Introduction:A country such as India abounds with diverse population groups with distinct anthropometric characteristics. Among these, numerous Nepalese population groups are present in different states of India comprising one of the most common immigrant races. The aim of the study is to compare two distinct races, Indians and Nepalese on the basis of facial height proportions, arch length and palatal rugae patterns and assess their significance in racial identification.Materials and Methods:A total of 120 subjects comprising of 60 Indians and 60 Nepalese were selected, with each group including 30 males and 30 females. Facial heights were measured using sliding digital calipers, arch lengths with the help of a brass wire and rugae patterns were traced on dental casts obtained with alginate impressions.Results:Facial height measurements did not give significant results for racial or gender identification of given races. Differences between arch length parameters were found to be significant between the two population groups. Secondary and fragmentary palatal rugae forms were found to be more common in Nepalese than Indians.Conclusion:The Indian and Nepalese have similar anthropometric characteristics with regard to facial height. However, arch length and palatal rugae characteristics vary between the two races.

Dens invaginatus or ‘dens in dente’ is a developmental malformation of the tooth resulting from infolding of the dental papilla before calcification. This article presents a case of dens invaginatus occurring in maxillary right lateral incisor of a 45-year-old male patient. The patient presented with pain and clinically missing maxillary right canine. The tooth was found to be non-vital. Radiographic examination revealed the tooth-in-tooth appearance of lateral incisor with a dilated pulp chamber. The crown of impacted canine was found within the pulp chamber of lateral incisor. Owing to this unique clinical presentation, both the lateral incisor and the impacted canine were extracted. Histopathologic examination confirmed the diagnosis of Dens invaginatus Type III B. A brief review on etiopathogenesis, radiographic features and treatment of dens invaginatus has also been included.

Osteomas are benign, slow-growing osteogenic tumours rarely occurring in the craniofacial bones. Osteomas are characterised by the proliferation of compact and/or cancellous bone. It can be of a central, peripheral, or extra skeletal type. The peripheral type arises from the periosteum and is rarely seen in the mandible. The lingual surface and lower border of the body are the most common locations of these lesions. They are usually asymptomatic and can be discovered in routine clinical and radiographic examination. In this paper, the authors present a large solitary peripheral osteoma located in the inferior surface of the left angle of mandible and causing facial deformity in a 14-year-old boy. Radiographic examination by diagnostic radiographs revealed mixed appearance (radiopaque- radiolucent), well-circumscribed, pedunculated mass approximately 3.5 cm in size. The osteoma was removed surgically, and no recurrence has been observed.

Ameloblastic carcinoma is a rare malignant odontogenic neoplasm that can arise either as a de novo lesion or from pre-existing ameloblastoma. Histopathologically, the tumor retains an ameloblastomatous differentiation pattern but shows cytological features of malignancy. Owing to variable biologic behavior and paucity of long-term follow-up cases, there has been no clear consensus on treatment protocol. The present case of ameloblastic carcinoma arose in the mandible of a 24-year-old male. Surgical treatment involved resection of the mandible along with regional lymph nodes. The patient has been on follow up for the past one year without any recurrence or metastases. An update on ameloblastic carcinoma encompassing the histogenesis, immunohistochemical features and treatment aspects are included.

Several methods of denture marking have been described in the literature. However, most of them are expensive, time-consuming, and do not permit the incorporation of large amounts of information. We propose a novel and simple method incorporating 2D codes which has several advantages over the existing methods. A 2D code was generated in the dental office and inserted into a maxillary denture. The code was then read using software downloaded into a mobile phone giving access to the website containing details about the patient. The denture was also subjected to durability tests, which did not hamper the efficacy of the 2D code. 2D coding for dentures is a simple, less expensive method with the potential of storing a large amount of information that can be accessed on-site by the forensic investigator, thus allowing quick identification of the denture wearer.

Background and Aims:Myofibroblasts are one of the important components of the tumor microenvironment which could possibly play an important role in tumor progression. The purpose of this study was to compare the presence of α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and CD34 positive fibroblasts in nonmetastatic and metastatic oral squamous cell carcinoma and to evaluate their role in tumor metastasis.Materials and Methods:Ten cases each of histologically proven metastatic and nonmetastatic oral squamous cell carcinoma formed the study group. The tissue sections were stained immunohistochemically for α-SMA and CD34. The stromal spindle cells positive for these markers in the study groups were counted and compared.Results:α-SMA positive cases were more in the metastatic group and CD34 positive cases were found to be more in the nonmetastatic tumors.Conclusions:Though difference in the staining pattern was statistically nonsignificant, the inverse relationship between α-SMA and CD34 positive cells is indicative of dynamic nature and the influence of tumor stroma in tumor progression and metastasis.

Background: Hepatitis B is an inflammatory disease of liver due to double stranded DNA virus of the hepadnaviridae, transmitted through contact with the blood or other body fluids of an infected person. Hepatitis B poses a major health concern and is the world's most common blood borne viral infection placing healthcare workers, medical and dental professionals at higher occupational risk and in India it is the second most common cause for acute hepatitis. To increase the awareness and knowledge about viral hepatitis WHO has declared 28 th July as the World Hepatitis Day/Eradication day. So the present survey was conducted to evaluate and compare the status of awareness of hepatitis B infection among dental practitioners and students.

Dermoid cysts are developmental cysts and considered to develop from enslavement of epithelial debris in the midline during closure of the mandibular and hyoid brachial arches. These cysts are painless, slow growing and most commonly occur in young adults with no gender predilection. They are uncommon in the head and neck region. Oral dermoid cysts are found usually in the submental or sublingual triangle in variable relation to mylohyoid, geniohyoid, and genioglossus muscle. The cyst is lined by epidermis like epithelium and contains dermal adnexal structures in the cyst wall. We report a case of dermoid cyst arising in the sublingual region of a young adult male with abundance of hair which is rare finding.