Cytotoxicity Analysis of Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells After Silver Diamine Fluoride Application.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the cytotoxicity of silver diamine fluoride (SDF) to human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSC). hDPSC were exposed to dilutions of 38 percent SDF ( 10-3, 10-4, and 10-5) and incubated for 24 hours. Cell viability was assessed with colorimetric detection assay at 24 hours.

Effect of shift to virtual teaching on active learning: A snapshot.

Purpose: Active learning engages students via interaction for deeper understanding and retention. A global pandemic resulted in an abrupt mid-semester transition from in-person to virtual learning. This study examined student reporting on active learning before and after this transition.

Factors affecting dental students' postgraduate plans: A multi-site study.

Purpose: This multi-site study examined dental students' postgraduate plans and factors affecting them, perceptions of pathways with the best future, and whether those postgraduate plans changed during dental school.

Methods: An online survey was made available to all four dental classes (2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021) and advanced standing/international dental students at eight US dental schools. The survey questionnaire consisted of two parts: (1) 14 questions pertaining to demographic information and (2) 11 questions pertaining to career path choices and possible influencing factors.

Clinical Instructions for Using Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) in Dental Caries Management.

Unlabelled: Manufacturer instructions for 38% silver diamine fluoride (SDF) are limited to current FDA clearance for tooth desensitization. There is a need for instructions to provide best-practice recommendations for off-label use of SDF for caries prevention and arrest.

Methods: The authors considered existing clinical approaches to the use of 38% SDF at pH 10 for the prevention and arrest of active dental caries, in light of the best current evidence.

Effect of surface preparation and light curing on penetration of silver particles from 38% silver diamine fluoride in dentin of primary teeth: An in vitro evaluation.

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of light cure, as well as various dentin surface treatment approaches, on the penetration depth of silver precipitating from 38% silver diamine fluoride into primary dentin tubules.

Methods: The occlusal dentin surfaces of 42 non-carious primary molars were exposed and then sectioned into halves bucco-lingually. The halves from each tooth pair were randomly split in two mega-groups, and each mega-group was divided randomly as follows into six experimental groups: prepared by either carbide bur (G1, G2), ceramic bur (G3, G4), or erbium laser (G5, G6).

Marginal adaptation and internal indentation resistance of a Class II bulk-fill resin-based composite.

Purpose: To compare the dentin bonded external marginal integrity and the internal surface indentation hardness of bulk-fill and conventional resin-based composite (RBC) placed in both bulk and increments.

Methods: 120 MO and DO cavities were prepared in 60 extracted human third molars. The teeth were randomly divided into four groups of 15 teeth per group to be restored as follows: BB (bulk-fill RBC, placed in a 4 mm bulk increment), BL (bulk-fill RBC, placed in 2 mm incremental layers), CB (conventional RBC, placed in a 4 mm bulk increment), and CL (conventional RBC, placed in 2 mm incremental layers).

Impact of simulated patients on students' self-assessment of competency in practice of geriatric dentistry.

Purpose: The evaluation of the effectiveness of simulation training in dentistry has previously been focused primarily on psychomotor hand skills. This study explored the impact of simulated patient (SP) encounters in simulation on students' self-assessment of competency in their clinical and communication abilities with geriatric patients.

Methods: Students from 2 cohorts were recruited for this study.

Assessment of Critical Thinking in a First-Year Dental Curriculum.

We studied how students in a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) program perceived the importance of critical thinking and the extent to which critical thinking was perceived to be included in each of 25 courses of the first-year curriculum at The University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston (UTSD). Sixty-nine of the 102 second-year students who were invited participated in an online survey. The survey had three parts, with all statements of each part evaluated on a five-point Likert scale ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree.

Integration of Basic and Clinical Sciences: Student Perceptions.

The integrated curriculum is becoming a popular concept among dental schools. The purpose of this study was to query dental students at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston - School of Dentistry (UTSD) to elucidate their level of interest in the integrated curriculum, perception of how much integration is currently occurring, and identify challenges to integration. To address this question, dental students at UTSD were invited to participate in a survey.

Silver diamine fluoride and bond strength to enamel in vitro: A pilot study.

Purpose: To evaluate if pre-treatment with silver diamine fluoride (SDF) adversely affects the bond strength of orthodontic brackets to enamel.

Methods: 30 extracted non-carious permanent molar teeth were embedded in acrylic resin cylinders with buccal surfaces exposed and randomly divided equally into two groups. The experimental enamel surfaces were treated with 38% SDF applied for 1 minute between phosphoric acid etch and metal orthodontic bracket bonding with Transbond XT Light Cure Adhesive.

Fluoride Intake of Infants from Formula.

Objective: This study aimed to assess fluoride intake in infants from formula reconstituted with water, with fluorosis risk in mind.

Study Design: Data on water source, formula brand/type, volume of formula consumption and infant weight were collected for infants at two-, four-, six-, nine- and twelve-month pediatrician well child visits. Identified formula brands and water types were reconstituted and analyzed for fluoride concentration.

Integration of Basic and Clinical Sciences: Faculty Perspectives at a U.S. Dental School.

Although dental education has traditionally been organized into basic sciences education (first and second years) and clinical education (third and fourth years), there has been growing interest in ways to better integrate the two to more effectively educate students and prepare them for practice. Since 2012, The University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston (UTSD) has made it a priority to improve integration of basic and clinical sciences, with a focus to this point on integrating the basic sciences. The aim of this study was to determine the perspectives of basic and clinical science faculty members regarding basic and clinical sciences integration and the degree of integration currently occurring.

Silver diamine fluoride, potassium iodide, and esthetic perception: An in vitro pilot study.

Purpose: To assess if there was a perceptible difference in staining of restorations in silver diamine fluoride (SDF)-treated teeth, with or without the subsequent application of potassium iodide (KI).

Methods: 20 extracted teeth with frank cavitated carious lesions were prepared with a spoon excavator to remove superficial soft carious dentin and then randomly divided into two groups of 10. The control group was treated with 38% SDF and then restored with glass-ionomer.

Dental Faculty Accuracy When Using Diagnostic Codes: A Pilot Study.

The aim of this study was to examine the accuracy of dental faculty members' utilization of diagnostic codes and resulting treatment planning based on radiographic interproximal tooth radiolucencies. In 2015, 50 full-time and part-time general dentistry faculty members at one U.S.

Utilization of Chinese Herbal Medicine for Selected Oral Conditions in Two Pediatric Populations.

Purpose: To characterize traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) use, emphasizing herbal remedies, for oral conditions among two Chinese pediatric populations in the United States.

Methods: 318 unique ethnic Chinese parental units in Houston and Boston with children younger than 12 years old were interviewed for themselves and their children. Questionnaire included age, gender, duration in the United States, frequency of TCM use, and the five selected oral conditions for which TCM agents might be used.

Xerostomia: current streams of investigation.

Xerostomia is the subjective feeling of dry mouth, and it is often related to salivary hypofunction. Besides medication-related salivary hypofunction, Sjögren syndrome and head-and-neck radiation are two common etiologies that have garnered considerable attention. Approaches to treating and/or preventing salivary hypofunction in patients with these conditions will likely incorporate gene therapy, stem cell therapy, and tissue engineering.

Combination esthetic treatment of anterior teeth affected by idiopathic enamel hypoplasia: a case report.

The esthetic management of enamel dysplasia presents an opportunity for the practitioner to integrate expertise in diagnosis, biomaterials, and technique. In addition to considerations of appearance, careful attention must be paid to occlusal function and restorative material properties. This case report highlights a combined approach of conservative lithium disilicate indirect restorations and composite resin direct veneers to electively restore the anterior teeth of a patient diagnosed with idiopathic enamel hypoplasia.

Impact of Technique-Specific Operative Videos on First-Year Dental Students' Performance of Restorative Procedures.

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of psychomotor operative video demonstrations on first-year dental students who are performing specific procedures for the first time in a preclinical setting. The class was randomly divided into two groups, and three restorative procedures were selected. On the date on which each procedure was to be performed in the preclinical laboratory for the first time, one group (experimental, n=50) was shown a technique video for that specific procedure immediately before commencing the exercise; the control cohort (n=50) did not view the video.

Sources of drinking water in a pediatric population.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the primary sources of water used for consumption and cooking by the patients of a university-based pediatric dental practice.

Methods: A simple, prewritten questionnaire-consisting of seven questions and available in English and Spanish-was conducted verbally with the caregivers of 123 pediatric patients during a designated timeframe. Analysis of responses included descriptive statistics and a chi-square test for a single proportion.

The dentist as doctor: a rallying call for the future.

Background: When the future status of dentistry is considered, scholarship in the profession plays a key role. It is by scholarship that dentistry distinguishes itself as a learned and esteemed profession, and this position paper aims to explore and promote this vital core value.

Methods: As Fellows of the American Dental Education Association's selective Leadership Institute, the authors spent over a year critically examining the role of scholarship in dentistry, which was identified as a critical issue for the profession.