Diabetes Care From The Dental Chair, sponsored by Corsodyl, outlines the INDICATE-2 study (Introducing Diabetes Checks in the Dental Setting), a major UK initiative led by the University of Birmingham and funded by Haleon.
The study establishes a care pathway for dental teams across 50 practices to screen routine patients for diabetes and pre-diabetes using blood tests and the DDS score (Diabetes Risk in Dentistry Score). Because people often visit the dentist when they feel healthy rather than sick, dental chairs present a unique “cold face” opportunity to diagnose conditions early.
Watch Episode 1 via The Probe’s YouTube channel:
Also available on Spotify:
In this episode:
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The INDICATE 2 Study & The DDS Score: Explains the expansion of the screening program from 13 practices in the southeast to a UK-wide network of 50 practices, tracking data on thousands of patients.
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The Oral-Systemic Link (The Two-Way Street): Covers the bidirectional relationship between diabetes and periodontitis (severe gum disease). Uncontrolled diabetes triples the risk of gum disease, while untreated gum disease actively worsens blood sugar control.
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The Trillion-Dollar Economic Impact: Highlights data modeled by The Economist, revealing that treating periodontitis in at-risk groups could prevent 57 million cases of type 2 diabetes globally and save $163 billion in healthcare costs over a decade.
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Patient Case Study (Anne’s Story): A firsthand account from Anne, a dental hospital patient whose stubborn gum pockets led to a finger-prick blood test, revealing critically high triple-figure blood sugar levels that her standard dietary management had missed. This prompt discovery allowed her to immediately start life-saving medication.
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The Corsodyl Clinical Sponsor Feature: Focuses on the role of effective daily plaque control between routine dental visits, highlighting how sodium bicarbonate toothpaste clinically reduces bleeding and reverses early gum disease.
The episode gathers insights from the following prominent health leaders, researchers, and frontline professionals:
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Professor Iain Chapple – Key lead researcher instrumental in bringing the study to life at the University of Birmingham.
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Dr. Zehra Yonel – Clinical researcher from the University of Birmingham who coordinates the practice-based network.
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Jason Wong – Chief Dental Officer for England.
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Dr. Nigel Carter – Former Chief Executive of the Oral Health Foundation.
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Abbi Castle – Lead Community Care Coordinator at OBEX Dental (sharing Frontline primary care team perspectives).
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Adam Sisson – Vice President and Head of Oral Health Research at Haleon.
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Anne – A patient who was successfully diagnosed with type 2 diabetes directly from a dental screening test.
