The objective of this study was to compare the effect of virtual reality to passive distraction and standard care on burn treatment pain in adolescents.This single-blinded, randomized controlled study enrolled 30 adolescents who were 10 to 17 years of age from the burn clinic of a large children's hospital. After providing informed consent/assent, these participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups during wound care: standard care, passive distraction watching a movie, or virtual reality (VR) using a tripod-arm device rather than an immersive helmet. Before wound care, participants completed the Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children and Pre-Procedure Questionnaire while blinded to group assignment. A total of 28 participants completed the study and rated treatment pain after wound care by using the Adolescent Pediatric Pain Tool and completed a Post-Procedure Questionnaire. The VR group reported less pain during wound care than either the passive distraction or standard care group as determined by multivariable linear regression adjusted for age, sex, preprocedure pain, state anxiety, opiate use, and treatment length. The VR group was the only group to have an estimated decrease in pain perception from baseline preprocedure pain to procedural pain reported. Adolescents pretreated with opiate analgesics and female adolescents reported more pain during wound care.This between-subjects clinical study provides further support for VR, even without requiring wearing of an immersive helmet, in lessening burn wound care pain in adolescents. Passive distraction by watching a movie may be less effective in reducing treatment pain. Additional between-subjects randomized controlled trials with larger samples of children and during other healthcare treatments may further support VR's effectiveness in pediatric procedural pain management.

Though endodontic therapy can prolong tooth survival, pulpal involvement still may hasten tooth loss, underscoring the importance of caries prevention and prompt restorative care.

Clinical depression may have a negative effect on periodontal treatment outcome in this group model HMO population.

This study evaluated whether oral disorders were associated with chronic systemic diseases in 532 Canadian adults who are old and very old and living in institutions. A brief oral examination documented tooth retention, caries, and periodontal and gingival health. Medical records provided information about chronic systemic conditions. A history of stroke was associated with a higher experience of caries, a higher ratio of decayed-to-present teeth, and more gingival and periodontal problems. Participants with high blood pressure, osteoporosis, or diabetes were more likely to be edentulous or to have fewer teeth than participants who did not have these conditions. Participants who had arthritis retained more teeth with age. Participants who had more diseases also tended to have poorer gingival or periodontal conditions, fewer teeth, and higher risk of edentulousness. The associations between systemic diseases and more severe oral disorders may be direct or may be mediated by underlying factors such as health behaviors.

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