Professor Steve Creanor

Emeritus Clinical Professor

Steve was appointed the inaugural Director of Undergraduate Dental Studies and Professor of Oral Sciences at Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry in November 2006. He was born in a small mining village just outside Edinburgh and graduated in dentistry from the University of Glasgow in 1980, thereafter taking up house officer, resident senior house officer and registrar jobs in oral and maxillofacial surgery. He was awarded a scholarship with Unilever where he went on to gain a PhD in Oral Medicine and Pathology in 1987. 

As part of his research project, he was one of two principal examiners involved in what was at that time the largest dental epidemiological survey of its kind, and involved the clinical and radiographic examination of over 3,000 school children in and around Glasgow. Throughout that 3-year period, Steve opted also to spend 2 sessions per week in general dental practice. He was appointed to a Clinical Lectureship in Oral Sciences in Glasgow in 1987 and was promoted to Clinical Senior Lecturer in 1990, where he remained before being appointed to Peninsula College of Medicine & Dentistry in 2006.

Steve’s main teaching interests were in clinical oral biology, where he was involved in the teaching of the human dental tissues, both hard and soft, as well as saliva, salivary glands, caries and dental erosion. Steve is the editor of a new dentistry textbook, which was published in April 2016, for undergraduate and postgraduate students in dentistry, within the Wiley-Blackwell Essentials Series – the first undergraduate textbook of its type within undergraduate dentistry or medicine – entitled Essential Clinical Oral Biology.

Steve still referees for a number of high profile dental journals, as well as for the Medical Research Council, the Wellcome Trust and the National Institute for Health Services Research.  

He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK), a Member of the Faculty of General Dental Practice at the Royal College of Surgeons (Eng) and has a regular invited entry in Who’s Who in the World 2011. Steve has supervised 6 PhD’s and 14 MSc’s Higher Degree Research Projects and has over 150 publications – ranging from refereed scientific papers, books, book chapters, reviews and refereed published abstracts of national and international research meetings. Steve’s research interests were in dental erosion and dental caries and he continues to have an interest in fluoride’s influence on caries dynamics.

Outside academia, Steve is an accomplished musician, majoring in piano and guitar and as a student competed nationally and internationally at 100 and 200 metres. He also trained with the national table tennis team and, following an opportunity to play junior football which he turned down, he is a fully qualified Scottish Football Association referee. A self-confessed petrol-head, Steve enjoys cars and driving and is a member of the Institute of Advanced Motoring.

Qualifications

Bachelor of Dental Surgery (University of Glasgow) BDS (Glasg)
Fellowship in Dental Surgery Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Glasgow) FDS RCPS (Glasg)
Member of the Faculty of General Dental Practice Royal College of Surgeons (Eng) MFGDP (UK)
Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK) FHEA (UK)
Doctor of Philosophy (University of Glasgow) PhD (Glasg)

House Surgeon, Glasgow Dental Hospital
Senior House Surgeon/Registrar, Victoria Infirmary, Glasgow
Unilever Research Fellow, University of Glasgow
Clinical Lecturer, University of Glasgow Dental School
Clinical Senior Lecturer (promoted), University of Glasgow Dental School
Director of Undergraduate Dental Studies and Clinical Professor of Oral Sciences, Peninsula College of Medicine & Dentistry, Plymouth University
Clinical Professor of Oral Sciences, Peninsula Schools of Medicine & Dentistry, Plymouth University

Professional membership

Fellow of the Higher Education Academy - FHEA
Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons (Glasgow) FDS RCPS (Glasg)
Member of the Faculty of General Dental Practice at the Royal College of Surgeons (Eng) (UK) - MFGDP (UK) RCS (Eng)
International Association for Dental Research - IADR
British Society for Oral and Dental Research - BSODR

Roles on external bodies

External Assessor, BSc in Dental Hygiene and Therapy, Glasgow Caledonian University

External Assessor, BDS Programme, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Malaya

(Former) External Examiner, BDS1 Programme, University of Glasgow Dental School, University of Glasgow

(Former) External Examiner, Dental Science Programme, Dublin Dental School, Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin 

(Former) External Examiner, Postgraduate Programme in Oral Biology, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary, University of London

Member, Expert Panel, 7th Edition of The Scientific Basis of Oral Health Education
Referee, Medical Research Council
Referee, Wellcome Foundation
Referee, National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR)
Referee, United Leeds Teaching Hospital NHS Trust
Consultant, Advertising Standards Authority, London
Advisor, British Dental Health Foundation
Member, Editorial Board, The World Scientific Journal
Advisor, Netherlands Foundation for the Advancement of Tropical Research (WOTRO)
Consultant, Several Industrial Companies

Teaching interests

I was involved in the following subject areas:

• the tissues of the human dentition
• the tissues of the healthy periodontium
• the scientific basis of dental caries
• the scientific basis of dental erosion
• the biochemistry of fluoride and its role in oral disease prevention
• the microbiology of the oral environment

Staff serving as external examiners

2018 BSc Dental Hygiene and Therapy, Glasgow Caledonian University
2014 - 2018 BDS1 Programme, University of Glasgow Dental School, University of Glasgow 
2012 Dental Science Programme, Dublin Dental School, Trinity College Dublin, University of Dublin
2011 BDS Programme, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Malaya
2009 - 2014 Postgraduate Programme in Oral Biology, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary, University of London
2005 MSc thesis entitled: Analysis of the tongue dorsum microflora in subjects with and without halitosis
2004 MSc thesis entitled: The role of the dental practitioner in child protection
2002  MSc thesis entitled: An assessment of restoration microleakage in vitro following three-body wear
1999  PhD thesis entitled: Factors affecting the remineralisation and demineralisation behaviour of human enamel under conditions of oscillating pH
1997  PhD thesis entitled: An investigation of the wear of human enamel and dental ceramics
1995  PhD thesis entitled: Evaluation of adjunctive and alternative techniques in periodontal therapy
1995  PhD thesis entitled: The vitality assessment of traumatised permanent anterior teeth using laser Doppler flowmetry

Research interests

H Index = 17

The role of fluoride in reducing dental decay
Methods of caries diagnosis
The mechanisms of dental erosion and its prevention
The biochemistry of human saliva
The fluoride-releasing characteristics of dental glass ionomer cements

Other research

Dental education - the scientific basis

Research degrees awarded to supervised students

PhD projects supervised:

In vitro studies of the role of sebaceous glands in salivary gland disease
Jonathan Davies; current postgraduate student

Grants & contracts

£157,987 Co-investigator - An award from the NHS National Primary Dental Care Research & Development Programme for a study entitled:
The prevention of dental caries by intensive oral health counselling in general dental practice

£144,642 Co-investigator - An award from the Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC) for a study entitled:
Application of novel optical techniques for early detection of dental decay

£229,800 Principal Investigator - Awards from Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company (USA) for a study entitled:
What is the association between mineral deposition within porous human enamel and increased salivary flow in humans? - an in situ study

£56,000 Co-investigator - An award from the Procter and Gamble Company for a study entitled:
The characterisation of the microbiological species associated with early enamel caries - an in situ study

£38,312 Principal investigator - An award from the Scottish Office Home & Health Department for a study entitled:
Investigation of the role of fluoride release and uptake from glass ionomer restorative materials in caries prevention

£96,000 Co-investigator - An award from the Scottish Office Home & Health Department for a study entitled:
An evaluation of the use of a Pulsed Nd:YAG Laser in Dentistry

Additional information

Invited entry:

Who's Who in the World 2011

Contributor:

BBC Radio 4 – The Influence of Industrial Funding on University Research

BBC Watchdog Heath check – Do Irn Bru bars cause dental erosion?

Radio 1 – News Sound beat – The Influence of Fruit Juices on Dental Erosion

BBC 1 News – Fruit Juices and Dental Erosion

ITV 1 News – Fruit Juices and Dental Erosion