Distraction osteogenesis (DO) is a surgical procedure to increase bone height in different body parts. DO includes a surgical incision, wherein the bone is cut and a device is installed for further separation of the two ends by gradual unscrewing of the device screw. New bone gradually forms and fills the gap, and the bone height increases as such. Photobiomodulation (PBM) or low-level laser therapy (LLLT) enhances the formation of soft and hard tissue such as bone and can, therefore, accelerate the process of DO and shorten the duration of different surgical phases of DO such as latency, activation, and consolidation. Different laser types with variable exposure settings and protocols have been used for this purpose. The gallium-aluminum-arsenide (GaAlAs) diode laser is the most commonly used laser type for LLLT. This study reviews 18 published articles on the effects of LLLT on DO and summarizes their findings to further elucidate this topic.

Background: Severe skeletal class III malocclusions usually need a combined treatment of orthodontics and orthognathic surgery. Knowing about changes occurred following such treatments lead to improve facial esthetics and better treatment results. Objectives: This study was done to determine cephalometric changes of facial soft tissue after combined treatment in patients with skeletal class III problem. Methods: 25 patients with skeletal class III discrepancy who needed a combined treatment, were selected. Changes in nasolabial angle , upper lip and lower lip to E-line distance, angle of convexity , lip-chin-throat angle and lower anterior facial height were measured before and 6 -12 months after surgery. Changes in parameters were analyzed with Paired t-test. Results: Upper lip to E-line distance (P < 0.0001) and angle of convexity (P < 0.001) changed significantly following surgical procedures while changes of other parameters were not significant. Conclusions: Clinical changes in the soft tissue following a combination of orthodontic treatment and orthognathic surgery in patients with skeletal class III discrepancy are significant while these changes mostly improves esthetics of patient's facial profile.

Objectives: Musculoskeletal disorders in children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) affect the general health of the mouth and teeth. This study aimed to determine periodontal and dental diseases in children with CP based on gross motor function level, manual ability level, and subtypes of CP. Methods: This research was a cross-sectional study performed on 123 children (3-18 years old) with CP referred to dentistry and rehabilitation centers supervised by Tehran University of Medical Sciences in 2019-2020. They were selected by the convenience sampling method. The children were classified according to the gross motor function classification system: expanded and revised (GMFCS-E&R) for their gross motor function level, according to the manual ability function classification system (MACS) and mini-MACS for the functioning of their hands in handling objects, and according to the quality and topographical pattern of motor impairment for subtypes of CP. The periodontal status of children with CP was evaluated according to the recommendation of the World Health Organization using the community periodontal index and for caries according to the decayed, missing, filled index. All statistical analyses were done by SPSS v. 16. Results: The results showed significant differences between periodontal disease and sex, age, GMFCS-E&R, MACS, mini-MACS levels, and subtypes of CP (P<0.05). But there were no significant differences between teeth diseases and oral motor skills with sex, age, MACS and mini-MACS, GMFCS-E&R levels, and subtypes of CP (P>0.05). Discussion: Periodontal disease and decayed, missing, filled teeth are common problems in CP children, and the conditions worsen with age and level IV and V of GMFCS-E&R and MACS.

Introduction: Orthodontic appliances increase the risk of dental caries and gum disease. Since it is rather difficult to maintain oral hygiene in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances due to the presence of brackets, bands, and arch wires, they should be persuaded to take care of their oral cavity. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of an oral and dental health educational intervention using motivational interviewing in adolescents with fixed orthodontic appliances. Materials and Methods: Thirty adolescents with fixed orthodontic appliances aged 12-16 years presenting to orthodontics departments of school of dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, received individual counselling, verbal guidelines, and training for correct brushing and flossing techniques by a senior student of dentistry during a 20-minute motivational interview. To evaluate the effect of the intervention, oral health behaviors including brushing, flossing, and consumption of sugary snacks were collected in a self-report manner. Moreover, plaque and gingival indexes were measured before and one-month post intervention. The SPSS software version 23 was used for data analysis. Results: Among oral health behaviors, optimal frequency of brushing increased after the intervention (p=0.002). The mean plaque index was 0.99±0.43 before and 0.37±0.16 after the intervention, indicating a significant difference (p<0.001). Moreover, the mean gingival index (average inflammation) was 0.99±0.56 before the intervention, which improved to 0.30±0.20 after the intervention (p<0.001). Conclusion: Educational intervention based on motivational interviewing reduced dental plaques and gingival inflammation and increased the frequency of brushing in the short term among adolescents with fixed orthodontic appliances.

Objectives The ideal time for nasoalveolar molding (NAM) of infants with cleft lip and/or palate (CLP) is the first weeks after birth. The burden and responsibility that this method of treatment imposes on parents may result in incompliance. The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the redirection of health resources can make the situation worse. Therefore, this study evaluated the anxiety, complications, and incompliance of parents undergoing NAM during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods Demographic data of 35 infants with CLP treated during the COVID-19 pandemic, compliance and level of anxiety of both parents in addition to their complications were reported. The association between different variables and incompliance was evaluated by simple and multiple logistic regressions. The level of significance was considered at P value less than 0.05. Results The highest level of parental anxiety related to the NAM process was the delay in ending the treatment. Meanwhile, the reason for the highest level of anxiety related to attending the treatment sessions was the probability of the infant's COVID-19 infection. Fathers expressed lower levels of anxiety than mothers, significantly. The most prevalent NAM complication was skin irritation. Parents of younger infants (≤28 days) and those with a history of COVID-19 infection were more compliant. Conclusions COVID-19 pandemic caused a significant increase in the level of anxiety in both parents, mainly due to the delay in treatment ending and the possibility of infant's infection. Moreover, considering the importance of treatment time, parents of younger infants were more compliant with the NAM process.

Objective Sella turcica abnormalities such as sella turcica bridging (STB) have been observed frequently among patients with craniofacial anomalies. Ponticulus posticus (PP) is an important structure and its presence causes complications during surgeries. Due to the importance of these structures, this study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of STB, PP, and dimensions of the sella turcica in individuals with and without cleft. Design A cross-sectional study. Setting Orthodontic and Radiology Departments in a public dental school, Tehran, Iran. Patients Eighty-three lateral cephalograms of individuals with cleft and ninety-two cephalograms of class I individuals without cleft. Main outcome measures Length, depth, and maximum anterior–posterior diameter (APD) of sella turcica, presence of STB (classified as types 1, 2, and 3), and PP. Results In the group with cleft, 19.3% of individuals had type I, 65.1%, type II, and 15.7%, type III STB. In the group without cleft, 15.2% had type I, 73.9%, type II, and 10.9%, type III STB. In the group with cleft, 65.1% of individuals had no PP, 24.1%, incomplete, and 10.8%, complete PP while in the group without cleft, 56.5% had no PP, 29 31.5%, incomplete, and 12%, complete PP. Conclusion The sella turcica dimensions, STB, and PP prevalence were not significantly different between individuals with and without cleft. The sella turcica length and prevalence of STB and PP were not affected by age, sex, and cleft type. However, the depth and the APD were affected by age.

Introduction: Cleft lip and cleft palate are the most common maxillofacial congenital defects leading to facial deformity and complications in nutrition, respiration, and social interaction. The current study aims to report early findings of the pilot registry for congenital Cleft lip and cleft palate in Iran and discuss limitations and further goals to collect and implicate information of cleft newborn patients. Methods: A 3-year hospital-based multicenter prospective cohort study of The Congenital Cleft lip and cleft palate Registry was performed in various hospitals in Iran from 2018 to 2020. Newborns with oral clefts were included, and The type of cleft, location, geographical place, and gender of each patient were recorded. The descriptive statistics were reported as means and percentages analyzed with Fisher exact test using SPSS software ver. 22 (IBM, Chicago, US). The P-value < 0.05 considered as significant. Results: From 336 registered newborns with Cleft lip and cleft palate, 40.1% were females, while 59.9% were males. The prevalence of lip cleft was 31.5%, while 17.6% have palate cleft. Also, 50.9% suffer from both cleft lip and palate simultaneously. (P-value<0.05) The frequent location of clefts were bilateral Cleft lip and cleft palate with 50% of the cases (P-value<0.05). Also, 28.2% and 21.8% had right-side and left side unilateral Cleft lip and cleft palate, respectively. Tabriz, Mashhad, Tehran were the most frequent location of clefts. Conclusion: Despite the primary statistics and trends presented in this study, the data quality could improve through some limited modifications. Also, the provinces with a high prevalence of congenital deformities need critical attention and provide adequate healthcare.

Aim: Total body irradiation (TBI) is an external radiotherapy technique in which the whole body including the superficial regions is required to receive the therapeutic dose. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the received surface dose during TBI technique. Methods and materials: The anterior/posterior (AP/PA) TBI was implemented with 18-MV photon beam at 312-cm treatment distance for human-like phantom. The GAFCHROMIC-EBT3 films were used for superficial dose measurements. Results and discussion: The percentage of surface-absorbed dose relative to the prescription point for 8 points of measurements was between 102·78–121·48% and 104·51–127·43% at 5 and 10 mm depth, respectively. In the chest wall region due to the presence of lung blocks, the absorbed dose was below the acceptable level, so an electron boost was required to increase the chest wall absorbed dose. Conclusions: According to the results, the implemented technique was able to deliver sufficient dose to the shallow surface of phantom’s body.