Inequalities in orthodontic outcomes in England: treatment utilisation, subjective and normative need.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate inequalities in three aspects of access to orthodontic care: uptake of orthodontic treatment, normative need and subjective need in England. METHODS: We used data from two surveys in England: 12 and 15-year-olds from the 2013 Child Dental Health Survey (CDHS 2013) and 12-year-olds from the 2008/2009 NHS Dental Epidemiology Programme for England (NDEP 2008/2009). Summary variables representing orthodontic status were calculated. Two regression-based summary measures of inequalities were used to investigate the relationship between deprivation level and orthodontic outcomes: Slope and Relative indices of Inequality. RESULTS: There were significant absolute and relative inequalities in uptake of orthodontic treatment. The least deprived were 1.9 times more likely to have received orthodontic treatment compared to the most deprived in both surveys. Normative need was not associated with deprivation in either the analyses of CDHS 2013 (SII= 0.03, 95% CI: -0.04, 0.1; RII=1.06, 95% CI: 0.91, 1.24) or the NDEP 2007/2008 (SII= 0.03, 95% CI: -0.02, 0.07; RII=1.06, 95% CI: 0.96, 1.18). There was greater willingness to have teeth straightened in more deprived children from CDHS 2013 (SII=-0.09, 95% CI: -0.16, -0.03; RII=0.85, 95% CI: 0.75, 0.96) but not in NDEP 2007/2008 (SII=0.03, 95% CI: 0, 0.06; RII=1.07, 95% CI: 0.99, 1.15). CONCLUSIONS: Being deprived was associated with lower uptake of orthodontic treatment. Normative need was not related to deprivation. The association between deprivation and subjective need was only partly established, with poorer children showing a greater desire to have their teeth straightened in one survey.

Zoonotic origin and transmission of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus in the UAE.

Since the emergence of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in 2012, there have been a number of clusters of human-to-human transmission. These cases of human-to-human transmission involve close contact and have occurred primarily in healthcare settings, and they are suspected to result from repeated zoonotic introductions. In this study, we sequenced whole MERS-CoV genomes directly from respiratory samples collected from 23 confirmed MERS cases in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These samples included cases from three nosocomial and three household clusters. The sequences were analysed for changes and relatedness with regard to the collected epidemiological data and other available MERS-CoV genomic data. Sequence analysis supports the epidemiological data within the clusters, and further, suggests that these clusters emerged independently. To understand how and when these clusters emerged, respiratory samples were taken from dromedary camels, a known host of MERS-CoV, in the same geographic regions as the human clusters. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus genomes from six virus-positive animals were sequenced, and these genomes were nearly identical to those found in human patients from corresponding regions. These data demonstrate a genetic link for each of these clusters to a camel and support the hypothesis that human MERS-CoV diversity results from multiple zoonotic introductions.