Potential Myogenous Temporomandibular Disorders Following Iatrogenic Occlusal Disturbance: A Pilot Study.

AIM: There is an inadvertent alteration of the occlusal surface after dental treatment. However, research concerning the effect of these iatrogenic disturbances on the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is scarce. Hence, the present study aimed to investigate the relationship between sudden iatrogenic occlusal disturbance and its effect on the myogenous temporomandibular disorder (TMD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among 30 female subjects aged 18 years to 38 years who received treatment (direct and indirect restorations altering the occlusal surfaces of teeth, and oral prophylaxis) in the students' clinics at the College of Dentistry Jazan University. The preoperative assessment included a patient interview, a baseline occlusal record, and bite force analysis. All the assessments were repeated 2 weeks after the treatment. Descriptive statistics were calculated. RESULTS: As there was no change observed in bite force as well as occlusal disturbances in the control group, no comparative tests could be applied. The treatment-induced occlusal disturbances were observed in 80% of the participants. The mean change in occlusal force on the treated teeth was found to be 5.6 ± 1.1 Newtons. None of the patients reported any symptoms related to pain or restriction in function in the TMJ. CONCLUSION: No relation was observed between the abrupt changes in the occlusal force due to dental treatment and the development of the myogenous TMD. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Iatrogenic occlusal interferences may cause/exacerbate TMDs; hence, extreme caution should be exercised by the clinicians to avoid causing harm to the patients. How to cite this article: Alamir AH, Hakami YA, Alabsi FS, et al. Potential Myogenous Temporomandibular Disorders Following Iatrogenic Occlusal Disturbance: A Pilot Study. J Contemp Dent Pract 2019;20(10):1138-1140.

Evaluation of the Current Techniques and Introduction of a Novel Approach for Estimating Maxillary Anterior Teeth Dimensions.

INTRODUCTION: Several techniques and methods have been proposed to estimate the anterior teeth dimensions in edentulous patients. However, this procedure remains challenging especially when preextraction records are not available. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate some of the existing extraoral and intraoral methods for estimation of anterior tooth dimensions and to propose a novel method for estimation of central incisor width (CIW) and length (CIL) for Saudi population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Extraoral and intraoral measurements were recorded for a total of 236 subjects. Descriptive statistical analysis and Pearson's correlation tests were performed. Association was evaluated between combined anterior teeth width (CATW) and interalar width (IAW), intercommisural width (ICoW) and interhamular notch distance (IHND) plus 10 mm. Evaluation of the linear relationship between central incisor length (CIL) with facial height (FH) and CIW with bizygomatic width (BZW) was also performed. RESULTS: Significant correlation was found between the CATW and ICoW and IAW (p-values <0.0001); however, no correlation was found relative to IHND plus 10 mm (p-value = 0.456). Further, no correlation was found between the FH and right CIL and BZW and right CIW (p-values = 0.255 and 0.822). The means of CIL, CIW, incisive papillae-fovea palatinae (IP-FP), and IHND were used to estimate the central incisor dimensions: CIL = FP-IP distance/4.45, CIW = IHND/4.49. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that the ICoW and IAW measurements are the only predictable methods to estimate the initial reference value for CATW. A proposed intraoral approach was hypothesized for estimation of CIW and CIL for the given population. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Based on the results of the study, ICoW and IAW measurements can be useful in estimating the initial reference value for CATW, while the proposed novel approach using specific palatal dimensions can be used for estimating the width and length of central incisors. These methods are crucial to obtain esthetic treatment results within the parameters of the given population.

Oral medicine education in predoctoral programs in US dental schools.

OBJECTIVE: the purpose of the study was to explore the structure of oral medicine (OM) education in predoctoral dental programs in the United States and to evaluate the students' perception of OM as a dental specialty. METHODS: Two anonymous Qualtrics surveys (Qualtrics, Provo, UT, USA) were distributed electronically to the academic deans of all the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) accredited dental schools in the United States. Upon completing the survey, the academic deans were asked to forward the student surveys to their students. RESULTS: Note that 26.8% (18/67 dental schools) of academic deans that participated in the survey, 224 senior students responded to the student survey. The results showed that the median number of OM specialists involved in teaching OM to predoctoral students was two. Oral cancer screening and diagnosis and management of oral mucosal diseases were identified by the majority of respondents (95.7%; n = 214 and 96.5%; n = 216), respectively, as part of the scope of practice of OM specialists. Although most students reported Advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD) and General Practice Residency (GPR) (18.67% n = 42 each) as postgraduate specialties of interest, students' positive impression in OM increased by a crude average of 0.4 with each additional OM faculty member in the school (p = 0.000; 95% CI 0.207-0.594). CONCLUSION: OM faculty members are in an important position to enhance dental students' perception and interest in OM as a specialty, which would lead to improved awareness of the scope of the specialty and consideration of pursuing specialty training.