Mucormycosis in COVID-19 patients - A case series from a dental college in South India

Introduction

Incidence of mucormycosis has increased recently due to rapid spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is a hyper-ferritemic state paving a way for easy growth of mucor species. COVID-19 infection results in an immunocompromised state due to the steroid therapy administered to patients and the infection itself. The presence of co-morbidities makes patients more susceptible to acquire mucor infection. Mucormycosis spreads rapidly, associated with aggressive angioinvasion, leading to ischemic necrosis of surrounding tissues. Due to its rapid spread and angioinvasion, mucormycosis is associated with increased mortality and morbidity.

Treatment Planning

Early diagnosis and proper treatment planning are crucial to prevent further spread of infection, where dentists play an important role.

Discussion

This case series is mainly focused on patients reported to the oral medicine department with complaints of discomfort or mobility of teeth in the maxillary region while explaining the role of dentists in diagnosing and treating the disease.

Digital workflow for periodontal splinting with a guided device

OBJECTIVE

To detail a technique for bonding periodontal splint precisely in a digital workflow.

CLINICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Periodontal splinting can be considered to stabilize the mobile teeth, especially for mandibular anterior teeth. Reliable bonding of periodontal splints is a prerequisite for successful clinical performance. However, when bonding the indirect splint to place or making direct splint intraorally, there is a significant risk of mobile teeth drifting away from the splint. To guide accurate insertion of periodontal splint with no risk of displacement of mobile teeth, a guide device fabricated by digital workflow is introduced in this article.

CONCLUSIONS

Periodontal compromised teeth can be provisionally fixed during splinting, with the help of the guided device, and precise bonding of the splint is readily accomplished by using such digital workflow. This technique is not only applicable to the lingual splints, but also suitable for the labial ones.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

The use of a guided device, after being digitally designed and fabricated, enables to stabilize the mobile teeth, in case of any displacement during splinting. It is straightforward, and beneficial to reduce the risk of complications, such as debonding of the splint, and secondary occlusal trauma.

Informative promotional outcome on school teachers' knowledge about emergency management of dental trauma

Aim:

To assess awareness of school teachers concerning the emergency management of traumatized teeth.

Materials and Methods:

This is a prospective intervention study conducted with 1000 teachers (500 urban, 500 rural) randomly selected from the entire government and private, primary (elementary) as well as secondary (high) schools of Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Study was carried out in three phases; the first phase being an initial survey conducted to assess the existing knowledge of teachers on management of traumatic injuries by using self-administered questionnaire. This was followed by a comprehensive informative promotion regarding the initial management of the traumatic dental injuries for the teachers. A post-promotion follow-up review was conducted 3 months later to evaluate the effect of the informative promotion, using the same set of questionnaires. Study was completed over a period of 9 months.

Statistical Methods:

Data analysis was done using SPSS software version 14.0, and Chi-square test was used to compare the knowledge of teachers prior to and after the informative promotion. The level of significance was set at P ≤ 0.05.

Results:

The teachers’ overall knowledge with respect to the emergency management of the traumatic injuries was deficient and significant differences were found in the knowledge of teachers before and after the informative promotion.

Conclusion:

Informative promotion programs to improve the knowledge and awareness of this group of community, who are generally the first line of assistance in case of dental trauma in schools, are mandatory.