Thurston Syndrome: An Insight of a Rare Case and Literature Review.

This article reports an infant presented with multiple congenital abnormalities, which is considered a rare case. A 2-month-old girl presented with cleft palate, lobulated tongue, frontal bossing, postaxial polydactyly of hands, and other clinical manifestations involving oral, facial, and digital malformations. Hence, a provisional diagnosis of oral-facial-digital syndrome (OFDS), a rare genetic disorder, was contemplated. A genetic test was undertaken, and a confirmatory diagnosis of OFDS type-V (Thurston syndrome) was made. A brief description of the case and literature review of OFDS, including various aspects like etiology, inheritance, clinical features, and management, are discussed here. How to cite this article: Sreekumar D, Dutta B, Dhull KS, et al. Thurston Syndrome: An Insight of a Rare Case and Literature Review. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2024;17(2):206-210.

A Leap Beyond Traditional Methods: A Case Report on the Horizontal Loop Distal Shoe.

This case report presents the successful management of a four-year-old male patient with pain in the lower right back tooth region. Clinical and radiographic examinations revealed the necessity for extraction of tooth 85 due to persistent infection and bone resorption, necessitating space maintenance. A modified distal shoe space maintainer, incorporating horizontal loops for enhanced adjustability, was utilized postextraction. The appliance was fabricated, cemented, and monitored through follow-up visits. At the 24-month recall, the permanent mandibular first molar (tooth 46) was clinically visible, indicating successful space maintenance. Incorporating horizontal loops into the distal shoe space maintainer represents an innovative approach in pediatric dentistry, offering clinicians a versatile tool for managing space loss and promoting optimal eruptive patterns.

Decoding Early Childhood Caries: A Comprehensive Review Navigating the Impact of Evolving Dietary Trends in Preschoolers.

This comprehensive review delves into the intricate relationship between evolving dietary trends in preschoolers and the prevalence of early childhood caries (ECC). The investigation meticulously analyzes ECC epidemiology, etiology, and preventive strategies. The review unveils the multifaceted nature of ECC, highlighting microbial, dietary, and environmental factors contributing to its development. Significantly, the study explores the global prevalence of ECC and its substantial implications for the overall health, nutrition, and development of preschool-aged children. The implications for public health and policy are deliberated, advocating for targeted interventions and collaborative efforts among healthcare professionals, policymakers, educators, and parents. The conclusion presents a compelling call to action, urging collective engagement to mitigate the impact of ECC and prioritize the well-being of preschoolers. This review offers valuable insights for healthcare professionals, policymakers, educators, and parents to inform evidence-based strategies for addressing ECC and promoting early childhood oral health.

Effectiveness of Diode Lasers in the Reduction of Bacteremia Associated with Ultrasonic Scaling: A Clinical and Microbiological Study.

Introduction: As is known, periodontal pathogens and their products as well as inflammatory mediators produced in periodontal tissues might enter the bloodstream, causing systemic effects and/or contributing to systemic diseases. Aim: To evaluate the effect of diode lasers on the incidence of bacteremia associated with ultrasonic scaling and its clinical efficacy as an adjunct to scaling in the treatment of moderate periodontitis. Result: The use of diode laser is more effective in killing or detoxifying periodontopathic bacteria such as P. gingivalis associated with chronic periodontitis as compared to ultrasonic alone with ablate bacteria only when it comes in contact with plaque biofilm directly. Conclusion: The results of study confirm the previously reported findings that bacteremia is caused by ultrasonic scaling and adjunct use of diode laser with scaling has the potential to reduce the bacteremia associated with ultrasonic scaling alone.

A Correlation between Clinical Classification of Dental Pulp and Periapical Diseases with its Patho Physiology and Pain Pathway.

Background: Dental pain due to pulpal involvement is difficult to diagnose due to the apparent inaccessibility of pulp to the clinical tests, indistinct symptoms, and referred toothache originating from the periodontal tissues. Though we have various clinical classification systems to categorize pulpal diseases, we are yet biased about the exact pathophysiology and pain pathway associated with it. Dental pulp has a complex physiology, and so is its pathophysiology. Aims & objectives: To concisely reviews the basic understanding of the pathophysiology of pulp, pain pathway, and its correlation with the classification of various clinical conditions of pulpal inflammation and periapical diseases. Methodology: Literature search on pulpal diseases and pathophysiology from the sources: MEDLINE, PubMed, Web of Science and Cochrane Databases dated from 1965 till December 2020 was carried on to collect 163 articles. Results: Filtered search on the pathophysiology of pulp, pain pathway, and classification of various clinical conditions of pulpal inflammation resulted us to precise 36 articles required for our understanding and demystifying the correlation. Conclusion: The emphasis should be laid on understanding the minute changes occurring inside the pulp in due course of inflammation to aid its diagnosis and a treatment plan accordingly. How to cite this article: Samir PV, Mahapatra N, Dutta B, et al. A Correlation between Clinical Classification of Dental Pulp and Periapical Diseases with its Patho Physiology and Pain Pathway. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(4):639-644.

Effect of Neonatal Factors on the Eruption of Primary Teeth in Children: A Longitudinal Prospective Cohort Study.

Introduction: Eruption of first primary teeth is a normal physiological process. Antenatal nutritional deficiency and prenatal and neonatal factors play an important role in eruption of primary teeth. Neonatal factors, such as gestational age (GA), degree of prematurity, severity of neonatal illness, and birth weight are primarily related to eruption of primary teeth. The relation between neonatal factors and the timing of eruption of primary teeth has not been studied prospectively among Indian preterm infants. Aims: To evaluate the influence of neonatal factors on the eruption of primary teeth in children born preterm. Materials and methods: A prospective longitudinal cohort study design was adopted. A total of 150 subjects were recruited by simple random sampling. Each child was followed up from birth up to 36 months. Intraoral examination was done and the teeth present in each visit were recorded. Data were statistically analyzed and interpreted. Statistical analysis used: Descriptive statistics, t-tests for independent sample, and Pearson's chi-squared tests were applied. Tooth showing statistically significant difference in mean age of eruption between term and preterm categories was studied for the effect of maternal and neonatal characteristics on eruption using multivariate regression analysis. Results: The mandibular central incisor was the first tooth to erupt. Significant determinant of eruption of mandibular incisor in term children was found to be parity, weight for GA, and complementary feeding, whereas for preterm children, significant determinants were parity, birth weight birth length, weight for GA, and complementary feeding. Conclusion: Neonatal factors, such as birth weight, birth length, weight for GA, and introduction of complementary feeding have a strong significant association with the eruption of primary teeth. Clinical significance: The findings of this study will guide in the preventive management of oral health in preterm children. How to cite this article: Indira MD, Nandlal B, Narayanappa D, et al. Effect of Neonatal Factors on the Eruption of Primary Teeth in Children: A Longitudinal Prospective Cohort Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(2):321-326.

Implications of ChatGPT in Public Health Dentistry: A Systematic Review.

An artificial intelligence (AI) program called ChatGPT that generates text in response to typed commands has proven to be highly popular, as evidenced by the fact that OpenAI makes it available online. The goal of the present investigation was to investigate ChatGPT's potential applications as an outstanding instance of large language models (LLMs) in the fields of public dental health schooling, writing for academic use, research in public dental health, and clinical practice in public dental health based on the available data. Importantly, the goals of the current review included locating any drawbacks and issues that might be connected to using ChatGPT in the previously mentioned contexts in healthcare settings. Using search phrases including chatGPT, implications, artificial intelligence (AI), public health dentistry, public health, practice in public health dentistry, education in public health dentistry, academic writing in public health dentistry, etc., a thorough search was carried out on the Pubmed database, the Embase database, the Ovid database, the Global Health database, PsycINFO, and the Web of Science. The dates of publication were not restricted. Systematic searches were carried out for all publications according to inclusion and exclusion criteria between March 31, 2018, and March 31, 2023. Eighty-four papers were obtained through a literature search using search terms. Sixteen similar and duplicate papers were excluded and 68 distinct articles were initially selected. Thirty-three articles were excluded after reviewing abstracts and titles. Thirty-five papers were selected, for which full text was managed. Four extra papers were found manually from references. Thirty-nine articles with full texts were eligible for the study. Eighteen inadequate articles are excluded from the final 21 studies that were finally selected for systemic review. According to previously published studies, ChatGPT has demonstrated its effectiveness in helping scholars with the authoring of scientific research and dental studies. If the right structures are created, ChatGPT can offer suitable responses and more time to concentrate on the phase of experimentation for scientists. Risks include prejudice in the training data, undervaluing human skills, the possibility of fraud in science, as well as legal and reproducibility concerns. It was concluded that practice considering ChatGPT's potential significance, the research's uniqueness, and the premise-the activity of the human brain-remains. While there is no question about the superiority of incorporating ChatGPT into the practice of public health dentistry, it does not, in any way, take the place of a dentist since clinical practice involves more than just making diagnoses; it also involves relating to clinical findings and providing individualized patient care. Even though AI can be useful in a number of ways, a dentist must ultimately make the decision because dentistry is a field that involves several disciplines.

Efficacy of Intranasal Atomized Dexmedetomidine for Sedation in Surgical Removal of Impacted Mandibular Third Molars: A Prospective Study.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To assess the efficacy of dexmedetomidine atomized intranasally for sedation during surgical removal of impacted mandibular third molars. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective randomized trial was conducted on 25 anxious patients between the ages of 18 and 40 who had impacted the lower third molars. An intranasal atomization device was used to give the medication 30 minutes prior to the surgical procedure. The Ramsay sedation score and Observer's assessment of alertness/sedation score were used to assess intranasal sedation. RESULTS: The results of our study state that the sedative effect began to take effect between 30 and 45 minutes later and was nearly back to baseline by 105 minutes after the administration of intranasal dexmedetomidine. CONCLUSION: Intranasal delivery of 1.5mg/kg atomized dexmedetomidine for patients undergoing surgical removal of impacted mandibular third teeth is safe, feasible, and clinically efficient in daycare settings based on the sedation scores, and secondary variables which were assessed.

Oral Health-related Quality of Life Assessed by Child: Oral Impacts on Daily Performances Index and Their Association with Dental Caries Prevalence and Gingival Bleeding Status of 12-year-old School Children in Bhubaneswar City.

Aim and objective: To assess the association, if any, between oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) measured using child oral impact on daily performances (C-OIDP) index and dental caries and gingival bleeding status among 12-year-old school children of Bhubaneswar city. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted, and the data were collected using child oral impacts on daily performances index, a closed-ended questionnaire among the 12-year-old school children of Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India, to find out the association between dental caries prevalence among gingival bleeding status. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and Chi-squared tests were used to determine the significant differences in the variable of interest. Results: The study population consists of 1,034 students, out of which 457 (44.2%) are males and 577 (55.8%) are females. A total of 463 (44.8%) children belonged to private schools, and 571 (55.2%) children belonged to government schools. The prevalence of dental caries among males was found to be 49.8% among males and 49.5% among females. A total of 58.8% of the school children presented the impact of oral problems in at least one of the eight daily performances evaluated by C-OIDP. Conclusion: According to the current study, eating was the most negatively impacted of the eight daily performances; it was also evident that dental caries, gingival bleeding, and OHRQoL were associated. How to cite this article: Kanungo S, Kumar G, Dhull KS, et al. Oral Health-related Quality of Life Assessed by Child: Oral Impacts on Daily Performances Index and Their Association with Dental Caries Prevalence and Gingival Bleeding Status of 12-year-old School Children in Bhubaneswar City. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(6):837-841.

Prevalence and Pattern of Non-syndromic Hypodontia among Adolescents in Southern Part of India.

BACKGROUND: Non-syndromic hypodontia is the most common developmental dental anomaly, but there is a paucity of literature on its prevalence and severity in the Indian population. AIM AND OBJECTIVES: To estimate the prevalence of non-syndromic hypodontia among adolescent schoolchildren in the southern part of India. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This cross-sectional study was conducted in 20 schools from two states of southern India, named-Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. A total of 5,458 children in the age-group 13 to 15 years were selected. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical examination was carried out to check the absence of a permanent tooth and was confirmed by radiographic findings. The inclusion criterion was children with all the permanent teeth erupted (except third molars) and exclusion criteria were teeth missing due to reasons other than congenital agenesis. A Chi-square test was applied to check the significance. RESULTS: The total prevalence of hypodontia in the study sample was 1.4%. Girls displayed a higher prevalence value (1.9%) than boys (1.1%). Maxillary lateral incisor was the most commonly congenitally missing tooth, followed by mandibular incisors and mandibular second premolar. Overall, hypodontia with a predominance of unilateral pattern and a predilection for the left side was observed. CONCLUSION: The most common missing permanent tooth (except third molars) was the maxillary lateral incisor. Hypodontia was more prevalent in females and had a predominance of unilateral patterns with a predilection toward the left side. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Manasa Devi TL, Dutta B, Dwijendra KS, et al. Prevalence and Pattern of Non-syndromic Hypodontia among Adolescents in Southern Part of India. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(4):492-496.

Assessment of Oral Health Status in Epileptic Children and Healthy Children in Bengaluru City: A Comparative Study.

INTRODUCTION: Epilepsy is a neurological disorder, which is identified by repeated episodes of abnormal synchronous discharge of brain, resulting in several types of deficits. A percentage of them also have mental and motor deficits. Both the epileptic conditions and their medical management can influence oral health. OBJECTIVE: To assess and to compare the oral health status of epileptic children and the healthy children in Bengaluru city. MATERIAL AND METHODOLOGY: Data was collected from the study group, which included 100 children between age-group 5 and 16 years registered under the Department of Neurology, Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (IGICH). Data collected from healthy children as control group and they visited Department of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry, VS Dental College & Hospital (VSDCH) for routine dental check-up. All subjects were examined by single qualified examiner. Gingival Index, plaque index, decayed missing filled teeth for primary teeth (dmft) and for permanent teeth (DMFT) were recorded for both study and control group. Other findings were also recorded such as injury to dentition or oral soft tissues and gingival hyperplasia as side effect of antiepileptic drug therapy. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant difference found in dmft and DMFT between control group and study group. But, there was significant difference present in dmft and DMFT on gender basis between control and study group. CONCLUSION: The group of children with epilepsy suffer from several oral health problems such as dental caries, gingival enlargement, periodontal disease, and injuries of the oral cavity, which are associated with seizure-related trauma. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Tiwari S, Verma RK, Dhull KS, et al. Assessment of Oral Health Status in Epileptic Children and Healthy Children in Bengaluru City: A Comparative Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(6):768-773.