Paediatric Dentistry, The Faculty of Dentistry, HKU

Paediatric Dentistry, The Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong

The Discipline of Paediatric Dentistry was established at the Faculty of Dentistry, the University of Hong Kong in 1982. Professor Alan Brooke from London was the Founding Chair Professor of Children’s Dentistry & Orthodontics in the Faculty. Professor Brooke designed the first curricula of paediatric dentistry and clinical facilities in the Prince Philip Dental Hospital. He was succeeded by Professor Stephen Wei Hon Yin from the USA, where he was Professor and Chair of Pedodontics at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) in 1984. Before his appointment at UCSF, Professor Wei taught at the University of Iowa from 1967 to 1983. He was Professor and Head of the Department of Pedodontics of the University from 1967 to 1983. Professor Nigel King (in the middle of the picture) was also one of the founding members of the discipline of Paediatric Dentistry in Hong Kong.

The discipline of Paediatric Dentistry is housed on the same floor as the discipline of Orthodontics and was planned as a joint Department in the very beginning. This facilitates the joint supervision and clinical management of the child patient’s dental and oral health needs and all aspects of their growth and development from infancy through adolescence. The clinical activities are all supported by fully certified dental surgery assistants. Students are used to practising four-handed dentistry.

Education and Training in Paediatric Dentistry

HKU Faculty of DentistryThe Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Hong Kong is the only dental school in Hong Kong. It is the premier global centre for undergraduate and postgraduate dental education and training. HKU Dentistry has maintained a top-three global ranking in the QS World University Rankings by Subject for 9 out of 11 years (2015-2025).

Students enjoy first-class teaching and state-of-the-art facilities at the fully established multi-specialty dental clinic – The Institute for Advanced Dentistry Multi-Specialty Clinic (IAD-MSC). The IAD-MSC was opened in 2020 and is located in Sai Wan (HKU MTR Station Exit B1). It is a Centre of Excellence in educating and training local and international resident dentists to manage complex and severe oral conditions.

Apart from the IAD-MSC, the Faculty is equipped, amongst many other facilities, with a Simulation Laboratory for dental students’ self-practice, a fleet of modern research laboratories, comprehensive and advanced library holdings, and a Lounge. All these are located in the Prince Philip Dental Hospital (PPDH) in Sai Ying Pun, which is about a 10-15 minute walk away from the University’s Main Campus on Pokfulam Road. In the Main Campus, there are many other teaching facilities and amenities for students, including the impressive and popular Student Learning Commons.

The professoriate and clinical teaching staff of HKU Dentistry are internationally recognised dental experts. Teaching and learning in the Faculty are also supported by highly skilled, dedicated manpower, including dental surgery assistants, dental hygienists, dental technicians and laboratory technicians.

The taught postgraduate programme in Paediatric Dentistry has an esteemed reputation and leads to the Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) degree in Paediatric Dentistry. The internationally benchmarked programme fulfils the specialist training requirements of the College of Dental Surgeons of Hong Kong (CDSHK) of the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine (HKAM). A limited number of government-funded places in each specialty taught postgraduate programme may be available for local candidates who fulfil the eligibility criteria and have demonstrated academic merit. More information about the programme can be found on the faculty website.

Patient care in the HKU Faculty of Dentistry

Patient care provided in the Paediatric Dentistry Clinic in Prince Philip Dental Hospital (PPDH) and IAD-MSC is primarily for teaching undergraduate and postgraduate dental students. Private patients are also seen by the professoriate and clinical teaching staff, but they all require a written referral letter.

Primary and extensive preventive and therapeutic oral healthcare are provided to infants, children, and teenagers, including those with special needs. Patients with special care needs could be medically compromised, or mentally and physically disabled. They may be unable to obtain quality dental care from the general dental practitioners. Comprehensive dental treatment under general anaesthesia (GA) is provided weekly at the Duchess of Kent Children’s Hospital and Queen Mary Hospital by local postgraduate dental students under the supervision of clinical teaching staff. Both local and international resident dentists also provide dental treatment to patients under monitored anaesthetic care (MAC) in IAD-MSC under supervision. The postgraduate dental students are also involved in outreach to kindergartens and special child care centres, the cleft lip and palate joint consultation clinic and hospital dentistry in the Hong Kong Children’s Hospital. 

Research

The Discipline of Paediatric Dentistry in the Faculty of Dentistry, the University of Hong Kong has a wide range of research interests, including: epidemiological studies and management of early childhood caries, dental anomalies and developmental defects, cleft lip and palate, clinical studies of dental materials, laboratory and clinical studies on remineralization, enamel and bonding agents and oral health of special needs children. Many publications in international refereed journals are published by the staff and taught and research postgraduate students every year.

© 2019 Hong Kong Society of Paediatric Dentistry. All rights reserved.