Antimicrobial effects of a bioactive glass combined with fluoride or triclosan on Streptococcus mutans biofilm.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the antibacterial effects on a cariogenic biofilm of a bioactive glass (BAG) combined with either sodium fluoride (NaF) or triclosan (TCS).

Design: According to minimal bactericidal concentrations, 37.5mg/ml of BAG, 4.

Histologic investigation of gingival epithelium implantation and the nonincision placement of miniscrews.

Purpose: This study investigated whether the nonincision placement of miniscrews could lead to ectopic implantation of epithelium at the bone-implant interface and, if so, whether the epithelial cells could survive. The fate of grafted epithelial cells was also investigated.

Materials And Methods: Ten healthy male beagle dogs were included in the study and were divided into three groups.

Differences in facial profile and dental esthetic perceptions between young adults and orthodontists.

Introduction: The principal aim of this study was to investigate differences in perception of soft-tissue facial profiles and dental esthetics between young Chinese adults and orthodontists.

Methods: Eight hundred ninety-two subjects (444 male, 448 female), ages 16 to 24 years, chose 1 image from among 5 profile silhouettes and from among 10 ranked color photographs of the aesthetic component (AC) of the index of orthodontic treatment need that most closely resembled their own profile and dental esthetic appearance, respectively. A panel of 20 orthodontists then independently repeated the same image selection process.

Effect of 3 vertical facial patterns on alveolar bone quality at selected miniscrew implant sites.

Objective: To evaluate dental alveolar bone quality among young healthy Chinese adults having 3 different vertical patterns.

Materials And Methods: Three-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography images of 101 subjects (15 low-angle, 48 average-angle, and 38 high-angle) were reconstructed. Facial alveolar cortical bone thicknesses and cortical and cancellous bone densities at 4 selected miniscrew implant sites in both arches, together with cancellous bone densities of third cervical vertebrae, were measured.

Serum microRNAs as potential biomarkers of mandibular prognathism.

Objectives: The aim of the study was to determine whether the expression levels of specific circulating serum microRNAs (miRNAs) are associated with mandibular prognathism (MP).

Methods: Sixty subjects in the early permanent dentition stage and 23 in the mixed dentition stage with MP were identified. Sixty-eight normal control subjects in the early permanent dentition stage and 24 in the mixed dentition stage were recruited for comparison.

Bilateral maxillary fused second and third molars: a rare occurrence.

This case report describes the diagnosis and endodontic therapy of maxillary fused second and third molars, using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). A 31-year-old Chinese male, with no contributory medical or family/social history, presented with throbbing pain in the maxillary right molar area following an unsuccessful attempted tooth extraction. Clinical examination revealed what appeared initially to be a damaged large extra cusp on the buccal aspect of the distobuccal cusp of the second molar.

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 8. Reviews and maintenance of restorations.

The oral environment is hostile to dental materials and to dental treatments. Microorganisms, warmth, moisture and high stresses impose severe limitations on the ability to maintain the initial results of dental treatment. Therefore, continuous periodic reviews and maintenance of oral health are required to retain the restored dentition.

Apical root resorption in maxillary incisors when employing micro-implant and J-hook headgear anchorage: a 4-month radiographic study.

This study evaluated, over a 4-month study period, the amount of apical root resorption occurring in maxillary central incisors following their retraction when employing either micro-implant or J-hook headgear anchorage. The prospective randomised clinical trial was conducted in Orthodontic Clinic, College of Stomatology, China from 2008-2009. Subjects are patients requiring fixed appliances on waiting list (n=20).

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 7. Treatment planning for missing teeth.

Although more people are retaining increasing numbers of their natural teeth into older ages, approximately 30-40% of persons over the age of 75 years in Western countries are edentulous. The causes and significance of tooth loss vary widely among individuals and cultures, and missing teeth may be replaced by a variety of means for functional, social and psychological reasons, rather than for significant physical health benefits. Therefore, it is essential to determine what the loss of teeth means to patients and what their expectations are for the outcomes following tooth replacement by various methods.

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 6. Preventive and treatment planning for periodontal disease.

A high level of sustained personal plaque control is fundamental for successful treatment outcomes in patients with active periodontal disease and, hence, oral hygiene instructions are the cornerstone of periodontal treatment planning. Other risk factors for periodontal disease also should be identified and modified where possible. Many restorative dental treatments in particular require the establishment of healthy periodontal tissues for their clinical success.

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 5. Preventive and treatment planning for dental caries.

The practice of operative dentistry continues to evolve, to reflect the many changes occurring in society and in dental diseases and conditions. However, the belief that all questionable and early carious lesions should be restored still persists. This belief is largely based upon the concept that the removal of all carious tissue followed by meticulous restoration of the tooth is the treatment of choice for dental caries.

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 2. Dental caries and assessment of risk.

Dental caries or tooth decay may be defined as a dynamic process causing progressive destruction of hard tooth substance (enamel, dentine and cementum) involving demineralisation of the inorganic portion of the tooth, and dissolution of the organic portion. The onset and progression of carious lesions involves multiple host, micro-organism and substrate factors interacting in a continuous flux. The diagnosis of initial lesions remains a challenge for practitioners and, despite numerous studies, the assessment of future caries risk is still based largely on a patient's past caries experience.

Oral diagnosis and treatment planning: part 1. Introduction.

A good manageable treatment plan does not just happen, but comes about as the natural consequence of taking carefully considered steps. History taking and clinical examination are two of the most important aspects of the patient assessment process, and complement each other to such an extent that it is impossible to build a satisfactory treatment plan without combining and collating information from the two procedures.

Implications of oral biofilms in medically at risk persons.

There is the need to understand the composition of oral biofilms so that appropriate preventive and treatment regimens, including using appropriate antimicrobials, can be developed further. Additionally, when the systemic effects from specific microorganisms in oral biofilms are better understood, more targeted preventive treatment options may be recommended for persons at high risk for potential systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, and for aspiration pneumonia. Hence, the possible association between periodontopathic microorganisms, and also between cariogenic microorganisms in high caries risk persons, and systemic diseases requires further research involving metagenomic and large well-designed clinical studies.

Gastroesophageal reflux disease and tooth erosion.

The increasing prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in children and adults, and of "silent refluxers" in particular, increases the responsibility of dentists to be alert to this potentially severe condition when observing unexplained instances of tooth erosion. Although gastroesophageal reflux is a normal physiologic occurrence, excessive gastric and duodenal regurgitation combined with a decrease in normal protective mechanisms, including an adequate production of saliva, may result in many esophageal and extraesophageal adverse conditions. Sleep-related GERD is particularly insidious as the supine position enhances the proximal migration of gastric contents, and normal saliva production is much reduced.

Oral manifestations of gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Numerous case-control and other studies involving confirmation of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) by esophageal pH-metry and the assessment of dental erosions have shown significant associations between the two conditions in both adults and children. By contrast, when asked to vote on whether GERD may cause dental erosions, only 42% of physicians strongly agreed that such an association existed in adults, and just 12.5% strongly agreed for children, respectively in two global consensus reports.

[Report and analysis of periodicals of oral science in China].

Objective: To review and analyze the history and current situation of stomatological journals in China from 1949 to 2009.

Methods: The data from journal database, web sites and yearbooks were collected, and the information on Chinese dental journals, national economic indicators and the development in dental disciplines from 1949 to 2009 were obtained.

Results: The dental journals numbered one kind, four issues in 1949 and 32 kinds, 204 issues in 2009.

Patterns and forces of occlusal contacts during lateral excursions recorded by the T-Scan II system in young Chinese adults with normal occlusions.

The objective was to characterise the patterns and forces of occlusal contacts during lateral mandibular excursions in a young Chinese adult population. Angle Class I normal occlusions in 85 dental students aged 20-29 were evaluated using the T-Scan II occlusal imaging and analysis system. The frequency of occlusal contacts was recorded for right and left lateral excursions at the position of lateral disclusion, at the canine-to-canine position and at the lateral maximal position.

Corrosion behaviour and surface analysis of a Co-Cr and two Ni-Cr dental alloys before and after simulated porcelain firing.

This study evaluated the corrosion behaviour and surface properties of a commercial cobalt-chromium (Co-Cr) alloy and two nickel-chromium (Ni-Cr) alloys [beryllium (Be)-free and Be-containing] before and after a simulated porcelain-firing process. Before porcelain firing, the microstructure, surface composition and hardness, electrochemical corrosion properties, and metal-ion release of as-cast alloy specimens were examined. After firing, similar alloy specimens were examined for the same properties.

Effect of three radicular dentine treatments and two luting cements on the regional bond strength of quartz fibre posts.

The purpose was to investigate by push-out tests and scanning electron microscopy (SEM)/energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) the effect, after first acid etching the post space walls, of three radicular dentine treatments on the regional bond strength of quartz fibre posts placed using two heavily filled resin luting cements. The crowns of 39 extracted maxillary central incisors were sectioned transversely 2 mm coronal to the labial cement-enamel junction and the roots endodontically treated. After standardized post space preparations and etching 15 s with 32% phosphoric acid, 36 roots were randomly divided into six equal groups.

Identifying and reducing risks for potential fractures in endodontically treated teeth.

Introduction: Although long-term functional survival rates can be high for initial endodontically treated permanent teeth, they are generally more susceptible to fracture than teeth with vital pulps. Tooth extraction is often the consequence of an unfavorable prognosis after coronal and root fractures, but their occurrence in endodontically treated teeth might be reduced by identifying the risks for fracture associated with various operative procedures.

Methods: This article presents an overview of the risk factors for potential tooth fractures in endodontically treated teeth on the basis of literature retrieved from PubMed and selected journal searches.

Optimum post and tooth root diameters for a cast post-core system.

Purpose: To investigate the optimum diameter for the tapered post of a cast alloy post-core system relative to the root diameter, when measured at the root face, that is required to minimize both post and root failures.

Methods: 32 extracted maxillary central incisor teeth were each decoronated perpendicular to the long axis at a point 2.0 mm occlusal to the labial cemento-enamel junction.

Fracture resistance after simulated crown lengthening and forced tooth eruption of endodontically-treated teeth restored with a fiber post-and-core system.

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of ferrule preparation length on the fracture resistance after simulated surgical crown lengthening and after forced tooth eruption of endodontically-treated teeth restored with a carbon fiber-reinforced post-and-core system.

Methods: 40 extracted endodontically-treated mandibular first premolars were decoronated 1.0 mm coronal to the buccal cemento-enamel junction.

Fracture resistance and microtensile bond strength of maxillary premolars restored with two resin composite inlay systems.

Purpose: To compare the in vitro fracture resistance and the microtensile bond strength (muTBS) of premolar teeth restored with two light-cured resin composite inlay systems.

Methods: 50 sound human maxillary premolars were divided randomly into five equal groups. Four groups received mesial-occlusal-distal (MOD) inlay preparations.

Effect of fluoride iontophoresis on the microtensile bond strength between dentin and two adhesive systems.

Aim: To evaluate the effect of fluoride iontophoresis on the microtensile bond strength (MTBS) between coronal dentin and two resin-based adhesive systems, and to measure quantitatively dentinal tubule occlusion.

Methods: Twelve freshly extracted intact human mandibular third molars were divided randomly into four groups. The superficial occlusal dentin of each tooth was exposed and treated.