Development of a Minimum Data Set for Dental Implants Registry

Objectives: Registries are powerful tools for the collection and distribution of valid and reliable data. The initial step in health information management is to design a minimum data set that can improve the collection of high-quality data from the registry. The present pilot study aimed to determine the optimal minimum data set for dental implants to effectively utilize at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019 at Tehran University of Medical Sciences. A minimum data set checklist was developed based on our previous systematic review. The content validity of the minimum data set was approved by the recruited experts and the final minimum data set was established using the Delphi technique. Results: The minimum data set for dental implants consists of two separate sections - administrative and clinical data. The administrative portion includes two main segments: patient demographic data and clinic data, consisting of 12 data elements. The clinical part includes five main segments (patient clinical data, implant data, implant complications, implant loss, and implant follow-up), and contains 96 data elements. Conclusion: This study suggests a minimum set of data for dental implants that can aid in efficient management of information, facilitate evidence-based decision-making, and enable high-quality clinical research, evaluation of treatment results, monitoring, and benchmarking of care.

Comparison of bacterial disinfection efficacy using blue and red lights on dental implants contaminated with Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to determine the bacterial disinfection efficacy of four photosensitizers (PSs; curcumin, riboflavin, toluidine blue O, and phycocyanin) with blue diode laser (Blue DL) and blue light-emitting diode (Blue LED) or Red DL and Red LED in dental implants contaminated with Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 60 dental implants were contaminated with A. actinomycetemcomitans. All implants were then randomized into ten different disinfection modalities (n = 6 implants per group). The irradiation wavelength in Blue DL and Blue LED or Red DL and Red LED was 450, 430-460, 635, and 630 nm, respectively and its applied energy density was 60 J/cm² in all groups. Group IX was served as the control group and in group X disinfection was performed with 0.2% chlorhexidine. After the treatments, the colony forming units (CFUs)/ml were calculated to determine antimicrobial effects of each treatment.

RESULTS

All disinfection methods significantly reduced bacteria amounts of dental implants inoculated with A. actinomycetemcomitans compared to control group. The CFU/ml in LED group was significantly lower than the DL in all studied groups.

CONCLUSION

aPDT could be an effective supplement in dental implants disinfection. The LED, proved to be better in reducing CFU/ml of A. actinomycetemcomitans on dental implants surface than DL.

Dental implant quality registries and databases: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

The importance of dental implant quality register has been well-documented. However, no systematic review conducted on dental implant quality register can be found in the literature. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to study the existed dental implant quality registries to explain the goals, data elements, and reports of dental implant quality registries.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This systematic study was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase databases. For evaluating dental implant quality registers, all studies in the English language were examined with no time limitation. Case reports, conference abstracts, and letters to the editor were excluded. The analysis of the quality of the studies was done by the STrengthening the Reporting of OBservational studies in Epidemiology checklist.

RESULTS

The primary search identified 5565 articles. After eliminating duplicate articles and articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria and reviewing 40 full texts, 11 studies were included in this study. In this review, seven countries as Sweden, the USA, Canada, Germany, Finland, Australia, and South Korea had dental implant quality registers. Furthermore, the goals of dental implant quality registers were classified into the categories of research, epidemiology, administrative, clinical, and surveillance.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study provide dentists and other stakeholders useful information on the existed dental implant quality registers and databases worldwide. It also provides a framework of the goals, data elements, and reports of dental implant quality registry. The establishment of dental implant quality register will be beneficial for societies and also allows them to control the complications of dental implants in future.

Linear Momenta Transferred to the Dental Implant-Bone and Natural Tooth-PDL-Bone Constructs Under Impact Loading: A Comparative in-vitro and in-silico Study

During dental trauma, periodontal ligament (PDL) contributes to the stability of the tooth-PDL-bone structure. When a dental implant is inserted into the bone, the dental implant-bone construct will be more prone to mechanical damage, caused by impact loading, than the tooth-PDL-bone construct. In spite of the prevalence of such traumas, the behavioral differences between these two constructs have not been well-understood yet. The main goal of this study was to compare the momentum transferred to the tooth-PDL-bone and dental implant-bone constructs under impact loading. First, mechanical impact tests were performed on six canine mandibles of intact (N = 3) and implanted (N = 3) specimens using a custom-made drop tower apparatus, from release heights of 1, 2, and 3 cm. Next, computed tomography-based finite element models were developed for both constructs, and the transferred momenta were calculated. The experimental results indicated that, for the release heights of 1, 2, and 3 cm, the linear momenta transferred to the dental implant-bone construct were 33.1, 31.0, and 27.5% greater than those of the tooth-PDL-bone construct, respectively. Moreover, results of finite element simulations were in agreement with those of the experimental tests (error <7.5%). This work tried to elucidate the effects of impact loading on the dental implant-bone and tooth-PDL-bone constructs using both in-vitro tests and validated in-silico simulations. The findings can be employed to modify design of the current generation of dental implants, based on the lessons one can take from the biomechanical behavior of a natural tooth structure.

Effect of Antimicrobial Photodynamic Therapy Using Indocyanine Green Doped with Chitosan Nanoparticles on Biofilm Formation-Related Gene Expression of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans

Objectives

Eradication of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (A. actionmycetemcomitans), as an opportunistic periodontopathogen, and inhibition of its virulence factor expression require a new adjunctive therapeutic method. In this study, we accessed the expression level of rcpA gene, as a virulence factor associated with A. actinomycetemcomitans biofilm formation, following treatment by antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) using indocyanine green (ICG) doped with chitosan nanoparticles (CS-NPs@ICG).

Materials and Methods

CS-NPs@ICG was synthesized and examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A. actinomycetemcomitans ATCC 33384 strain was treated with CS-NPs@ICG, as a photosensitizer, which was excited with a diode laser at the wavelength of 810 nm with the energy density of 31.2 J/cm2. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was performed to determine the changes in rcpA gene expression level.

Results

Synthetized CS-NPs@ICG was confirmed via SEM. The results revealed that CS-NPs@ICG-mediated aPDT could significantly decrease rcpA gene expression to 13.2-fold (P<0.05). There was a remarkable difference between aPDT using CS-NPs@ICG and ICG (P<0.05). The diode laser, ICG, and CS-NPs@ICG were unable to significantly downregulate rcpA gene expression (P>0.05).

Conclusion

aPDT with CS-NPs@ICG leads to a decrease of the virulence factor of A. actinomycetemcomitans and can be used as an adjunct to routine treatments for successful periodontal therapy in vivo.

Association between vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms (Fok1 and Bsm1) and osteoporosis: a systematic review

Osteoporosis is a health concern characterized by reduced bone mineral density (BMD) and increased risk of fragility fractures. Many studies have investigated the association between genetic variants and osteoporosis. Polymorphism and allelic variations in the vitamin D receptor gene (VDR) have been found to be associated with bone mineral density. However, many studies have not been able to find this association. Literature review was conducted in several databases, including MEDLINE/Pubmed, Scopus, EMBASE, Ebsco, Science Citation Index Expanded, Ovid, Google Scholar, Iran Medex, Magiran and Scientific Information Database (SID) for papers published between 2000 and 2013 describing the association between Fok1 and Bsm1 polymorphisms of the VDR gene and osteoporosis risk. The majority of the revealed papers were conducted on postmenopausal women. Also, more than 50% studies reported significant relation between Fok1, Bsm1 and osteoporosis. Larger and more rigorous analytical studies with consideration of gene-gene and gene-environment interactions are needed to further dissect the mechanisms by which VDR polymorphisms influence osteoporosis.