Oral Health Screening by MassHealth Accountable Care Organizations: An opportunity for equity-focused interventions.

Establishing reliable access to dental services for publicly insured patients is an important part of achieving equitable oral health care. In 2023, an oral health screening requirement was added to the MassHealth Accountable Care Organization contract, which has the capacity to affect over 1.3 million members enrolled in MassHealth Accountable Care Organizations throughout the state.

Functional Adaptation of LPS-affected Dentoalveolar Fibrous Joints in Rats.

Introduction: The functional interplay between cementum of the root and alveolar bone of the socket is tuned by a uniquely positioned 70-80 µm wide fibrous and lubricious ligament in a dentoalveolar joint (DAJ). In this study, structural and biomechanical properties of the DAJ, periodontal ligament space (PDL-space also known as the joint space), alveolar bone of the socket, and cementum of the tooth root that govern the biomechanics of a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-affected DAJ were mapped both in space and time.

Methods: The hemi-maxillae from 20 rats (4 control at 6 weeks of age, 4 control and 4 LPS-affected at 12 weeks of age, 4 control and 4 LPS-affected at 16 weeks of age) were investigated using a hybrid technique; micro-X-ray computed tomography (5 µm resolution) in combination with biomechanical testing in situ.

Strain-guided mineralization in the bone-PDL-cementum complex of a rat periodontium.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of mechanical strain by mapping physicochemical properties at periodontal ligament (PDL)-bone and PDL-cementum attachment sites and within the tissues .

Design: Accentuated mechanical strain was induced by applying a unidirectional force of 0.06N for 14 days on molars in a rat model.