Attitudes and knowledge of paediatric dentists' on digital radiography and cone beam computed tomography.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency and reasons of digital radiography and cone-beam computed tomography usage among paediatric dental practitioners, and to assess their knowledge and need for specific education.. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted from January to July 2017 and comprised paediatric dentists present at the European Academy of Paediatric Dentistry Interim Seminar in Turin, Italy, and members of the Turkish Society of Paediatric Dentistry who did not attend the event. Data about sociodemographics and their attitude towards, use of, and knowledge of digital radiography and cone beam computed tomography was collected by means of a 20-item questionnaire that was mailed to all the subjects. SPSS 22 was used to evaluate data. RESULTS: Of the 435 questionnaires distributed, 245(56%) were returned, while 194 (45%) were deemed usable. The mean age of the responding paediatric dentists was 35.84±9.10 (range: 24-67 years) and 126(64.9%) were female. Users of digital radiography identified its advantages, such as lower radiation dose 166(85.7%), ease of image storage 150(77.3%), and the possibility to change image settings and to carry out measurements 106(54.5%). Overall, 70(36%) paediatric dentists had no knowledge of cone beam computed tomography. Dental trauma was cited as the reason for using cone beam computed tomography by 70(61.3%) subjects, dental development issues by 138(71%) and pathology in the jaws by 147(75.8%). CONCLUSIONS: Digital radiography and cone beam computed tomography users are increasing in the world.

Parent's attitudes and knowledge on oral health in a group of individual with Down syndrome in Turkey.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the knowledge and attitude of families having some Down syndrome patient about problems related to oral cavity and dental health issues. METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted at Marmara University, Faculty of Dentistry in July 2017. Families of individuals with Down Syndrome, who are members of the Turkish Down Syndrome Association, were included in the study. A self-generated questionnaire was used to collect information in 3 different sections through 43 questions related to patient's socio-demographic and medical information, data on dental visit(s) and tooth-brushing. The questionnaire was sent to the families via the Internet. They were asked to return the completed questionnaires within a month. SPSS 22 was used to analyse data. RESULTS: Of the 103 families, 25(24.27%) had never taken their children to a dentist; 12(11.65 %) thought their children were too young, 6(5.82%) thought they would have difficulty in the dental environment, and 2(1.94%) could not find a suitable dentist. There was a statistically significant relationship between the oral and dental health and the tooth-brushing frequency (p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference between the frequency of helping the children brush their teeth and the mean age (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Parents of individuals with Down syndrome needed high-level information and guidance to take proper care of affected individuals.

Clinical Evaluation of a Fissure Sealant Placed by Acid Etching or Er:YAG Laser Combined with Acid Etching.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the efficacy of conventional acid etching alone (acid etching) and Er:YAG laser combined with acid etching (laser + acid etching) on fissure sealant (FS) retention of first permanent molars (FPMs) after 18 months. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using a split-mouth design in 51 children, a total of 204 FPMs were sealed with acid etching alone or laser plus acid etching (laser+acid). The retention of sealants and occurrence of caries were evaluated at 3, 6, 12, and 18 months. Statistical analysis was performed using Pearson's chi-squared tests. RESULTS: The retention rate for FS in the laser+acid group was significantly higher than that of the acid-etch group at 12 (p = 0.0161) and 18 (p = 0.0227) months. Six FSs in the acid group and five FSs in the laser+acid group were completely lost after 18 months. The incidence of caries in the acid-etch group was 22% (n = 18) vs 10% (n = 8) in the laser+acid group at 18 months. The difference in caries development between the groups was not significant (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: As enamel pretreatment, Er:YAG laser combined with acid etching significantly improves FS retention over conventional acid etching alone.

Evaluation of the bond strength of resin cements used to lute ceramics on laser-etched dentin.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the shear bond strength (SBS) of two different adhesive resin cements used to lute ceramics on laser-etched dentin. BACKGROUND DATA: Erbium, chromium: yttrium, scandium, gallium, garnet (Er,Cr:YSGG) laser irradiation has been claimed to improve the adhesive properties of dentin, but results to date have been controversial, and its compatibility with existing adhesive resin cements has not been conclusively determined. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two adhesive cements, one "etch-and-rinse" [Variolink II (V)] and one "self-etch" [Clearfil Esthetic Cement (C)] luting cement, were used to lute ceramic blocks (Vita Celay Blanks, Vita) onto dentin surfaces. In total, 80 dentin specimens were distributed randomly into eight experimental groups according to the dentin surface-etching technique used Er,Cr:YSGG laser and Er:YAG laser: (1) 37% orthophosphoric acid+V (control group), (2) Er,Cr:YSGG laser+V, (3) Er,Cr:YSGG laser+acid+V, (4) Er:YAG laser+V, (5) Er:YAG laser+acid+V, (6) C, (7) Er,Cr:YSGG laser+C, and (8) Er:YAG laser+C. Following these applications, the ceramic discs were bonded to prepared surfaces and were shear loaded in a universal testing machine until fracture. SBS was recorded for each group in MPa. Shear test values were evaluated statistically using the Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were evident between the control group and the other groups (p>0.05). The Er,Cr:YSGG laser+A+V group demonstrated significantly higher SBS than did the Er,Cr:YSGG laser+V group (p=0.034). The Er,Cr:YSGG laser+C and Er:YAG laser+C groups demonstrated significantly lower SBS than did the C group (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Dentin surfaces prepared with lasers may provide comparable ceramic bond strengths, depending upon the adhesive cement used.