Translating research evidence into dental practice

Evidence-based dentistry relies on effectively translating research findings into dental practice to improve patient outcomes and population health. Translational research aims to bridge the gap between bench and bedside. During the past years, efforts have been made to facilitate the transfer of scientific findings into dental practice, to scale the provision of the best available evidence, and to incorporate it as part of the standard care. However, empirical evidence has shown considerable delays and unpredictability during this process. The main obstacles include variable and complex health conditions, diversity of practice settings, inefficient multidisciplinary collaboration, as well as avoidable research waste. This narrative review intends to introduce key concepts and principles for disseminating and implementing research findings, and discuss the challenges translational dentistry faces. Based on existing implementation strategies, we present knowledge and advances based on evidence-based medicine, including clinical practice guidelines, evidence ecosystem, implementation science, multidisciplinary collaboration, regulations, and standards, which hold promise for accelerating the translation and application of dental research evidence.