No abstract

Background Chronic inflammation in periodontal disease has been suggested as a potential risk factor in Alzheimer’s disease. The purpose of this study was to examine serum antibody levels to bacteria of periodontal disease in participants who eventually converted to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) compared to the antibody levels in control subjects. Methods Serum from 158 participants in the BRAINS (Biologically Resilient Adults in Neurological Studies) research program at the University of Kentucky were analyzed for IgG antibody levels to 7 oral bacteria associated with periodontitis including: Aggregati-bacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Campylobacter rectus, Tre-ponema denticola, Fusobacterium nucleatum, Tannerella forsythia, and Prevotella intermedia. All 158 participants were cognitively intact at baseline venous blood draw. Eighty one of the participants developed either mild-cognitive impairment (MCI) or Alz-heimer’s disease (AD) or both, and 77 controls remained cognitively intact in the years of follow up. Antibody levels were compared between controls and AD subjects at baseline draw and after conversion and controls and MCI subjects at baseline draw and after conversion using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test. AD and MCI participants were not directly compared. Linear regression models were used to adjust for potential confounding. Results Antibody levels to F. nucleatum and P. intermedia, were significantly increased (α = 0.05) at baseline serum draw in the AD patients compared to controls. These results remained significant when controlling for baseline age, Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) score and apolipoprotein epsilon 4 (APOE ε4) status. Conclusions This study provides initial data that demonstrate elevated antibodies to periodontal disease bacteria in subjects years prior cognitive impairment and suggests that periodontal disease could potentially contribute to the risk of AD onset/progression. Additional cohort studies profiling oral clinical presentation with systemic response and AD and prospective studies to evaluate any cause-and-effect association are warranted.

Our previous research suggests an association between a low number of teeth and increased risk of dementia. The aim of the present study was to determine if a low number of teeth is specifically related to memory decline as evidenced by low Delayed Word Recall scores. In addition, we examined the combined effect of a low number of teeth and the apolipoprotein E ϵ4 allele on Delayed Word Recall scores. We hypothesized that the scores of those who had the allele and a low number of teeth (0-9) would decline more rapidly over time than those participants with a greater number of teeth who lacked the allele. We found that individuals with both risk factors (the allele and fewer teeth) had lower Delayed Word Recall scores at the first examination and declined more quickly compared with participants with neither of these risk factors or with either risk factor alone.

Composite resin has been used for nearly 50 years as a restorative material in dentistry. Use of this material has recently increased as a result of consumer demands for esthetic restorations, coupled with the public's concern with mercury-containing dental amalgam. Composite is now used in over 95% of all anterior teeth direct restorations and in 50% of all posterior teeth direct restorations. Carbon fiber reinforced composites have been developed for use as dental implants. In medicine, fiber-reinforced composites have been used in orthopedics as implants, osseous screws, and bearing surfaces. In addition, hydroxyapatite composite resin has become a promising alternative to acrylic cement in stabilizing fractures and cancellous screw fixation in elderly and osteoporotic patients. The use of composite resin in dentistry and medicine will be the focus of this review, with particular attention paid to its physical properties, chemical composition, clinical applications, and biocompatibility.

Traditionally, the nerve to the mylohyoid has been considered a motor nerve. However, dissection and clinical studies have challenged this dogma implicating the nerve to the mylohyoid as a nerve of accessory sensory innervation to mandibular teeth. Within the infratemporal fossa, the nerve to the mylohyoid branches from the inferior alveolar nerve and may be anesthetized with an inferior alveolar nerve block. However, because of the variability in location of branching and the potential barriers formed by both the pterygomandibular fascia and the sphenomandibular ligament, the nerve to the mylohyoid may escape anesthesia in an inferior alveolar nerve block. This may prevent profound local anesthesia of the mandibular teeth and may account, at least in part, for the high failure rate of the inferior alveolar nerve block. Alternative local anesthesia procedures may be employed to ensure adequate anesthesia of the nerve to the mylohyoid is achieved. This review provides a background of anatomical and clinical research of the nerve to the mylohyoid and outlines techniques suggested for providing a neural blockade of the nerve to the mylohyoid.