Background:During the orthodontic treatment, maintenance of periodontal health is of utmost importance; hence, this study was conducted to explore the perception and awareness of patients seeking orthodontic treatment toward maintenance of periodontal health and factors affecting the same.Materials and Methods:It was a cross-sectional descriptive questionnaire study conducted among134 patients seeking orthodontic treatment from 16 private clinics in Patna. The study was conducted in the month of June 2019. The city was divided into four directions east, west, north, and south and four clinics were selected from each directions randomly. A close-ended questionnaire was prepared consists of demographic details and questions regarding their perception, awareness, and practice to maintain periodontal health from the start of orthodontic treatment.Results:Majority of study participants {74 (55.22%)} were between the age group of 11 and 15 years. Among all study participants, females {81 (60.45%)} were more than males. It was determined that 112 (83.58%) of patients were using tooth brush and tooth paste/powder for cleaning teeth. There was moderate awareness, negative perception, and fair practice of majority of study participants seeking orthodontic treatment toward maintenance of periodontal health. Awareness of study participants was significantly (P-value ≤ 0.05*) associated with practice.Conclusion:There was moderate awareness, negative perception, and fair practice of majority of study participants seeking orthodontic treatment toward maintenance of periodontal health. Education of study participants was significantly associated with awareness and practice regarding maintenance of periodontal health. There is further need to educate the orthodontic patients toward maintenance of periodontal health.

A BSTRACT Background: There is emerging interest and increasing amount of evidence that support the interrelationship between periodontitis and systemic conditions. Epidemiological and microbiological–immunological studies have lent credence to the concept that periodontal disease may be a separate risk factor for cardiovascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, and respiratory disease, as well as preterm delivery of low-birth-weight infants. Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of periodontal infection as a possible risk factor for preterm low birth weight (LBW) based on age, literacy, and hemoglobin level of mother. Materials and Methods: The observational study was conducted on 200 subjects, which were selected from the free labor ward, District Hospital, Saifai, Etawah, UP, India. Periodontal examinations were performed using the World Health Organization criteria. The periodontal status of the mother was recorded using Community Periodontal Index. Results: For this study, chi-square test was performed to know the effect of variables and to find out the statistical significance of the study. Age of mother shows statistical insignificant association with periodontal disease, whereas literacy of mothers showed statistical significant association with periodontal disease, and periodontal status and hemoglobin levels of the mothers also showed a significant association. Conclusion: The prevalence of LBW infants was considerably less in mothers with a healthy periodontium and increased with progressive periodontal disease.

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Dental health plays an imperative role in the general health and well-being of an individual. Terminally ill patients due to a compromised immune response are susceptible to a wide array of oral complications, which may affect their ability to speak and chew, leading to malnutrition. The present study was conducted to evaluate dental health and various oral manifestations in terminally ill patients. One hundred twenty terminally ill patients hospitalized with diseases of the respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract, circulatory system, liver, and endocrinal disorders were included in the study. The evaluation of oral manifestations and their prevalence was done by a single examiner. The oral health was evaluated according to symptoms exhibited by the patients and clinical presentation. Of the patients included in the study, 78 were male, and 42 were female. All the individuals were adults between 25 to 55 years of age. Out of 120 admitted terminally ill patients, 27 subjects had respiratory diseases, 17 had gastrointestinal disorders, 5 had disorders of the circulatory system, 39 had liver disorders, and 32 had endocrine disorders. A need for added comprehension is mandatory to link the inter-relationships between dentistry and medicine to further perk up the management of the overall health of patients, which will further reinforce the partnership between dental and medical communities.