Effect of Dental Varnishes in Prevention of Enamel Demineralization Adjacent to Orthodontic Brackets

Aim

The aim of the current research was to assess the ability of different dental varnishes in averting enamel demineralization adjoining the orthodontic brackets.

Materials and Methods

Seventy-five premolars devoid of dental caries that were subjected to extraction for orthodontic purposes were employed in this research. The surface of enamel was etched with 37% phosphoric acid and subjected to primer application. Individual brackets were placed on the midregion of the buccal surfaces of the premolars with Transbond™ XT adhesive. Postbracket bonding, the dry premolar tooth samples were set aside cautiously. The samples were then allocated to three groups: Group I: Duraphat Varnish, Group II: Clinpro XT Varnish, and Group III: Profluorid Varnish. Every sample was independently subjected to immersion in demineralizing solution for a period of 96 h at 37°C in an incubator. Areas of demineralization were evaluated by documenting the microhardness along the severed surface using a microhardness tester equipped with a Vickers diamond.

Results

The highest surface microhardness was noted with Profluorid Varnish group at 328.48 ± 1.12 in pursuit by Clinpro XT Varnish group at 322.08 ± 0.04 as well as Duraphat Varnish group at 307.42 ± 0.28 with a statistically noteworthy dissimilarity amid the groups.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the three varnishes employed had an influence on the prevention of enamel demineralization surrounding the orthodontic brackets. Profluorid varnish however exhibited maximum efficiency in avoiding enamel demineralization versus Clinpro XT varnish as well as Duraphat varnish group.

A Study on Speech Analysis in Acquired Maxillary Defect Patients Treated with Maxillary Obturator

Aim

The aim of the present study was to assess the speech analysis in acquired maxillary defect patients treated with maxillary obturator.

Materials and Methods

Total of 16 patients were considered in the study. The age group of these patients ranged from 40 to 75 years with a mean age of 59.5 years, irrespective of their gender. The surgical obturator was fabricated using self-cure acrylic. The surgical obturator was delivered immediately after surgery. After a healing period of about 2 weeks, the surgical obturator was replaced by an interim prosthesis. This was processed with the help of heat-cure polymethylmethacrylate. The total number of patients was divided into two groups, namely, (A) Definitive obturator group and (B) Interim obturator group. The speech intelligibility (SI), was analyzed.

Results

The mean scores for SI before prosthesis in definitive and interim groups were 19.13 ± 3.22 and 19.87 ± 1.72, respectively. This was increased after prosthesis insertion to 24.38 ± 1.30 and 22.37 ± 1.18, which further increased after adaptation period of 2 months to 28.75 ± 1.28 and 24.62 ± 1.59 in two groups.

Conclusion

The present study concluded that speech was severely affected by maxillary resection and that rehabilitation with maxillary obturator was successful in restoring these aspects of speech.

Practice of Occlusal Splint Therapy for Treating Temporomandibular Disorders by General Dentists of Jabalpur - A Cross-Sectional Survey

AIM

The aim of this study was to conduct a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey concerning the practice of occlusal splint for treating temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) by the dental practitioners of Jabalpur.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A questionnaire containing questions on diagnosis, treatment, and management of TMD was given to a total of 157 general dental practitioners in Jabalpur. The responses were collected; data analysis was done by Chi-square test.

RESULTS

Of the General Dental Practitioner's, nearly 78% of participants did not attend any continuing dental education on TMD per year. More than 10 years of experience (82%) was associated with increase in positive response for treatment of TMD patient. Both the diagnosis and treatment of TMD patient were done using combination methods. The duration of splint use was considered patient dependent (42.27%) irrespective of the years of practice. Soft splint was most commonly employed for treatment, and fabrication of splint was done on hinge and mean value articulator.

CONCLUSION

The knowledge of occlusal splint by general practitioners was found to be insufficient for treating TMDs.

Implementation of Anthropometric Measurements in Anterior Teeth Selection in Two Ethnic Groups: An In Vivo Study

Aim:

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether there is any consistent relationship between interalar distance and six maxillary anterior teeth in two ethnic groups.

Materials and Methods:

Two hundred subjects (Assamese 100 and Nyishi 100) of different age and sex ranging from 18 to 33 years were identified for this study. The distance between two widest points marked on the alae of nose was measured by means of sliding digital caliper. Statistical analysis of variance was the testing method to determine whether the nasal width and intercanine distance were different in various racial groups.

Results:

The mean nasal width dimension in Assamese group was 36.38 mm (range 28.55–50.00 mm). The mean nasal width dimension in Nyishi group was 35.73 mm (range 31.34–41.90 mm). For the nasal width, no significant difference was observed between two races. For the canine cusp tip to cusp tip distance, the mean value of Assamese subjects was 43.63 mm (range 39.02–50.02 mm), whereas the Nyishi presented 41.77 mm (range 36.69–47.05 mm).

Conclusion:

For the two racial groups studied, the measurements of the interalar width showed a weak correlation with the canine to canine distance, not sufficiently high to be used as a predictive factor. It suggests to select wider artificial teeth. Practitioners can use ethnic norms as guides, not absolute values.

Evaluation of oral health-related quality of life in patient with removable prosthesis: A cross-sectional study

Aim:

This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between oral health and quality of life in removable prosthesis users.

Materials and Methods:

An investigative cross-sectional study was designed, and 200 participants were considered based on calculations from the studies in the past. The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 survey comprises two parts in the study. Questions related to sociodemographic factors that documented age, gender, and type of removable prosthesis were included in the initial part of survey. Questions related to impact of oral health on quality of life make up the latter part of the survey. The answers ranged from “Definitely no” to “Definitely yes” for every item on a scale having 5 points. The likely range of scores is from 14 to 70. Data were analyzed by using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software program, version 20.0 for Windows. A value of P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results:

A survey evaluating the relationship between oral health and quality of life was adequately completed by 200 participants. Of these, 18 (22%) were women and 154 (78%) were men. The parameters such as gender, age, and the relationship between oral health and quality of life did not show significant difference either within groups or between the groups. The enrolled participants were wearing different dental prostheses such as complete dentures (CDs) in both upper (U) jaw and lower (L) jaw (19%), U jaw (3%), L jaw (4%) and removable prostheses in both jaws (30%), U jaw (24%) and L jaw (20%). No statistically significant differences were seen between them. The scores for oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) were associated positively with removable prosthesis score (r = 0.122) and were statistically significant.

Conclusion:

This study concluded that the use of removable prosthesis may positively impact OHRQoL. The period of usage of removable dentures was the highly significant parameter affecting patient gratification, whereas the practice of using removable prostheses was the highly significant parameter affecting the relationship between oral health and quality of life.

Evaluation of Different Pretreatment Efficacy with Fluoride-releasing Material on Shear Bond Strength of Orthodontic Bracket: An In Vitro Study

AIM

The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of different pretreatments with fluoride-releasing material on shear bond strength (SBS) of orthodontic bracket.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 60 human mandibular premolars were taken in this study. These samples were stored in periodically changed distilled water at room temperature so as to stop bacterial growth. All samples were randomized to three pretreatment groups: group I, acid etching; group II, fluoride varnish; group III, casein phosphopeptide-amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP-ACP) paste. Later, Transbond XT was applied on brackets made of stainless steel and brackets were centered buccally and then light-cured. The INSTRON universal machine was used to measure SBS. Based on the values, the adhesive remnant index (ARI) was estimated.

RESULTS

The maximum SBS was seen in group III (18.84 μ 1.04), followed by group II (14.18 μ 0.23), and the minimum bond strength was found in group I (13.90 μ 1.22). The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed high statistically significant difference within the pretreatment groups. The pretreatment group comparisons showed statistically significant difference between group I vs group III and group II vs group III. Score 0 was more in group III [8 (40%)] followed by group II [4 (20%)] and group I [2 (10%)]. The lowest number of score 3 was found in CPP-ACP paste group. After comparing the ARI scores within the groups, the Chi-square test showed a probability of 0.001 which was statistically significant.

CONCLUSION

Our study established that the CPP-ACP paste pretreatment improves the SBS of orthodontic bracket significantly followed by fluoride varnish and acid etching.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

The bond strength of orthodontic brackets that were bonded should be adequate to resist orthodontic forces applied during treatment. The effect of the adhesive material to improve the adequate bond strength depends on the efficient pretreatment methods.

FM2-2 Exploratory analysis whether wearable sensor data can correlate with aspects of non-motor symptoms in parkinson’s: a real life study with the parkinson’s kinetigraphTM

Objectives

To determine the association between the range and nature of non-motor symptoms (NMS) in people with Parkinson’s (PwP) and validated Parkinson’s KinetigraphTM (PKG) outcome measures.

Design

Cross-sectional retrospective study of participants enrolled in the Non-motor Longitudinal International Study (NILS, UKCRN No: 10084) at King’s College Hospital, London.

Subjects

108 PwP with a PKG recording within 4 months of a NILS assessment were included in the analysis.

Methods

PKG is a validated accelerometery-based measure for motor function in PwP, reporting scores for global bradykinesia (BKS) and dyskinesia (DKS). NMS were assessed by the NMS scale (NMSS).

Results

Using multiple linear regression, BKS was predicted by NMSS domains 6 (gastrointestinal tract; p=0.006) and 8 (sexual function; p=0.003). DKS was predicted by domains 3 (mood/cognition; p=0.016), domain 4 (perceptual problems; p=0.025), domain 6 (gastrointestinal tract; p=0.029) and domain 9 (miscellaneous, p=0.003). In these domains, anxiety, delusions, dysphagia, hyposmia, weight change and hyperhidrosis significantly predicted DKS. In addition, carbidopa dose predicted NMSS total scores (p=0.037), but not total LEDD (p=0.91).

Conclusions

In PwP, measures of BK and DK were mainly associated with gastrointestinal problems, underpinning the importance of gastric absorption of oral medications and constipation and the related motor effects in PwP. Interestingly, carbidopa appears to have a role in non-motor symptoms in PwP, which deserves further investigation.

Integration and proliferation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA01 in multispecies biofilms

Despite an increased awareness of biofilm formation by pathogens and the role of biofilms in human infections, the potential role of environmental biofilms as an intermediate stage in the host-to-host cycle is poorly described. To initiate infection, pathogens in biofilms on inanimate environmental surfaces must detach from the biofilm and be transmitted to a susceptible individual in numbers large enough to constitute an infectious dose. Additionally, while detachment has been recognized as a discrete event in the biofilm lifestyle, it has not been studied to the same extent as biofilm development or biofilm physiology. Successful integration of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PA01 expressing green fluorescent protein (PA01GFP), employed here as a surrogate pathogen, into multispecies biofilm communities isolated and enriched from sink drains in public washrooms and a hospital intensive care unit is described. Confocal laser scanning microscopy indicated that PA01GFP cells were most frequently located in the deeper layers of the biofilm, near the attachment surface, when introduced into continuous flow cells before or at the same time as the multispecies drain communities. A more random integration pattern was observed when PA01GFP was introduced into established multispecies biofilms. Significant numbers of single PA01GFP cells were continuously released from the biofilms to the bulk liquid environment, regardless of the order of introduction into the flow cell. Challenging the multispecies biofilms containing PA01GFP with sub-lethal concentrations of an antibiotic, chelating agent and shear forces that typically prevail at distances away from the point of treatment showed that environmental biofilms provide a suitable habitat where pathogens are maintained and protected, and from where they are continuously released.

Using real-time alerts for clinical trials: Identifying potential study subjects

BACKGROUND

Clinical trials are widely accepted as a necessary step in evaluating the safety and efficacy of new pharmaceutical products. In order for a sufficiently powered study, a clinical trial depends on the effective and unbiased recruitment of eligible patients. Trials involving seasonal diseases like influenza pose additional challenges.

OBJECTIVE

This is a feasibility study of a mobile real-time alerting system to systematically identify potential study subjects for a randomized controlled trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of early intervention with interferon alfacon-1 for patients hospitalized for influenza virus infection.

METHODS

The alerting system was setup in a 471-bed acute care teaching hospital, enabled with computerized physician order entry (CPOE) and a rules-based alerting system. Patients were identified from the entire hospital using two alerts types: pharmacy prescription records for antiviral drugs, and positive influenza laboratory results. Email alerts were generated and sent to BlackBerry(®) devices carried by the study personnel for a 6 month period. The alerts were archived automatically on a secure server and were exported for analysis in Microsoft Access.

RESULTS

Over a period of 21 weeks, 779 total alerts were received. The study team was alerted to 241 patients, of whom 85 were potential study subjects. The alert system identified all but one of the patients independently identified by infection control.

CONCLUSIONS

Real-time identification of potential study subjects is possible with the integration of computerized physician order entry and BlackBerry(®) technology. It is a viable method for the systematic identification of patients throughout a hospital, particularly for trials investigating time-sensitive disease progression.

Optimal phasic tracheal gas insufflation timing: An experimental and mathematical analysis

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the modulation of CO2 clearance by changes in the duration of tracheal gas flow application during tracheal gas insufflation (TGI).

DESIGN

Combination of bench studies using a commercial test lung and a commercially available intensive care ventilator and mathematical analysis using a clearance model derived from first principles.

SETTING

University pulmonary research laboratory.

PATIENTS

None.

INTERVENTIONS

Experiments using TGI were performed on a test lung at two combinations of tidal volume and frequency. TGI was limited to part of the expiratory phase (the terminal 10-100% of expiration), and two different TGI catheter flow rates were studied. Permutations over a range of compliances, dead-space volumes, catheter flows, and TGI durations were collected. A mathematical model incorporating key ventilatory and TGI-related variables was developed to provide a first-principles theoretical foundation for interpreting the experimental results.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

In the physical model, alveolar Pco2 attained a minimum value with TGI flow applied during the terminal 40-60% of the expiratory phase, a finding that was consistent over an almost eight-fold range of expiratory time constants. The mathematical model shows the same qualitative pattern as the experimental model, indicating that the observed behaviors are not an experimental artifact.

CONCLUSION

The optimal duration of expiratory TGI flow application is stable over a wide range of impedance characteristics. Such stability suggests that near maximal effect of expiratory TGI could be obtained by applying TGI flow solely within the final 50% of the expiratory phase. Such uniform restriction of the application profile might both simplify technique implementation and decrease adverse consequences.

Post-translational modification of the myxoma-virus anti-inflammatory serpin SERP-1 by a virally encoded sialyltransferase

SERP-1 is a secreted serpin (serine-proteinase inhibitor) encoded by myxoma virus, a poxvirus pathogen of rabbits. SERP-1 is required for myxoma-virus virulence, and the purified protein has been shown to possess independent anti-inflammatory activity in animal models of restenosis and antigen-induced arthritis. As an inhibitor of serine proteinases, SERP-1 acts against tissue-type plasminogen activator, urokinase-type plasminogen activator, plasmin, thrombin and Factor Xa. In the present study, examination of SERP-1 glycosylation-site mutants showed that the N-linked glycosylation of Asn(172) was essential for SERP-1 secretion, whereas mutation of Asn(99) decreased secretion efficiency, indicating that N-linked glycosylation plays an essential role in the processing and trafficking of SERP-1. Furthermore, comparison of SERP-1 from wild-type myxoma virus and a virus containing a targeted disruption of the MST3N sialyltransferase locus demonstrated that SERP-1 is specifically modified by this myxoma-virus-encoded sialyltransferase, and is thus the first reported viral protein shown to by modified by a virally encoded glycosyltransferase. Sialylation of SERP-1 by the MST3N gene product creates a uniquely charged species of secreted SERP-1 that is distinct from SERP-1 produced from other eukaryotic expression systems, though this has no apparent effect upon the kinetics of in vitro proteinase inhibition. Rather, the role of viral sialylation of SERP-1 likely relates to masking antigenicity or targeting SERP-1 to specific sites of action in vivo.