff are holders of IADR Distinguished Scientist Awards.

We focus our research efforts through four Research Groups, each led by an established researcher of international standing who co-ordinates efforts to maximise effective use of expertise, equipment and support staff:

• Molecular and Cell Biology of Oral Diseases Group
• Dental Tissues and Materials Group
• Nutrition and Oral Health Group
• Effectiveness of Oral Care Group

We are active participants in several of the University’s multidisciplinary Research Institutes and our network of external collaborators includes academic partners from across the UK and overseas institutions.

Our innovative Clinical Fellows scheme addresses the difficulties of capacity building and recruiting dentally-qualified academic staff. Young dentists, who have completed foundation training and gained MFDS, are appointed to a five-year post in which half their time is devoted to obtaining a PhD and the other half to teaching. We are also the only school with funded national training posts for aspiring primary care academics under the ‘Walport’ scheme.

In RAE 2001, we returned 21.5 researchers but have grown to 32 in this submission. We have increased our research students from 76 to 133 FTE over the assessment period, with 24 PhD and 13 MPhil degrees awarded. Our postgraduate students benefit from a stimulating environment with an active mentoring system and a strong research seminar/journal club environment.

Our funding from external agencies has grown from £390k expenditure per annum in 2001 to over £600k in 2007, with a total spend of £3.7m.

Newcastle University’s mission is ‘Excellence with a Purpose’ and we are strongly committed to ensuring that benefits flow from research to application in clinical dentistry at national and international levels. Newcastle is making a major contribution in areas including the following:
 

• Clinical guidelines for management of drug-induced gingival overgrowth.
• Leading role in establishment of new ISO standards, including ones for dental cements.
• Demonstration of a lack of difference in the bioavailability of artificial vs natural fluoride, addressing a key research need identified by the MRC.
• Global dietary recommendations, including on intake of non-milk extrinsic sugars.
• New sedation procedures incorporated into national guidelines that could relieve pressure on hospitals and allow patients to avoid potentially risky general anaesthetics.
• Optimised protocols for delivery of local anaesthetics.
• More effective methods for controlling postoperative dental pain.
• Improved, evidence based, management of sufferers from Temporomandibular joint disorders by finding better ways of measuring the condition.
• New clinical guidelines on techniques for pulp lining in endodontics.
• New insights and application of research on the relationship between quality of life and economic factors in a number of areas of patient treatment including implants, shortened dental arch and overdentures.
• Novel lines of research into the health economics of budgeting and commissioning health services to give better value for money.