Caries activity tests are being used to assess caries risk in children. In recent years the purpose of most studies has been to develop practical, quick, reliable and economic tests. Clinical studies showed that the difference in sensitivity to the bitter taste of 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) is a heritable trait and may influence children’s nutritional habits and caries development. The aim of this study was to investigate the relation between PROP sensitivity and caries activity in schoolchildren, in comparison with different caries activity tests. One hundred and twenty children aged between 7 and 12 years (mean age 9.97 ± 1.59) were investigated to determine socioeconomic status and oral hygiene habits, fluoride consumption, DMFT, DMFS, df, dfs, plaque indexes, and nutritional habits. Children were divided into three groups according to their caries risk status based on the Cariogram. The solution test and the PROP-impregnated filter paper test were used together to determine PROP sensitivity. After all associated factors had been controlled, stepwise regression analyses revealed that DMFT and dfs scores were important determinants of PROP. According to dfs, the sensitivity of the Cariogram and of PROP tests was 0.85 and 0.70, respectively, and specificity was 0.32 and 0.33, respectively. There was an inverse significant relationship between PROP sensitivity and DMFT, DMFS, and dfs results (p < 0.01). In conclusion, PROP nontasters were significantly more likely to have high caries risk than PROP tasters (p < 0.01).

A study was conducted to determine the mercury concentration in urine after placement of dental amalgam restorations. The 24-h urine mercury levels in 10 children with a mean age of 8 years were determined before the amalgam restorations had been placed, and after placement. The urinary mercury content was measured by the cold vapor atomic fluorescence method. Mercury levels in the urine samples before placement of the amalgam restorations were below the detection limit, and the values obtained after placement, although detectable, were far below the limits stipulated by the World Health Organization. Under the conditions of this study, it is considered that the mercury levels released from dental amalgams are not high enough to cause any systemic toxic effect. This study was performed on 4 healthy girls and 6 healthy boys (aged 4-12 y) attending the Pedodontics Department of the Dental Faculty of Istanbul University for treatment of decayed teeth. From all subjects, 24-h urine samples were collected before the amalgam fillings were placed. The subjects were instructed to void the urine samples into plastic containers (control group). Then, two teeth of each patient were restored with amalgam fillings (Degussa-Standalloy, Germany), having a surface area of approximately 15 mm2. After this procedure, the patients were again instructed to bring their 24-h urine samples, collected after the fillings had been placed. Mercury concentrations in the urine samples were determined by the cold vapor atomic fluorescence method (Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer A-160 unit, Chem Tech Analytical.). This is a sensitive and accurate form of analysis, although some sample pretreatment is necessary. The method[9] is essentially that which was developed by Campe et al.[9] for determination of total mercury in urine. Calibration of the apparatus was done with standard mercury solutions containing 0.20, 0.60, 1.80

ÖzetTurner sendromu(TS) dişi fenotipi ile ilişkili bir seks kromozom bozukluğudur. X kromozomonun tamamının ya da bir kısmının kaybı kraniyofasiyal dokuların biçim ve boyutunu etkilemektedir. TS hastaların ağız bulgularına ilişkin çalışmalar göstermiştir ki; derin kapanış, açık kapanış, çapraşıklık, diastema, sınıf II maloklüzyon gibi ortodontik anomaliler ve konjenital eksik ve fazla dişler, azalmış dental kuron genişliği, anormal dişler gibi dental anomaliler daha sıklıkla gözlenmektedir. TS hastalarda çürük, çekilmiş ve dolgulu diş değeri daha yüksek olmasına karşın periodontal problem daha yüksektir. TS hastalarda dentofasiyal bulgular diş hekimlerinin erken tanıya katkıda bulunabilmesi için önemlidir.

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ÖZET [Abstract in English is at the end of the manuscript] GİRİŞGünümüzde pediatrik hastalar kanser popülasyonunun önemli bir bölümünü oluşturmaktadır. Her yıl dünyada 160.000'den fazla çocuk kansere yakalanmaktadır. Birçok ülkede kanser kayıtları olmadığından, doğru sayı çok iyi bilinmemektedir. Kanser tanı ve tedavisindeki önemli gelişmelere rağmen gelişmiş ülkelerdeki kanserli çocukların %80'i iyileşirken, gelişmekte olan ülkelerde %50'sinden daha azını kurtarmak mümkün olmaktadır 1 . Ülkemizde ise her yıl 2.500-3.000 kadar çocukluk çağı kanseri beklenmektedir. Çocuklarda kanser erişkinlere kıyasla daha nadir olup, tüm kanserlerin %0.5'i 15 yaşından küçük çocuklarda görülmektedir. Bununla birlikte, tedavi başarısının yüksekliği ve çocukların önündeki beklenen yaşam süresinin uzunluğu, erken ve etkin tedaviyi, en iyi hizmete erişimi, yaşam kalitesini, psikososyal yaklaşımı daha da önemli hale getirmektedir.