Short course

Diabetes and Oral Health

Start date: New Dates TBC
Duration: Five weeks - course content will no longer be accessible after the course date.

Time commitment: 10 hours of content plus the live session.
Mode: Online.

Cost: Student: £20, Clinical Trainee/ AHP: £30, Consultant / Dentist / GP / Pharmacist: £75, Private/ Industry: £75.
Subject: Oral health and diabetes.

Level: CPD.

Assessment: None - formative quiz at the end of each section to help identify knowledge gaps.

This hybrid short course is aimed at the entire healthcare team who have contact with those living with diabetes. The course will provide an overview and understanding of the importance of collaborative working between oral healthcare providers and the broader healthcare team to ensure optimal outcomes for patients with periodontitis and type 2 diabetes.

The course will also consider the role of the healthcare team in caring for patients with diabetes and practical advice with regards to their oral wellbeing.

Periodontitis is a chronic, non-communicable disease that affects around half the world’s adult population, with its severe form affecting approximately 11% of adults. It can have a significant psycho-social impact on patients as well as functional and nutritional consequences, limiting patients' ability to eat, smile and speak. There is a 3 fold increased prevalence of periodontitis in people living with diabetes. Therefore, it is important that community and primary care health providers know what periodontitis is, the signs, symptoms and simple advice they can offer to support those newly diagnosed with diabetes or those people living with diabetes who are unaware of the oral health connection.

The growing burden of type 2 diabetes is well documented. The World Health Organisation reported that globally more than 422 million people had diabetes in 2014. In 2019, diabetes was the ninth leading cause of death with an estimated 1.5 million deaths directly caused by diabetes. Further to the associated mortality and morbidity are the significant economic costs associated with the type 2 diabetes.

There is now strong evidence for a bi-directional relationship between the two conditions offering the potential for a coordinated management approach that improves patient outcomes. This short course explores the evidence and potential management strategies to help in the treatment of people living with diabetes. The course will provide access to key resources to underpin the course content and provide practical tips and resources that can be shared with patients concerned about their oral health. The course is primarily aimed at healthcare professionals who may have contact with patients living with either periodontitis or diabetes.

Programme team:

The course will be delivered by Miss Zehra Yonel, Professor Michael Milward, Professor Iain Chapple from the School of Dentistry, Dr Amar Puttanna and Dr Rajeev Raghavan - Diabetes Consultants within the West-Midlands and Dominika Antoniszczak, a dentist and person living with Type 1 Diabetes.

Dates of the course:

New Dates TBC.

Course content:

Module 1: What is Periodontitis
Module 2: Diabetes (type 2)
Module 3: Periodontitis & Type 2 Diabetes
Module 4: The Role of The Healthcare Team in Identification, Prevention & Management of Diabetes & Oral Healthcare advice for Patients with Diabetes
Module 5: Practical Tips & Resources and Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

How to apply:

Registration will open once new dates are confirmed. In the meantime, please contact mdscpdenquiries@contacts.bham.ac.uk to express your interest.

The courses have minimum required attendance levels, and the University reserves the right to cancel or postpone the course if the minimum required number of delegates has not been achieved for the course.

For enquiries, please use our enquiry form.

See how the University of Birmingham uses your data, view the Event attendee privacy notice.

Great course, really valuable. The videos were a great way to enable me to have a better understanding of the links between diabetes and perio. Consequently, this will not only enable me to talk to patients more confidently about the disease and the patients will benefit from having more current, up to date information. Thank you!
Jemima Mitchell, Dental Therapist

This course is primarily aimed at members of the diabetes healthcare team who may be able to advise patients with regards to their oral health concerns. This will include but not be limited to:

Diabetes specialist nurses
Practice nurses
Healthcare assistants
General practitioners
Pharmacists
Diabetologists

This course may also be of benefit to oral healthcare professionals wishing to update their knowledge, including:

Oral health educators
Hygienists and therapists
General dental practitioners

Accreditation:

10 hours of CPD points can be claimed.

Course results:

Certificate of completion confirming hours of completed study.

Learning outcomes:

To understand the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and disease burden of periodontitis.
To understand the epidemiology, pathophysiology, and disease burden of type 2 diabetes
To have an overview of the epidemiological associations between periodontitis and type 2 diabetes and current theories relating to plausibility of the association between these conditions.
What are some of the oral signs and symptoms of poorly controlled diabetes?
What current guidance is available for oral healthcare professionals?
What is the current evidence base for dental teams delivering preventative advice for shared risk factors?
What is the evidence base for oral healthcare teams undertaking early detection of type 2 diabetes in the dental setting?
What are stakeholders' perceptions of closer integrated working between dental and medical teams?
To provide links to evidence-based resources to support you to answer questions that patients presenting to medical settings may have related to their oral health, periodontitis risk and prevention/ management of oral health conditions related to diabetes.
To provide links to evidence-based resources to support you to answer questions that patients presenting to oral health settings may have related to their general health, diabetes risk and prevention/ management of systemic conditions related to periodontitis.
What current guidance is available for medical professionals?

Meet your instructors

Zehra Yonel, Clinical Lecturer in Restorative Dentistry, School of Dentistry

Miss Zehra Yonel is a Clinical Lecturer and honorary Specialist Registrar in Restorative Dentistry at the School of Dentistry, University of Birmingham. Her PhD, funded by the NIHR (National Institute for Health Research) and Diabetes UK, as part of the Doctoral Research Fellowship (DRF), explores the role of the oral healthcare team in the management of patients with type 2 diabetes.

Zehra's research interests lie in the fields of epidemiology and the interface between oral and systemic diseases. Zehra is a calibrated assessor of dental indices used in clinical studies. Recently she has worked with NICE as part of the update committee on the newly updated NICE guidelines:

"Diabetes in children and young people, Quality standard [QS125]"
"Diabetes (type 1 and type 2) in children and young people: diagnosis and management, NICE guideline [NG18]"
"Type 1 diabetes in adults: diagnosis and management, NICE guideline [NG17]",
"Type 2 diabetes in adults: management, NICE guideline [NG28]"

Zehra’s clinical training is in the field of restorative dentistry, encompassing periodontics, endodontics and prosthodontics. With her primary clinical interest being in the field of periodontology.

Zehra is also responsible for delivering teaching to dental students, hygiene and therapy students as well as dental nursing students across the full undergraduate curriculum. This teaching takes the form of lectures, tutorials and small-group teaching.

Zehra is also experienced in the delivery of postgraduate teaching, having won a commendation from the Royal College of Surgeons for her contribution to postgraduate dental education.

View Zehra's staff profile

Amar Puttanna, Diabetes and Endocrine Consultant in the West Midlands

Amar Puttanna is a Diabetes and Endocrine Consultant in the West Midlands and National Medical Advisor for Clinical Engagement at Sanofi UK.

He is particularly interested in education, having won teaching awards from the University of Birmingham and the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and currently sits on the MRCP Part 1 examining board. In 2018 he received an Excellence in Patient Care Award from the Royal College of Physicians for contribution to the profession.

He has been involved in writing guidelines, including those on older adults with diabetes with the Joint British Diabetes Societies (JBDS) and guidelines/patient leaflets for TREND-UK on diabetes and dementia. He was previously part of the Birmingham and Solihull CCG medicines management group and has worked on local guidelines for type 2 diabetes promoting newer therapies in cardiovascular risk reduction and specifically the section on frailty. His work in cognitive impairment (DIADEM project) has won a Quality in Care award. He is currently involved in a nationwide education programme for care home staff.

He sits on the editorial board for the British Journal of Cardiology and previously Diabetic Medicine Journal. He has been an invited speaker to national and international conferences and has worked with the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) and the BMJ on their e-learning platforms. He is part of GoggleDocs, a medical education initiative focussing on cardio-reno-metabolic disease and is a former member and chair of the Young Diabetologists and Endocrinologists Forum (YDEF) and one of the first Royal College of Physicians Chief Registrars.

Dr Puttanna's interests are in cardiovascular disease, diabetes management in older adults and translating research into clinical practice. He is also active on social media (@AmarPut).

Professor Mike Milward, Director of Education for the College of Medical & Dental Sciences

Professor Milward initially qualified as a medical microbiologist before embarking on his dental career. After working in general dental practice Mike returned to the School of Dentistry in the Institute of Clinical Sciences undertaking a number of junior hospital / teaching roles, before appointment as a full time clinical lecturer in Periodontology in 1999. Since his appointment Mike has developed a profile both in teaching and research, becoming a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and successfully completing his PhD in 2010.

He was accepted onto the GDC specialist list and promoted to Senior Lecturer / Honorary Consultant in Periodontology in 2012. In 2017 he was promoted to Reader before being awarded his chair in Periodontology in 2019.

Mike is currently teaching lead for Periodontology at the School of Dentistry and is Director of Education for the College of Medical & Dental Sciences.

View Professor Milward's staff profile

Professor Iain Chapple, Head of Research for the Institute of Clinical Sciences

Iain Chapple MBE, was Head of the School of Dentistry 2016-2020. He continues to be Head of Research for the Institute of Clinical Sciences and REF2021 lead for Unit of Assessment 3. He is also Professor and Head of Periodontology within the School, and Honorary Consultant in Restorative Dentistry with Birmingham Community Health Trust. He has honorary consultant contracts with University Hospital Birmingham Foundation Trust, Birmingham Women's and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, and the Office of the Chief Dental officer.

Iain has published over 220 research papers in the peer reviewed scientific literature, and written and edited 10 textbooks and authored 23 book chapters in the field of Periodontology, Periodontal Medicine and Surgery, Nutrition and Molecular Methods. Iain has received major grants from the Medical Research Council, European Union, Charities and Industry.

Iain is a committed and enthusiastic teacher of undergraduate and postgraduate students within Birmingham, nationally and internationally on various graduate programmes across Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific rim.

Iain is former Scientific Editor of the British Dental Journal, former Associate Editor of the Journal of Periodontal Research, current Associate Editor of the Journal of Clinical Periodontology and Periodontology 2000.

Iain was awarded the Charles Tomes medal of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2012; the Distinguished Scientist Award of the International Association for Dental Research (Periodontal Research) in 2018; and the Special Citation Award of the American Academy of Periodontology in 2018.

Iain was President of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Periodontal Research Group (PRG-2006-7), Treasurer (2007-2013) and Secretary General (2016-2019) of the European Federation of Periodontology (EFP) and is currently Treasurer of the UK Oral and Dental Research Trust. He co-chairs the annual EFP workshops (research and education).

Iain is clinical lead for a hospital regional specialist periodontal service (referral base of 6-million) and a national oral care service for adult Epidermolysis Bullosa patients.

View Professor Chapple's staff profile

Dominika Antoniszczak

Dominika is a dentist and person living with Type 1 Diabetes. She graduated from Medical University of Warsaw (2018), King’s College London (2019), Swansea University (2021). She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 2018, only two weeks after graduating from dental school. Her research interests focuses on exploring relationship between oral health and diabetes. She is a member of British Society of Periodontology (BSP) and Polish Society of Paediatric Dentistry (PTSD). During her time at Swansea while completing MSc in Diabetes Practice her dissertation explored oral health behaviours among people with diabetes. She works in private dental practice. When she is not working she can be found on a golf course.

Twitter: @DominikaDDS

Rajeev Raghavan

Clinical Director of the Diabetes Endocrine Services at the Wolverhampton Diabetes Endocrine Centre, New Cross Hospital, Wolverhampton. Dr Raghavan is chair of the Wolves Diabetes Network and also Clinical lead for Retinopathy Screening for Wolverhampton. He has advocated equitable care and access to technologies for vulnerable populations. He has been an active member of the Midlands Transitional Care Diabetes Network and organised regional meetings under the aegis of ABCD. Specialist interests include Adolescent and Transitional Diabetes Care, Technology in Diabetes, Type 1 Diabetes, Pregnancy and Obesity