Oral candidiasis in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients under highly active antiretroviral therapy.

Human immunodeficiency virus has plagued mankind since the 1980's when the first case was documented. Human immunodeficiency virus-induced immunocompromised state can lead to several systemic and local manifestations, which often culminates in mortality. Oral candidiasis was one of the most prevalent opportunistic infections noted in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients. The advent of highly active antiretroviral therapy has led to a significant reduction in both the mortality and the morbidity of infected patients. The combined antiretroviral therapy has also led to a decrease in the incidence of opportunistic infections including oral candidiasis. Thus, the presence of well-established oral candidiasis in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients under highly active antiretroviral therapy could be considered as an indicator of potential treatment failure. The present manuscript aims to review the published literature assessing the effect of highly active antiretroviral therapy on the incidence of oral candidiasis in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients.

In an era of uncertainty: Impact of COVID-19 on dental education.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic arguably represents the worst public health crisis of the 21st century. However, no empirical study currently exists in the literature that examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on dental education. This study evaluated the impact of COVID-19 on dental education and dental students' experience. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was administrated to professional dental students that focused on their experiences related to COVID-19. The survey included questions about student demographics, protocols for school reopening and student perceptions of institutional responses, student concerns, and psychological impacts. RESULTS: Among the 145 respondents, 92.4% were pre-doctoral dental students and 7.6% were orthodontic residents; 48.2% were female and 12.6% students lived alone during the school closure due to the pandemic. Students' age ranged from 23 to 39 years. Younger students expressed more concerns about their emotional health (P = 0.01). In terms of the school's overall response to COVID-19, 73.1% students thought it was effective. The majority (83%) of students believed that social distancing in school can minimize the development of COVID-19. In general, students felt that clinical education suffered after transitioning to online but responded more positively about adjustments to other online curricular components. CONCLUSIONS: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted dental education. Our findings indicate that students are experiencing increased levels of stress and feel their clinical education has suffered. Most students appear comfortable with technology adaptations for didactic curriculum and favor masks, social distancing, and liberal use of sanitizers.

Dental care and personal protective measures for dentists and non-dental health care workers.

As a pathogen spread primarily by the respiratory route COVID-19 infection not only poses significant risks to health care workers, but to dentists and dental health care workers, owing to the potential prolonged exposure and proximity to patients. This holds true for non-dentist health care workers who often in the setting of emergency departments and urgent care centers are tasked with addressing oral symptoms including abscesses, damaged teeth, jaw injuries and other dental urgencies. Infection control practice guidelines were evaluated for COVID-19 infection prevention in a dental setting. In this brief review, protective measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection for dentists and non-dentist health care providers will be introduced. This includes patient evaluation, personal and patient protective equipment use, sterilization and disinfection protocols.

Incidence of tooth sensitivity after home whitening treatment.

BACKGROUND: A potential side effect of dentist-dispensed home tooth-whitening systems is tooth sensitivity. The authors conducted a randomized prospective double-blind study to determine the incidence of tooth sensitivity after home whitening treatment. METHODS: Fifty adult subjects used a gel containing 15 percent carbamide peroxide and 0.11 percent fluoride ion; an additional 50 adult subjects used a placebo gel daily for four weeks. Each subject's plaque index score, gingival recession status, caries status, current dentifrice and smoking history were recorded at baseline. The researchers evaluated sensitivity weekly by interview for four weeks. RESULTS: Fifty-four percent of subjects in both test and control groups reported mild sensitivity; 10 percent of test subjects and 2 percent of control subjects reported moderate sensitivity; 4 percent of test subjects and no control subjects reported severe sensitivity. Sensitivity decreased with time; by the second week, no severe sensitivity was reported, and by the fourth week, no moderate sensitivity was reported. The authors found a statistically significant positive correlation between reported sensitivity and gingival recession. They found no statistically significant correlations between sensitivity and any of the other recorded parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Mild tooth sensitivity can be expected in approximately one-half of patients who undergo home whitening treatment using the gel studied. Approximately 10 percent of patients may experience moderate sensitivity, and 4 percent of patients may experience severe sensitivity for one to two weeks. Patients with gingival recession appear more likely to experience tooth sensitivity during home whitening treatment. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Patients considering home whitening treatment should be advised that mild tooth sensitivity is a common side effect and that severe tooth sensitivity occasionally occurs. If gingival recession is present, the probability of tooth sensitivity increases, and tooth sensitivity tends to decrease as treatment progresses.