No abstract

BackgroundStudies evaluating dental assistants’ knowledge about tooth avulsion and its management are rare. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the level of knowledge about tooth avulsion and its management among dental assistants in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and to assess its relationship with their educational background.MethodsA convenience sampling methodology was employed for sample selection. Over a period of four months starting in February, 2013, 691 pretested 17-item questionnaires were distributed. A total of 498 questionnaires were returned for an overall response rate of 72.1%. Six questions were related to knowledge about permanent tooth avulsion and one question was related to knowledge about primary tooth avulsion. Correct answers to these questions were assigned one point each, and based on this scoring system, an overall knowledge score was calculated. An analysis of covariance was used to test the association between the level of knowledge (total score) and the educational qualifications of the respondents (dental degree and others). A P-value of 0.05 was considered the threshold for statistical significance.ResultsThe majority of the respondents (n = 387; 77.7%) were non-Saudis (377 were from the Philippines), and 79.1% (n = 306) of the Filipinos had a dental degree. The question about recommendations for an avulsed tooth that is dirty elicited the highest number of correct responses (n = 444; 89.2%), whereas the question about the best storage media elicited the lowest number of correct responses (n = 192; 38.6%). The overall mean score for knowledge about tooth avulsion was 6.27 ± 1.74. The mean knowledge score among the respondents with a dental degree was 6.63 ± 1.37, whereas that among the respondents with other qualifications was 5.71 ± 2.08.ConclusionsThe educational qualifications of the surveyed dental assistants were strongly correlated with the level of knowledge about tooth avulsion and its management.

BackgroundTo assess the prevalence of malocclusion among 12-18-year-old disabled adolescents in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, by using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) and to determine the association of malocclusion with dental caries.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 243 children with various mental disabilities with or without physical infirmities. The Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI) and the dentition status were recorded using the World Health Organization Oral Health Surveys – Basic Methods (1997) Pro-forma. The Decayed (D), Missing (M) and Filled (F) components of the DMF index were calculated using the Dentition Status and Treatment Need (DSTN). A Chi-square test, ANOVA, and t-test were used to derive inferential statistics.ResultsThe mean DAI score ± standard deviation was 39.0 ± 12.3. A total of 123 (50.6%) participants (74 males and 49 females) had DAI scores of 36 and above, which indicated a handicapping malocclusion requiring mandatory orthodontic treatment. Sixty-nine (28.4%) adolescents (36 males and 33 females) had DAI scores between 31 and 35, which indicated severe malocclusion, for which orthodontic intervention was desirable. Incisal segment crowding (84.8%) was the most common aspect of the malocclusion. The mean DMFT score was 4.36 ± 3.81, and 82.8% of the participants had a DMFT score > 0. There was no statistically significant correlation between the mean DAI and DMFT scores (r = 0.090, p = 0.15). Only 16 (6.6%) of the adolescents had minor or no anomaly not needing orthodontic treatment.ConclusionsThe prevalence of malocclusion and dental caries was found to be high. However, there was no positive correlation between the severity of malocclusion and dental caries among the surveyed disabled adolescents.

Summary: This article reviewed smoking related systemic diseases and oral diseases. Smoking is related to lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases and many other systemic diseases. Cigarette smoke affects the oral cavity first, so it is evident that smoking has many negative influences on oral cavity, for example, staining of teeth and dental restorations, wound healing, reduction of the ability to smell and taste, and development of oral diseases such as oral cancer, periodontitis, smoker's palate, smoker's melanosis, hairy tongue, leukoplakia, oral candidiasis and implant survival rate. The article also discusses the relationship between smoking and dental caries in detail.