Evaluation of the mechanical cleaning efficacy of dental handpieces.

Background: Dental handpieces undergo a decontamination process before reutilization. Thorough cleaning is a prerequisite to effective sterilization, to guarantee safety and prevent cross-infections.

Aim: To assess the cleaning efficacy offered by devices dedicated to dental handpieces.

[In vivo and in vitro analysis of the ability of urinary catheter to microbial colonization].

Bacterial adhesion to biomaterials is a complex phenomenon involving numerous factors. The ability to reduce urinary catheters infections simply by general hygiene and asepsis is low: an ascending colonization cannot be avoided. This will lead to a clinical infection only if several factors favour the bacterial adhesion or the bacterial coaggregation and the feeding of the bacterial biofilm.

[Prevention of cariogenic dental plaque. Study of the structures implicated in the adhesion and coaggregation in Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus sobrinus].

Cariogenic dental plaque may be assimilated to a biofilm resulting from the adhesion of S. mutans, then from the coaggregation of other streptococci, or other genus. We used a static monospecific biofilm model.

[Synergism of the combination of enzymes or surfactants and a phenolic disinfectant on a bacterial biofilm].

Disrupting bacterial biofilms is necessary for a wide application domains such as reusable medical devices, or systems of pipes for water or fluids in cosmetics, food and chemicals industry. Bacterial cells embedded in a biofilm are less susceptible to disinfectants than suspended cells. This property is referable to the structure of the biofilm itself.

Antiseptic activity of some antidental plaque chemicals on Streptococcus mutans biofilms.

S. mutans is one of the bacterial species involved in the initiation of cariogenic dental plaque. In situ, antiseptic activity evaluation of dental plaque chemicals is fairly difficult.

[An epidemiologic survey of the prevalence of dental caries in 6-15-year-old children in Champagne-Ardennes].

An epidemiological survey of dental caries in Champagne-Ardennes was conducted on a representative sample of 507 schoolchildren aged 6 to 15 years. The dft, DMFT and DMFS indices were analyzed in urban and rural zones. Although slightly lower, they were quite similar to the indices obtained at the national level.

Immunohistochemical localization of type IV collagen in mouse tooth germ: an ultrastructural study.

Localization of type IV collagen was analyzed at the ultrastructural level in mouse embryonic molars by using a preembedding technique. Cryostat sections were incubated with type IV collagen antibody and then treated with the peroxidase-antiperoxidase complex. This antibody was visualized at the epithelio-mesenchymal interface.