Anne Breivik

• Brox, Julie Marie Haabeth; Tulek, Amela; Khan, Qalbi; Sehic, Amer; Stein, Linda & Breivik, Anne [Vis alle 8 forfattere av denne artikkelen] (2026). Erosive tooth wear – knowledge and treatment preferences among dental hygienists. Acta Odontologica Scandinavica. ISSN 0001-6357. 85, s. 332–341. doi: 10.2340/aos.v85.46261. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Objective: Erosive tooth wear (ETW) is generally recognized as a widespread condition and a rising concern within the oral healthcare system. This study aimed to investigate dental hygienists` experiences and treatment methods regarding ETW in young adults. Material and methods: A questionnaire was sent to 1,084 Norwegian dental hygienists working in both public and private dental services. In total, 313 responded (response rate 28.9%). After excluding 47 respondents who did not meet the inclusion criteria of working with young adults (15–30 years), 266 dental hygienists were included in the final analyses (24.5% of those invited). Results: In total, 96% of the study population of 266 dental hygienists reported recording ETW in the register, with the public dental service doing so more frequently than the private sector. Sports drinks, energy drinks and soft drinks were believed to be the primary risk indicators of ETW, analogously across groups. Furthermore, there was consensus that the most frequently performed preventive measures were dietary guidance and self-administration of fluoride rinse and/or tablets. Conclusions: Overall, this study suggests that, in our sample, dental hygienists possess substantial knowledge of ETW and hold strong views on potential improvements in their work as healthcare professionals.

• Breivik, Anne; Kopperud, Simen E.; Mulic, Aida Gacic; Stein, Linda; Yitayew, Teferi Mekonnen & Hadler-Olsen, Elin Synnøve [Vis alle 7 forfattere av denne artikkelen] (2025). Risk Indicators Associated with Root Caries and Oral Health-Related Quality of Life among Older Adults: The Tromsø7 Study. Caries Research. ISSN 0008-6568. s. 13–13. doi: 10.1159/000547745. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Introduction: This study aimed to investigate risk indicators associated with root caries in older adults aged 65 years and above in Norway. A secondary aim was to explore whether root caries was associated with oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1,075 participants aged ≥65 from the population-based Tromsø Study (Tromsø7) conducted in Northern Norway in 2015–2016. All inhabitants aged 40 years and older in Tromsø municipality (32,591) were invited, of whom 21,083 participated. The participants underwent clinical and radiographic examinations and answered extensive questionnaires. Root caries was registered on four surfaces per tooth and graded D_3-5. For analysis, prevalence of root caries was dichotomised into (1) no (if the participants had no root caries) and (2) yes (if root caries was registered on at least one surface). Characteristics of the study population were described with percentages and frequencies for the categorical variables and mean and standard deviation (SD) for continuous variables for the whole cohort and stratified on presence of root caries and OHRQoL impact. The statistical significance of differences was assessed with the Pearson χ2 test and independent sample T test. Factors associated with root caries and OHRQoL were explored using logistic regression. The significance level was set to p < 0.05 for all analysis. Results: Men had higher odds of root caries than women (OR: 1.70, 95% CI [1.08, 2.70]) and those who were smokers had a higher odds of root caries than those who had never smoked (OR: 1.83, 95% CI [1.13, 2.94]). Participants with root caries had 1.67 times higher odds of having reduced OHRQoL than those without root caries (95% CI: 1.02, 2.72). Conclusion: This study found that being male and smoking were risk indicators of root caries. Additionally, root caries had a negative impact on OHRQoL. The results could be useful for oral health professionals to guide individual and targeted root caries preventive measures in older adults.

• Breivik, Anne; Kopperud, Simen E.; Khan, Qalbi; Mulic, Aida Gacic & Stein, Linda Maria (2025). Preventive measures and perceived challenges in delivering oral health care for elderly patients: a survey of dental hygienists in Norway. Acta Odontologica Scandinavica. ISSN 0001-6357. 84, s. 1–9. doi: 10.2340/aos.v84.42581. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Objective: This study aimed to gain knowledge of general oral health preventive measures with a specific focus on root caries preventive measures for patients ≥65 years old, performed by Norwegian dental hygienists in public and private dental health services. A secondary aim was to investigate differences and challenges in prevention practices. <p> <p>Materials and methods: An electronic survey was conducted among the sample in 2022. A total of 365 dental hygienists were included in the analyses. Chi-square tests were used to analyze differences between private and public dental hygienists regarding preventive measures and perceived challenges. <p> <p>Results: The most frequently reported general oral health preventive measures were oral hygiene instruction, professional tooth cleaning and scaling. Oral hygiene instruction and application of fluoride varnish were the most performed root caries preventive measure, and reduced manual dexterity in patients was the most perceived challenge. Public dental hygienists perceived challenges to a greater extent than private dental hygienists, particularly related to reduced mobility and ergonomic difficulties in patients. <p> <p>Conclusion: This study confirms dental hygienists’ important role in oral health promotion and showed that Norwegian dental hygienists performed a wide range of preventive measures for patients ≥65 years old. However, a number of challenges were identified in the preventive work.

• Breivik, Anne; Mulic, Aida Gacic; Sehic, Amer; Valen, Håkon; Kopperud, Simen E. & Stein, Linda Maria [Vis alle 7 forfattere av denne artikkelen] (2024). Accumulation and removal of Streptococcus mutans biofilm on enamel and roosurfaces in vitro. Biomaterial Investigations in Dentistry. 11, s. 76–82. doi: 10.2340/biid.v11.41059. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Objective: This study aimed to quantitatively investigate the accumulation of Streptococcus mutans biofilm on enamel and root surfaces and assess the amount of biofilm removal using (1) experimental toothpaste and (2) water, in a closed system of flow chamber.<p> <p<Methods: Eight sound premolars were embedded in epoxy resin and polished with silicon carbide grinding papers to display enamel and root surfaces. To mimic biofilm, cultures of Streptococcus mutans were prepared and grown on the tooth surfaces over night before they were exposed to either 2 liters of Milli Q water or 2 liters of 40% experimental toothpaste in the flow chamber. The amount of biofilm was measured and quantified in Fluorescence microscopy. Mean fluorescence values were recorded and analysed using Microsoft® Excel® (MS Excel 2016). <p>Results: The ability to grow biofilm was equally present at both the enamel and root surfaces. The use of water and 40% experimental toothpaste showed a significant reduction of areas covered with biofilm on both enamel and root dentin in comparison to untreated surfaces (p < 0.01). Significantly more biofilm was removed from enamel compared to root surfaces when treated with either water and toothpaste (p < 0.01). Slightly less biofilm was removed by the use of water compared to toothpaste on both enamel and root dentin surfaces, although the differences were not statistically significant. <p>Conclusion: The results indicate that less biofilm is removed from the root surfaces than enamel by the use of water and 40% experimental toothpaste in flow chamber. Assessing oral biofilm accumulation and monitoring biofilm formation on enamel and root dentin surfaces give oral health professionals important directions that could strenghten the significance of dental caries prevention. Improving older individuals’ oral hygiene practices should therefore be considered an important measure to prevent root caries.

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• Breivik, Anne & Lundsbakken, Linda (2026). Tannpleierens rolle i det infeksjonsforebyggende arbeidet. Tidsskrift for Den norske legeforening (Tidsskriftet). ISSN 0029-2001. 146. doi: https:/tidsskriftet.no/2026/03/kommentar/tannpleiernes-rolle-i-det-infeksjonsforebyggende-arbeidet#comment-3787. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv
• Breivik, Anne; Khan, Qalbi; Stein, Linda; Mulic, Aida Gacic & Kopperud, Simen E. (2025). Prevention of root caries among elderly in Norway. Universitetet i Innlandet. ISSN 9788283805512. Fulltekst i vitenarkiv Vis sammendrag

  Fremskritt innen medisin og odontologi har ført til en betydelig forbedring av den generelle og orale helsen i befolkningen, som gjør at levealderen har økt og at flere beholder sine naturlige tenner inn i alderdommen. Karies, og spesielt rotkaries, er en stor utfordring i denne aldersgruppen i tannhelsetjenesten. Det overordnede målet for avhandlingen er derfor å øke kunnskap om forebygging av rotkaries blant eldre i Norge, noe som er avgjørende for å kunne forbedre og planlegge fremtidens ressursbehov i tannhelsetjenesten. Et laboratorieeksperiment og to tverrsnittstudier ble gjennomført. Laboratorieeksperimentet fant sted på Nordisk Institutt for Odontologiske Materialer (NIOM). Formålet i denne studien var å kvantitativt evaluere Streptococcus Mutans biofilm akkumulering på human emalje og rotoverflater, samt vurdere mengden av biofilm som ble fjernet ved bruk av (1) eksperimentell tannkrem og (2) vann, i et lukket system i flow chamber. I den første tverrsnittstudien benyttet vi oss av data fra Tromsø7 undersøkelsen, hvor 1075 deltakere over 65 år ble inkludert. Studien hadde som formål å undersøke hvilke risikoindikatorer som var assosiert med rotkaries hos eldre over 65 år. Et sekundært formål var å undersøke hvorvidt rotkaries var assosiert med oral helse-relatert livskvalitet (OHRQoL). I den andre tverrsnittstudien ble det gjennomført en nettbasert spørreundersøkelse blant 365 tannpleiere i offentlig og privat sektor, hvor formålet var å øke kunnskap om hvilke forebyggende tiltak som ble utført blant eldre over 65 år, med spesielt søkelys på forebyggelse av rotkaries. Et sekundært formål var å undersøke forskjeller og utfordringer i det forebyggende arbeidet. Laboratoriestudien (Paper I) viste at mindre biofilm ble fjernet fra rotoverflatene sammenlignet med emalje. I dataen fra Tromsøundersøkelsen (Paper II) fant vi at menn og røykere hadde høyere risiko for å utvikle rotkaries. Vi fant også at rotkaries var signifikant assosiert med oral helse-relatert livskvalitet. Resultatene fra spørreundersøkelsen (Paper III) viste at tannpleierne utførte en rekke forebyggende tiltak for eldre, selv om det opplevdes som krevende. Avhandlingen understreker betydningen av forebygging av rotkaries blant eldre og indikerer et behov for mer ressurser og økt prioritering av forebyggende strategier i tannhelsetjenesten som samsvarer med tannhelsebehovene til den aldrende befolkningen i Norge. Forskningen adresserer omfattende og viktig informasjon som bør tas i betraktning av tannhelsepersonell og beslutningstakere i det forebyggende arbeidet for denne gruppen.

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