Clinical trial NCT06442904: Can a Digital Education Program in Radiographic Imaging Technique for Dental Professionals Improve Image Quality?
Official title: A Digital Education Program in Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology: Effect on Image Quality Evaluated in a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Radiography
Dentistry
Keywords: digital education
oral and maxillofacial radiology
Lead sponsor: Umeå University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Västerbotten County Council, Sweden
First posted: 2024-06-04
Enrollment: 90
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a digital education program designed for dental professionals can lead to radiographic examinations of better quality. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does the digital education program lead to more radiographic examinations of good quality? Does the digital education program lead to better theoretical and practical understanding regarding image quality among dental professionals?

Researchers will compare answers from a theoretical test and image quality in radiographic examinations between participants with respectively without access to the digital education program.

Participants will:

* have access to the digital education program for three months
* after three months all study participants are invited to answer a theoretical test

Detailed description: The present study aims to evaluate a digital education programs effect on image quality in intraoral radiographic examinations performed by dental professionals. The present study is part of an on-going cross sectional descriptive project where dental professionals employed in general dental care in the county of Västerbotten, Sweden constitute the study population. The purpose of the project is to gain a broader understanding of a digital education programs impact on the theoretical and practical competencies among dental professionals regarding intraoral dental radiographic examinations.

Approximately 80 dental professionals have provided written informed consent regarding study participation. In the present study, approximately 40 participants will for three months be offered the intervention and join a digital education program. Approximately 40 participants will during the same period not be offered the intervention and constitute the control group. Effects on practical competencies between groups will be evaluated when analyzing image quality of intraoral radiographic examinations. Effects on theoretical competencies between groups will be analyzed with a theoretical test.

Cluster randomization of dental clinics will be made for study included participants to either intervention group or control group. Recruitment of study participants will end in August 2024.

The investigators hypothesize that the digital education program will improve the theoretical competence and radiographic image quality in intraoral radiographic examinations.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

• Dental professionals performing radiographic examinations employed in general dentistry in the County Council of Västerbotten, Sweden

Exclusion Criteria:

• Dental professionals not performing radiographic examinations

Primary outcomes:
measure: Image quality
timeFrame: Baseline and three months post-intervention
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Theoretical competence
timeFrame: One month post-intervention
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Umeå
country: Sweden
facility: Folktandvården Region Västerbotten
Study officials:
affiliation: Umeå University
name: Maria Garoff, Assoc. Prof.
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: