PREVLAR: Phase 2a Randomized Trial to Assess the Safety and Efficacy of RRx-001 in the Attenuation of Oral Mucositis in Patients Receiving Head and Neck Chemoradiotherapy.

Purpose: No Food and Drug Administration-approved intervention exists for oral mucositis (OM) from chemoradiotherapy (CRT) used to treat head and neck cancers. RRx-001 is a hypoxia-activated, cysteine-directed molecule that affects key pathways involved in OM pathogenesis. This phase 2a, multi-institutional trial was designed to assess the safety and feasibility of 3 schedules of a fixed concentration of RRx-001; a standard-of-care arm was included to identify potential signals of efficacy for further study.

"Meth Mouth": An Interdisciplinary Review of a Dental and Psychiatric Condition.

Objective: Chronic methamphetamine (MA) users experience many dental problems, a condition characterized as "meth mouth." These devastating effects on dentition is the main reason why many seek professional help. Here, we discuss the effects of MA on oral health and advocate for improved collaboration between dentists and mental health providers.

Oral Health in Electroconvulsive Therapy: A Neglected Topic.

Psychiatric medications may have serious and untoward adverse effects such as blurred vision, restlessness, agranulocytosis, muscle rigidity, and tremors. When compared to medications, electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is becoming a more acceptable treatment due to its efficacy, tolerability, and minimal adverse effect profile. Oral trauma can be an ECT-related adverse effect.

Update on oral fungal infections.

The incidence of oral fungal infections has increased in recent years as a result of factors such as increased number of solid organ transplantations and the widespread use of immunosuppressive drug therapies. This article reviews the diagnosis and treatment of oral fungal infections. At one time oral fungal infections were a relatively uncommon event, but with advances in health care and polypharmacy in an increasingly aging population, these infections are becoming a more routine clinical finding.

Characterization of oral biopsies from a geriatric population.

A retrospective search was performed to find the histological diagnosis for all lesions recorded by an oral pathology service for patients 65 and older from 1969-2002. The search was subcategorized into two age groups and the 20 most common diagnoses from these categories were characterized by patient gender and race. Lesions then were classified into one of seven modified etiopathogenic categories.

Assessment of dental faculty, staff, and students on knowledge of health effects associated with tobacco use.

Objectives: This study examined the knowledge of the health effects associated with tobacco use among dental school faculty, staff, and students.

Methods: A 30-item survey instrument was pilot-tested to ensure content validity prior to implementation. A total of 724 surveys were distributed through campus mail.

Disseminated histoplasmosis with oral manifestation.

Histoplasmosis is a fungal disease that affects humans and is caused by Histoplasma capsulatum. The presentation of the infection may be acute, chronic, or disseminated. The disseminated form has extrapulmonary manifestations which may include oral manifestations.

Oral fungal infections.

Candidiasis is the most common oral fungal infection diagnosed in humans. Candidiasis may result from immune system dysfunction or as a result of local or systemic medical treatment. Because oral candidiasis is generally a localized infection, topical treatment methods are the first line of therapy, especially for the pseudomembranous and erythematous variants.