Backgound: Cancer of the oral cavity is a public health problem and many cases are not diagnosed until the disease has reached an advanced stage. The aim of this study was to initiate an educational programme in self-examination for patients at risk from oral cancer. Methods: This quasi-experimental study set out to initiate an educational programme in self-examination for patients at risk from oral cancer, assessing the outcomes after three months. In individual 15-minute face-to-face sessions, patients were given information and training in oral cancer risk factors and then verbal instructions as how to carry out oral self-examination. Three months later, patients were interviewed by telephone and asked if they had carried out selfexamination independently at home. The programme was evaluated by means of a health belief model questionnaire on perceived susceptibility (3 items), severity (8 items), benefits (4 items), barriers (8 items) and efficacy (6 items). Results: Eighty-six patients (37 females [43.1%] and 49 males [56.9%]) with a mean age of 58.60 AE 10.7 completed the oral self-examination programme. Logistic regression analysis indicated that patients who felt themselves subject to susceptibility (OR: 0.03 95% CI: 0.0-0.86; p < 0.04), severity (OR 0.23 95% 0.08-0.68; p < 0.008) and benefits (OR 0.11 95% 0.02-0.63; p < 0.013) were more likely to perform self-examination. Conclusions: Training programmes in oral self-examination are needed to decrease morbidity and mortality from oral cancer.

Objectives To investigate sleep quality, anxiety/depression and quality-of-life in patients with xerostomia. Materials and methods This prospective, observational, cross-sectional study was conducted among a group of xerostomia patients (n = 30) compared with 30 matched control subjects. The following evaluation scales were used to assess the psychological profile of each patient: the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14), the Xerostomia Inventory, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). Results The PSQI obtained 5.3 3 ± 1.78 for patients with xerostomia compared with 4.26 ± 1.01 for control subjects (p = 0.006); ESS obtained 5.7 ± 2.1 for test patients vs 4.4 0 ± 1 for control subjects (p = 0.010). Statistical regression analysis showed that xerostomia was significantly associated with depression (p = 0.027). Conclusions Patients with xerostomia exhibited significant decreases in sleep quality compared with control subjects.