title: The ethics of experimenting in dental practice.
abstract: Experiments, in the sense of novel actions taken with only a probable chance of success, are common in dental practice. Use of new materials or techniques learned in continuing education courses are examples. The grounds for ethically defensible experiments include (a) undertaken for the patient's sake, (b) within the standard of care, (c) having a reason for expected success, and (d) performed reflectively. A taxonomy of experiments is presented. The ethical context for this paper is discursive ethics, an approach that emphasizes the right of all affected to participate in mutual acceptance of the action.
authors.affiliation: Office of Academic Affairs and Scholarship, School of Dentistry, University of the Pacific, San Francisco, California 94115, USA. dchambers@uop.edu
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Chambers
mesh_terms: D018865:Dental Research; D028663:Ethical Theory; D004990:Ethics, Dental; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006805:Human Experimentation; D006801:Humans; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012106:Research