The impact of an ethnically diverse, web-based case file in orthodontic education

描述(由申请人提供)： 美国是世界上人口最多元化的国家。然而，当代正畸教育并没有反映出这种多样性。此外，由于种族群体在整个地区的分布并不均匀，正畸培训计划很难为全国不同的患者样本提供经验，因此，他们在未来的实践中可能会遇到的多样性。该项目建议利用现代信息技术来提高正畸学生对更好地代表当代美国的多样性的接触。拟议研究的目标是评估基于网络的数据库的价值，该数据库来自不同种族和种族的正畸患者群体，其中包括不确定的案例研究。该数据库将是一个可搜索的、基于网络的、不同族裔和种族的正畸病例的虚拟病例文件，其中将包括治疗序列X光图像、口腔内照片图像以及详细的人口统计和治疗数据，并配有便利快速和方便地获取这些材料的工具。这项工作将增加学生接触到的患者的种族和民族多样性，从而提高正畸培训经验的价值，从而为他们在21世纪的美国实践做好更好的准备。我们将测试两个具体的假设，关于一个可搜索的，种族和种族多样化的案例研究的电子数据库在正畸培训和实践中的影响。这些假设将通过数据库开发和迭代测试其设计的可用性、医学教育评估技术和结果的传播来解决。除了正畸教育、研究和临床应用，这个数据库还包括生物人类学、公共卫生、流行病学和医学生物信息学。 这个项目的公共卫生应用有三个方面：1)帮助现在和未来的正畸医生认识到种族差异在正畸患者治疗中的重要性。2)提供促进正畸研究的工具，特别是关于种族变异、错牙合和治疗史的研究。3)提供具有广泛研究应用的工具，包括公共卫生、颅面发育和法医人类学。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The U.S. has the most diverse population of any nation. However, contemporary orthodontic education does not reflect this diversity. Additionally, as racial groups are not equally distributed across the landscape, it is difficult for orthodontic training programs to provide experiences with a sample of patient as diverse as the country as a whole and therefore, with the diversity they are likely to encounter in their future practices. This project proposes to leverage modern information technology to enhance orthodontic students' exposure to diversity that better represents the contemporary U.S. The goal of the proposed research is to assess the value of a web-based database of de-identified case studies from an ethnically and racially diverse orthodontic patient population. The database will be a searchable, web-based, virtual case file of ethnically and racially diverse orthodontic cases that will include treatment-sequenced X-ray images, intra-oral photographic images, and detailed demographic and treatment data, accompanied by tools to facilitate rapid and convenient access to these materials. This work will improve the value of the orthodontic training experience by increasing the variety of racial and ethnic diversity of patients to which students are exposed, thereby better preparing them for practice in 21st century America. We will test two specific hypotheses regarding the impact of a searchable, electronic database of ethnically and racially diverse case studies in orthodontic training and practice. The hypotheses will be addressed though database development and iterative testing of the usability of its design, medical education evaluation techniques, and dissemination of the results. Besides orthodontic education, research, and clinical use, just some of the other fields that will find this database useful include biological anthropology, public health, epidemiology, and medical bioinformatics. The public health applications of this project are three-fold: 1) Helping present and future orthodontists to recognize the importance of ethnic variation in the treatment of orthodontic patients. 2) Providing a tool to facilitate research in orthodontics, especially in research concerning ethnic variation, malocclusion, and treatment histories.3) Providing a tool with wide-ranging research applications, including public health, craniofacial development, and forensic anthropology.