Thermoplastic materials are sensitive to humidity, temperature variations, enzyme activities, and cyclic loading. All these factors can cause changes to the mechanical properties of the material. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of different cleaning protocols on the surface roughness of orthodontic retainers. Samples of two brands of polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PET-G) material were exposed to four cleaning protocols: Corega (alkaline peroxide tablets), Toothbrush, Corega + toothbrush, Toothbrush + toothpaste, and Control. Measurement of the surface roughness of the sample on both the top and bottom side was carried out before and after cleaning. There was no statistical difference between the final values of the measured parameters. However, looking at the extent of the change in surface roughness, there was a statistically significant difference in the upper side of the Corega + toothbrush group between Materials A and B. This suggests that there was a greater change in the roughness of material A (Erkodur), given that the mean change in roughness of Material A was Ra 0.047, whereas the mean change in roughness of Material B was Ra 0.022. Almost all the tested cleaning procedures significantly increased the surface roughness of the PET-G retainer material. Of all the methods, the Corega tablets had the lowest influence on surface roughness.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the color stability of esthetic ceramic brackets and adhesive samples after immersion in most commonly consumed beverages. A hundred ceramic brackets from five different manufacturers (Forestadent®, G&H®, GC, DynaFlex®, and American Orthodontics) and 120 samples of adhesives (3M™Transbond™ XT and American Orthodontics BracePaste® color change adhesive and BracePaste® adhesive) were immersed into four different solutions: coffee, Coca-Cola®, the vitamin drink Cedevita®, and artificial saliva (control group). The samples were kept in an incubator at 37 °C. Color readings were evaluated before (T0), at 24 h (T1), 72 h (T3), 7 days (T4), and 14 days (T5) after initial immersion using a spectrophotometer according to the L*a*b* color scale. All the examined brackets showed a statistically significant difference in discoloration (p = 0.001). 20/40™ Brackets (American Orthodontics) showed the best color stability, while the greatest color modification was recognized in QuicKlear® III (Forestadent®) brackets. Regarding adhesives, the greatest staining was observed in the BracePaste® color change adhesive and the least in the Transbond™ XT samples. In conclusion, color change occurs in all solutions, including control groups, and coffee has the greatest impact on color stability.

Background: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between children’s and parents’ dental anxiety. Methods: 731 children of different ages and their parents from six European countries participated in this study. Dental anxiety was investigated through an online questionnaire, which consisted of general questions and the Corah Dental Anxiety Scale (CDAS), which is a questionnaire that measures respondents’ reactions on a 5-point scale for four different situations. Results: CDAS results were calculated for all children and their parents. A total of 12.5% of children from Croatia, 26.67% from Macedonia, 10.94% from Bosnia and Herzegovina, 20.31% from Montenegro, 23.08% from Slovenia and 16.10% from Serbia showed a high level of anxiety. The correlation between dental anxiety of parents and children was 0.4 (p < 0.01). Conclusions: Parents with negative experience from a dental office can have a bad effect on their child’s behaviour, which results in the creation of a non-active patient. Due to the clear and existing cause-and-effect relationship of dental anxiety in children and parents, it is extremely important to educate parents about the proper psychological approach to children in order to promote positive experiences from dental offices, as well as to emphasize the importance of regular visits to the dentist.

The aim was to assess the impact of thermocycling and brushing on the surface roughness and mass of PETG material—the most commonly used for orthodontic retainers. A total of 96 specimens were exposed to thermocycling and brushing with three different kinds of toothbrushes depending on the number and thickness of the bristles. Surface roughness and mass were evaluated three times: initially, after thermocycling, and after brushing. In all four brands, both thermocycling and brushing increased surface roughness significantly (p < 0.001), with Biolon having the lowest and Track A having the highest. In terms of brushing, only Biolon samples showed statistically significant increased roughness after brushing with all three types of brushes, in comparison to Erkodur A1, where differences were not statistically significant. Thermocycling increased the mass of all samples, but a statistically significant difference was found only in Biolon (p = 0.0203), while after brushing, decreased mass was found in all specimens, statistically significant only in Essix C+ (CS 1560: p = 0.016). PETG material showed instability when exposed to external influences- thermocycling produced an increase in roughness and mass, and brushing mostly caused an increase in roughness and decrease in mass. Erkodur A1 demonstrated the greatest stability, whereas Biolon demonstrated the lowest.

The 2019 coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has affected clinical practice and, consequently, drug prescribing in dental practice. We investigated how the pandemic affected the prescribing behavior of dentists in Croatia. Data on prescribing practices for this study were provided by the Croatian Health Insurance Institute. The analysis included the number of prescriptions, costs, and the number of packages prescribed. The World Health Organization’s defined daily dose per 1000 inhabitants (DID) per day was used as an objective utilization comparison. During the first pandemic year, prescribing practice changed the most. Wide-spectrum antibiotics, analgesics, and antiseptics showed the highest trend in change. A statistically significant change in prescribing practices during the pandemic period was noted for amoxicillin with clavulanic acid, ibuprofen, and ketoprofen which showed an increase in trend, while cephalexin and diclofenac showed a statistically significant decrease. The highest increase in trend was recorded for azithromycin, at +39.3%. The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with a marked increase in medication utilization, especially in the first year of the pandemic. The increase in wide-spectrum antibiotic classes needs to be addressed and regulated so that patients accept that antibiotics are not a substitute for dental treatment and dentists always start treatment with narrow-spectrum antibiotics regardless of specific times, as is the case with the pandemic.