Damiens research began in 1982 during the tenure of a M.R.C. research studentship. The title of the project was "the uses and potential biological effects of ultrasound in dentistry". The account of this work was presented in the form of theses resulting in the successful award of the degrees of Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy, Victoria University of Manchester.

This research activity was continued following his appointment to the School of Dentistry at the University of Birmingham. Damien was appointed Senior Lecturer in 1991 and Full Professor in 2000. Damien has an international reputation that has been built up over the years related to his research interests in Ultrasonics and Editorship of the Journal of Dentistry. Damien is also internationally known for his elearning and IT work. Damien is always looking for the latest applications or techniques in his interest area. Damien has previously been a company Director of an elearning spin out company and also is part of a new venture www.dentaljuce.com. 

Damien regularly speaks on research and innovation and is chair of the judges of the Medical Futures programme.

• BDS.
• MSc in Advanced General Dental Practice.

Damien is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

• The use of Ultrasound in Dentistry. Its role in treating periodontal disease, endodontics and oral surgery. This involves applied research on the use of ultrasound including knowledge of Physics and clinical application.
• Imaging of teeth and dental plaque with novel technologies.
• The effectiveness of elearning in dentistry.

If you are interesting in studying any of these subject areas please contact Damien on the contact details above, or for any general doctoral research enquiries, please email: dr@contacts.bham.ac.uk or call +44 (0)121 414 5005. or call +44 (0)121 414 5005.

For a full list of available Doctoral Research opportunities, please visit our Doctoral Research programme listings.   

Research themes are Ultrasound in Dentistry,

(1)     Ultrasound in dentistry
In Dentistry, the destructive effects of ultrasound at frequencies in the kilohertz range (20-45 kHz) are used primarily in the form of ultrasonic scalers to remove attached deposits from the teeth. Other areas include endodontics where an ultrasonic file is used to clean and prepare the root canals of teeth. There are, however, numerous other applications ranging from ultrasonic cleaning baths to its use in electric (powered) toothbrushes. Ultrasonic instruments will produce large destructive forces around them when immersed in liquids namely cavitational activity and acoustic microstreaming. These phenomena have long been recognised but their application in dentistry has been generally disregarded. Fundamental studies have been undertaken into the dental effects of cavitational activity and microstreaming, which has resulted in previous theories being questioned. Potential biological effects of the interaction of the dental ultrasound with both soft and hard dental tissues have also been investigated in order to determine the relative safety of these instruments. 

Damien had published widely on ultrasonic dental instruments. This includes the standardisation of such instruments for clinical and research purposes, the biophysical effects of cavitational activity and acoustic microstreaming and the development of in vitro systems to test their effectiveness. This work has been recognised by the Research Councils and he has been the recipient of  several grant awards from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) on the use of Ultrasound in Dentistry over the last 10 years (Web link). Charitable funding has come from the Wellcome Trust Foundation for the purchase of a Micro CT. Funding streams have also been obtained from industry including Proctor and Gamble, Oral B, Philips Sonicare, Dentsply USA and EMS, Switzerland.

The work in this field has been new and important. Such instruments were poorly understood and the work has stimulated research both nationally and internationally. Within this country close ties have been developed with a number of research establishments the strongest being with the Departments of Engineering, Cardiff University (Wolfson Unit - Tony Moses), Chemistry, University of Bath (Dr Gareth Price) and Jewellery Industry Innovation Centre, Birmingham City University (Miss Gay Penfold).  Internationally links exist with Hong Kong and with previous exchange visits with the University of Iowa to undertake collaborative research. I have held the position of visiting Associate Professor to the Department of Endodontics. 

Many commercial companies have been involved with this research and he has collaborated in the development of new instrumentation. This area has now expanded to involve the use of ultrasound in the development of electric toothbrushes which work at sonic frequencies. Industrial funding has been forthcoming in this area to study these devices. This funding is seen by one company Braun as a long term commitment.

One of his previous grants was the award of a Network grant for Technology Transfer in Dentistry from the EPSRC. This grant allowed him to bring together key people within UK dentistry and promote the research within it. Several key contacts have arisen from this work and shows his strength in promoting and networking research activity.

 Other Research Interests

Clinical Research
Research is continuing of the use of implants in providing intra-bony implants into the jaws of patients attending the School of Dentistry at Birmingham Dental hospital. This work has led to several publications on the experiences of implants and prosthesis retained by magnets. There are approximately 40 patients who have received implants in the lower jaw and the complete dentures are retained by either magnet or stud attachments. This work has now taken on International recognition and was invited to present this work at the 5^th International Conference on Magnetic Applications in Dentistry 2001 in Hong Kong. Links have been established with Aichi Steel, Nagoya, Japan and funding is under negotiation.

Gold Medal academic award
In 2004 he was awarded the Gold Medal by the International Research Project on Magnetic Dentistry for work on dental magnets

E-learning and Use of the Internet
The use of e-learning at Birmingham is internationally leading and this has led to several research projects that have shown the effectiveness of the medium. Current research is focussed on the attitudes of staff and students to the use of the medium. We are also developing new learning methods and the ability to deliver them

• Trustee of St Mary’s Hospice, Birmingham.
• President of the British Society for the Study of Prosthetic Dentistry 2010-2011.
• Chairman of the PanDental Society organising committee 2010-2011.
• Scientific Advisor of the British Dental Association.

Parmer D, Mann M, Walmsley AD, Lea SC Cutting Characteristics of Ultrasonic Surgical Instruments 2011(In Press).

Linjawi A, Hill KB, Walmsley AD. 
Online discussion boards in dental education: potential and challenges. European Journal of Dental Education 2011 (In Press).

Deacon SA, Glenny AM, Deery C, Robinson PG, Heanue M, Walmsley AD , Shaw WC. Different powered toothbrushes for plaque control and gingival health. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2010, Issue 12. Art. No.: CD004971.
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004971.pub2.

Cowpe J, Plasschaert A, Harzer W, Vinkka-Puhakka H, Walmsley AD . 
Profile and competences for the graduating European dentist - Update 2009. European Journal of Dental Education. 2010; 14 :193–202.
doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0579.2009.00609.x.

Lea SC, Walmsley AD, Lumley PL.
Analyzing endosonic root canal file oscillations: an in vitro evaluation. Journal of Endodontics. 2010; 36: 880-883.
doi:10.1016/j.joen.2009.12.027

Scheven BAA, Cooper P, Shelton D, Walmsley AD , Smith AJ. Therapeutic Ultrasound for dental tissue repair. Medical Hypotheses 2009; 73: 591–593 doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2009.05.032.

Lea SC, Walmsley AD. Mechano-Physical and Biophysical Properties of Power Driven Scalers – Driving the Future of Powered Instrument Design and Evaluation. Periodontology 2000. 2009; 51: 63–78 doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0757.2009.00300.x

Felver B, King DC, Lea SC, Price GJ, Walmsley AD .
Cavitation occurrence around ultrasonic dental scalers. Ultrasonics and Sonochemistry 2009; 16: 692–697 doi:10.1016/j.ultsonch.2008.11.00.