Assessing medical and dental practitioners' current knowledge and experience of managing patients with solid organ transplants.

Abstract

The year 2024 will mark the 70th anniversary of the first long-term successful solid organ transplant (SOT) which is used primarily as a therapeutic intervention to treat terminal end-stage organ failure. The aim of this semi-structured interview-based, exploratory, qualitative study was to assess existing knowledge and experience of both medical and dental practitioners regarding SOT patients and highlight where these may impact on patient care. The study highlights a growing cohort in need of standardised long-term dental management to improve patient safety. Future policy and progressed integration should fortify both patients’ perception and practitioners’ understanding that the oral cavity is indeed a part of the human body, not a detached entity to be treated independently.