Salivary LDH levels were consistently higher in OSMF and oral cancer; hence, it could be a future biomarker.

In the recent decades, periodontal disease has been identified as a risk factor for pre-term deliveries. Hence, it is important to evaluate the awareness of health-care providers of the association between periodontal diseases and pre-term birth. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to random samples representing general medical practitioners (GMPs), general dental practitioners (GDPs) and Gynecologists for this study. A knowledge score was calculated for correct answers to 11 survey questions related to oral health effects during pregnancy and compared among the three groups. In this study, 133 physicians, 135 dentists and 100 Gynecologists completed the questionnaire. More GDPs (67.4%) than GMPs (56.4%) and Gynecologists (63%) reported there was an association between periodontal disease and pre-term low birth weight. Efforts to increase this awareness may prove valuable in improving preventive care during pregnancy.

Aims and Objectives: Understanding perceptions and factors behind the rise in the prevalence of shisha smoking is important for the development of prevention strategies and policies. The aim of this descriptive study was to assess the prevalence and perception of shisha smoking among university students. Materials and Methods: The anonymous, self-structured 12-item questionnaire was administered to 450 male university students, with an overall response rate of 82.44% ( n = 371). Prevalence, knowledge, and other associated factors regarding shisha smoking were compared between dental and other specialty students using SPSS software for descriptive statistical analysis. Results: Among 371 university students, 40.43% ( n = 150) were nonsmokers, 32.88% ( n = 122) were shisha smokers, 12.94% ( n = 48) were cigarette smokers, and 13.75% ( n = 51) smoked both shisha and cigarette. The overall prevalence of shisha smoking (46.63%, n = 173) was higher than that of cigarette smoking (26.68%, n = 99). The percentage of those knowledgeable about the ill effects of shisha smoking was 44.2% with lesser knowledge among shisha smokers than cigarette smokers. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean total knowledge score between dental (5.65 ± 2.08) and other specialty (5.21 ± 2.3) students. Conclusions: A high prevalence of shisha use among university students is reported in this study as well as a general lack of understanding of the dangers involved with this behavior. Study authors recommend the development of policies targeted at preventing further rise in the prevalence of shisha smoking through the implementation of preventive strategies such as incorporating this topic into the school syllabus and encouraging research on shisha smoking.

These results suggest that IFN-λ1 could have antiviral and therapeutic value against the viruses in the pathogenesis of chronic periodontitis.

No abstract