ACORN: A feasibility study

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    ACORN: improving orAl health in Cleft lip and/Or palate: a health pRomotion iNtervention for children and parents: Stage 2 (A feasibility study)

  • IRAS ID

    168817

  • Contact name

    Peter Callery

  • Contact email

    peter.callery@manchester.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    1 years, 11 months, 15 days

  • Research summary

    This is the second stage in an NIHR funded feasibility study. Children with a cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) can struggle to look after their teeth and often have poor oral health. This can affect success of their treatment, including bone grafts and braces.

    Implementation intentions are based on 'if-then plans', which recognise that people generally want to act in a healthy way but don't always manage to do so. Even simple 'if-then plans' have helped adults and children to keep to habits that many people find it hard to maintain, such as exercising and eating a healthy diet. We want to see whether a brief psychological intervention known as implementation intentions can help these children care for their teeth and so improve their oral health. They have been shown to be effective for health behaviours such as diet and exercise. They have been used in a limited way with children in the past, but not with those who have CL/P.

    We aim to include approximately 60 children and their parents in the study. Participants will be recruited from three UK Cleft Centres. Data in the form of questionnaires, non-invasive dental assessments and semi structured interview, will be collected by a dental nurses in the participants home.

  • REC name

    West Midlands - Solihull Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    15/WM/0352

  • Date of REC Opinion

    20 Sep 2015

  • REC opinion

    Favourable Opinion