The Selective Caries Removal in Permanent Teeth Trial (SCRiPT)

The participant recruitment phase of the SCRiPT Study is now complete and the study continues in the participant Follow-up phase. SCRiPT’s new end date is 28 February 2026. The results of the study will be published after that date. The SCRiPT study question compares two treatments for deep tooth decay in the teeth towards the back of the mouth (molars and pre molars). The results of the study will help shape the future of dental care and hopefully ensure that our teeth last longer.

For further information or if you have any questions about SCRiPT please contact us via the study email address: script@dundee.ac.uk.

We are inviting members of the public who have had treatment for severe toothache or recently had dental decay treatment to join a Patient and Public Involvement Group to share their experience and give their opinion on how we give information to other dental patients. Please scroll down for further details or contact us at script@dundee.ac.uk.

What is SCRiPT?

The SCRiPT study is testing two treatments for deep tooth decay. We know both treatments work. However, we don't know which treatment is best overall for patients and for the NHS. The NHS has funded this research project so we can collect information on a large group of people having both types of treatment. At the end of the study we will report which treatment is best.

Who gets tooth decay? Tooth decay is very common. Most teenagers and adults will have some decay in their back teeth. Treating tooth decay (dental caries) costs the NHS over £3.4 billion each year.

How is deep tooth decay usually treated? There are different ways of treating teeth with decay where the decay has spread deep into the tooth close to the nerve.

The most common way is to take away all of the decay before placing a filling in the tooth. This is known as "complete decay removal" or complete caries removal (CCR). When removing all the decay there is a small chance of serious damage to the nerve. Such damage makes root canal treatment or tooth loss (extraction) likely. Also drilling the tooth to remove all the decay can weaken the tooth so it is more likely to break and need further treatment.

Dentists want to compare the complete removal of decay with a new way that does not remove all of the decay. In the new way, the dentists select only some of the decay for removal and a filling is then put in to stop the decay from getting worse. This is known as "selective decay removal" or selective caries removal (SCR). There is no chance that the nerve will be damaged when only some of the decay is taken out. If only some of the decay is taken out it is possible that the tooth will still need more treatment later. There is research in children's teeth that supports this new way. However, there are gaps in our knowledge about selective decay removal in adult teeth.

What is the aim of the SCRiPT study? The SCRiPT study will test "selective decay removal" compared to "complete decay removal" to find out if follow-up treatment was needed, the costs of this follow-up, the pain experienced by the patients and the impact on their lives.

Who is taking part in the study? The participant recruitment phase is now complete. We invited people over 12 years old to take part if they had one or more teeth that had deep decay which could be treated with a filling, and the patient received some or all of their treatment on the NHS.

People taking part have been given one of the two treatments for their deep caries – either selective decay removal or complete decay removal. A computer allocated which treatment they got. They are being followed up as normal by their dentists. Information about their teeth and their routine follow-up visits to their dentist is being collected. People taking part were asked to fill out a questionnaire about their health and their teeth when they started the study and will be asked again 1, 2, and 3 years afterwards.

Where can I find out more? Please download the patient information leaflet on this website which gives more information..

Who is running the study? The study is run by a team of experts in running dental research, led by Prof Jan Clarkson from the University of Dundee. Researchers from the University of Aberdeen and University of Sheffield are also involved. We also have patients and the public in our research teams to help us make sure that the important views of patients are included. The study is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (Health Technology Assessment project reference 17/127/07)

Can I take part?

Recruitment to the script study is now complete. This means that you can’t join the study now. If you are interested to know what other research studies are taking place in your area you can find out here: https://bepartofresearch.nihr.ac.uk.

If you have any questions

PPI (Patient & Public Involvement) in Dental Clinical Research, We Need You!!!

Dundee Dental Hospital & Research School is inviting members of the public to join a Patient and Public Involvement Group to share their experience and give their opinion on how we give information to other dental patients. Please click here. For further details or you can scan the QR code below or contact us at script@dundee.ac.uk.

Montrose Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Mrs Lorraine Arnot

Address:

53 John Street
Montrose
DD10 8LZ

Castle Street Dental

Key people:

Investigator:

Dr Gillian Grant

Address:

92 Castle Street
Forfar
DD8 3AA

Barnhill Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Cathy Sinclair

Address:

56 Torridon Road
Dundee
Tayside
DD5 3HB

Kingsway Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Dr Purvi Patel

Address:

143 Kingsway East
Dundee
Tayside
DD4 8BX

The Health Centre

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Niki Kitsiou

Address:

The Health Centre
Gotham Road
East Leake
LE12 6JG

Main Street Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Hari Lal

Address:

45A Main Street
Thornliebank
Glasgow
G46 7SF

Hafren House Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Bhupinder Dawett

Address:

1 Cressy Road
Alfreton
Derbyshire
DE55 7BR

Dental Surgery

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Philip Wee

Address:

PCK Wee Dental
102a Cricklewood Broadway
Cricklewood
London
NW2 3EJ

Barrow Street Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Peter Martin

Address:

20 Barrow Street
St Helens
WA10 1RX

Broad Walk Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Duncan Hannah

Address:

3 Grosvenor Mansions
Broadwalk
Buxton
SK17 6JH

Dental Surgery

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Nick Harker

Address:

1 Hothfield Street
Silsden
Keighley
BD20 0PP

Horbury Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Harriet Willings

Address:

Vincent House Queen Street
Horbury
Wakefield
WF4 6LP

Inverurie Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Emma Weir

Address:

13 High Street
Inverurie
AB15 9DZ

Connaught House Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Beata Wiechowicz

Address:

369 Eastwood Rd
Rayleigh
Essex
SS6 7LJ

Shettleston Smile Dental Surgery

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr James Beattie

Address:

948-950 Shettleston Road
Glasgow
G32 7XW

Shiremoor Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Melbourne Carew

Address:

1 Lesbury Avenue
Shiremoor
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE27 0NL

{my}dentist, Redditch

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Imogen Addison

Address:

107 Archer Road
Redditch
B98 8DJ

{my}dentist, Cambridge 2

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Raquel Azevedo e Silva

Address:

13-13a Victoria Avenue
Cambridge
Cambridgeshire
CB4 1EG

Outwood Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Victoria Stevens

Address:

569 Leeds Road
Wakefield
WF1 2JL

The Smile Clinic

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Marina George

Address:

2, Deepdale Pavilions
Osbourne Way
Preston
PR1 6PZ

London Road Dental Centre

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Smita Donde

Address:

227 London Road
Croydon
CR0 2RL

Causeway Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Laurie Powell

Address:

23 Causeway
Bicester
Oxon
OX26 6AN

Montgomery Street Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Alex Coakley

Address:

96 Montgomery Street
Edinburgh
EH7 5HE

Alloway Place Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Ed Coote

Address:

1 Alloway Place
Ayr
KA7 2AA

Cromwell Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Narinder Kondel

Address:

1 Cromwell Rd
Walton-on-Thames
Surrey
KT12 3NL

SNS Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Showkat Bhat

Address:

4-5 Dollary Parade
Kingston Road
Kingston
KT1 3NX

Desborough Road (Dental Surgery)

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Neeru Majumdar

Address:

264 Desborough Road
High Wycombe
Bucks
HP11 2QR

Nice Smile Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Asma Khan

Address:

105 Stroud Green Road
Stroud Green
London
N4 3PX

Horizon Dental Clinic, Blyth

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Fiona Hazell

Address:

58 Beaconsfield Street
Blyth
Northumberland
NE24 2DS

Dental Clinic

Key people:

Investigator:

Mr Iain McKinnon

Address:

Liniclate
Isle of Benbecula
HS7 5PJ

Canada Water Dental Health

Key people:

Investigator:

Usman Waheed

Address:

Unit B, Toronto House
Surrey Quays Road
LONDON
SE16 7AJ

Westminster House Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Payal Shah

Address:

11-13 Horseferry Road
Westminster
London
SW1P 2AH

Inchvannie House Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Dally Raghavan

Address:

Inchvannie Court
Dingwall
IV15 9SE

Peel Glen Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Gillian Murphy

Address:

Peel Glen Dental Care
14 Peel Glen Road
Glasgow
G15 7XL

Horizon Dental Clinic, Monkseaton

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Fiona Hazell

Address:

Horizon Dental Clinic
2A Kenilworth Road
Monkseaton
Whitley Bay
NE25 8BE

Huntly Dental Practice

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Sarah Azeem

Address:

Huntly Dental Practice
41 Duke Street
Huntly
AB54 8DT

Precious Dental Care

Key people:

Investigator:

Ms Lynn Mei Woo

Address:

Precious Dental Care
20 Gledhow Avenue
Roundhay
Leeds
LS8 1NU

Study news

Recruitment

427/369

Trial sites

Latest addition to sites:

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									Precious Dental Care
								
									Huntly Dental Practice
								
									Horizon Dental Clinic, Monkseaton
								
									Peel Glen Dental Care
								
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Key facts about the study and documents

What is this study about?

You can read our patient information leaflet about the study. Please click SHOW MORE below and download the patient information leaflet.

You can find out more information about SCRiPT here:

Download documents:

SCRiPTPPIGroup-Advert13.05.2024 (v3)

Patient Information Leaflet (v4)

Key contacts

Click on cards to find out more

Key questions & answers

Click on questions to find out more

I am a dentist – how do I join the study?

Please contact script@dundee.ac.uk in the first instance to register your interest and the team will be in touch to discuss your options.

Organisation

Funding acknowledgement

This study/project is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme (project reference 17/127/07). The views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - Participant Information

The University of Dundee is the sponsor for this study based in the United Kingdom. We will be using information from you and your dental records in order to undertake this study and, will act as the data controller for this study. This means that we are responsible for looking after your information and using it properly. We will keep identifiable information about you for at least 5 years after the study has finished.

This information will include your name, contact details, date of birth, NHS number and CHI number (Scottish participants only). People will use this information to do the research or to check your records to make sure that the research is being done properly.

We will collect relevant data (e.g about visits to the dentist and treatment to teeth) via NHS central registers. The reason for this is to make sure that we have the correct information about all the participants taking part in this study and ensure that the results are as accurate as possible. In order to do this, we will securely send the NHS central registers some information about you (e.g. date of birth, hospital number, name, address, CHI number (Scottish participants only). They will then match this information to their records and use your study number to securely send any relevant data back to the SCRiPT Study Office.

People who do not need to know who you are will not be able to see your name or contact details. Your data will have a code number instead. We will follow ethical and legal practice and all information which is collected about you for the purpose of this research study will be handled in strict confidence and securely stored by the University of Aberdeen.

Your rights to access, change or move your information are limited, as we need to manage your information in specific ways in order for the research to be reliable and accurate. If you withdraw from the study, we will keep the information about you that we have already obtained. To safeguard your rights, we will use the minimum personally-identifiable information possible.

You can find out more about how we use your information https://www.dundee.ac.uk/information-governance/data-protection.

Tell us what do you think about our website?

WELCOME TO THE SCRiPT STUDY

Selective Caries Removal in Permanent Teeth

The Selective Caries Removal in Permanent Teeth Trial (SCRiPT)

What is SCRiPT?

Can I take part?

If you have any questions

PPI (Patient & Public Involvement) in Dental Clinical Research, We Need You!!!

Where can I take part?

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