Periodic Bedrock Ridges at the ExoMars 2022 Landing Site: Evidence for a Changing Wind Regime.

Wind-formed features are abundant in Oxia Planum (Mars), the landing site of the 2022 ExoMars mission, which shows geological evidence for a past wet environment. Studies of aeolian bedforms at the landing site were focused on assessing the risk for rover trafficability, however their potential in recording climatic fluctuations has not been explored. Here we show that the landing site experienced multiple climatic changes in the Amazonian, which are recorded by an intriguing set of ridges that we interpret as Periodic Bedrock Ridges (PBRs). Clues for a PBR origin result from ridge regularity, defect terminations, and the presence of preserved megaripples detaching from the PBRs. PBR orientation differs from superimposed transverse aeolian ridges pointing toward a major change in wind regime. Our results provide constrains on PBR formation mechanisms and offer indications on paleo winds that will be crucial for understanding the landing site geology.

Digital flow in medicine and dentistry: what’s new?

The increasing requirements of standardization in medical applications have led physicians towards a deep revision of their protocols. The phenomenon of ‘digital health’ has revolutionized the way a patient accesses medical information, but it has also improved the way the doctor handles the surgical and clinical phases. In digital dentistry, the working steps are mainly reported as digital image acquisition, preparation and/or processing of data, device production and clinical application on patients; the new technologies have brought significant benefits to both the dentist and the patient. Digital processing of anatomical data uses virtual models, which represent a precise representation of the patient’s anatomy. Recent advances in digital image acquisition technologies and the enormous complexity of modern software have made intraoral scans possible to realize digital dental arch models, however, the digital model is able to report substantial information to the clinician. Therefore, both complex surgeries and less invasive local therapies can be easily planned, with an accurate analysis of biological regulators improving the regenerative procedures, to achieve the best results in a shorter treatment.

Additive manufacturing and biomimetic materials in oral and maxillofacial surgery: a topical overview.

Additive manufacturing (AM) is the term used for different and complex techniques to manufacture products with complex morphology, often referred to as "custom-made". The product is made without needing to melt the material into pre-formed molds, nor to remove it from an initial mass, as happens in subtractive processes. The additive methodology gives the AM enormous potential in the widest fields of application, from aerospace to biomedical, from dental to maxillofacial. This wide range of AM technologies can be applied to different types of polymeric materials such as plastics, resins and biopolymers that are processed to obtain optimal scaffolds. The most common synthetic and biocompatible polymeric materials for the production of biocompatible scaffolds are: polylactic acid (PLA), polycaprolactone acid (PLC) and polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA); such materials interact effectively with cell behavior and tissue development. These materials are degradable in the physiological environment and the degradation products do not have harmful effects. In conclusion, new biomaterials are increasingly being studied as possible therapeutic remedies. Advances in tissue engineering are leading to the development of new scaffolds useful for bone regeneration and therefore potentially valid for applications in maxillofacial surgery.

Updates in regenerative medicine applied to dental sciences.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are found in high concentrations in several tissues, such as umbilical cord, adipose tissue and dental tissue. Dental stem cells reside in many areas of the oral cavity. Thanks to their abilities, dental stem cells could be used to treat diseases and to understand the basic mechanisms of developmental pathologies. There are currently numerous ongoing clinical trials evaluating a broad spectrum of conditions and situations using different stem cell populations. However, stem cell studies are raising profound ethical questions that weigh on the world of scientific research. Stem cells are always a hot topic in the scientific community. Their use is related also to their banking, as cell manipulation is also often related to medical and ethical issues. Many biomedical studies aim to treat diseases that were previously considered incurable with MSCs. All this has created the need to quickly and safely storage stem cells, usually in a stem cell biobank (SCB). Regenerative medicine is the most important approach for achieving complete tissue regeneration using stem cells isolated from adult tissues, embryonic stem cells, but also through the application of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). iPSCs are non-pluripotent cells that are engineered to acquire the ability to differentiate into all different types of cells. In conclusion, the daily use of stem cells in regenerative procedures is still far from being safe and predictable, especially because of the biomedical component, often requiring experienced biologists and complex technologies for cell manipulation and cell banking. .

3D software scanning, processing and archiving palatal rugae: "identity base" technology.

The palatal rugae, which are anatomically described as folds or wrinkles of the palate, are located on the anterior third of the palate on each side of the palatal raphe and behind the incisive papilla. The use of palatal rugae for personal identification was suggested several years ago, and attracted interest from different researchers which created different classifications, still used in scientific literature. The "identity base" (IB) system has as its object a complex information system and a personal identification protocol by means of three-dimensional palatal scans in digital format. The usefulness of this system is based on the management needs of big data. For example, in the field of forensic odontology, IB can be useful in the identification of a living or cadaver subject; and can estimate the age of a human subject. Moreover, IB stores its associated biometric data. The IB system demonstrated to overcome the issues shown by other similar systems of digital image storage. Furthermore, its high accuracy in the identification process makes IB a reliable tool for institutions in the management of immigrants, as well as in the archiving of people under restrictive measures. Finally, IB is also a system for sharing and processing clinical images, useful in dental prosthetics to reduce the number of steps from the first visit to dental prosthesis. The next generation of big-data archiving will speak the same language as IB: the route has been already set out.

The influence of smoking and surgical technique on the accuracy of mucosa-supported stereolithographic surgical guide in complete edentulous upper jaws.

BACKGROUND: The accuracy of a stereolithographic surgical guide depends on several variables that can affect at any time from the software-planning stage to the surgical field. AIM: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of implants inserted using a single mucosa-supported stereolithographic surgical guide determining also the influence of surgical technique (fixed and not-fixed) and smoking on the deviation parameters. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 11 patients, totally edentate in the upper arch and needed an implant-prosthetic rehabilitation, were selected. 95 implants were planned and inserted. The pre- and post-operative CT images were compared using software. RESULTS: Global, coronal (Mean: 1.65; Range: 3.00-0.13; SD:0.56) and apical (Mean: 2.15; Range: 4.23-0.34; SD:0.81), and angular (Mean: 4.62; Range: 15.25-0.28; SD: 2.74) deviation values were determined. The mean values of mucosa thickness in smokers and nonsmokers patients were 4.53 mm and 3.42 mm respectively (p < .05). The accuracy data showed a better result for the angular deviation when the surgical template was fixed (p = .002) and a better global apical deviation in the nonsmokers (p <. 05). CONCLUSIONS: It is essential, especially in smoker patients, to respect a minimum safety distance of 3 mm from limiting anatomic structures.

In vitro comparative study on the mechanical behavior of Zirconia and Polyetheretherketone in applied dental sciences.

OBJECTIVE: Recently, Zirconia and polyaryletherketone (PEEK) have attracted increasing interest as reliable and safe materials in dental applications, mainly because of their good biomechanical characteristics. The aim of this study was to investigate the response to different loads by prosthetic frameworks for supported fixed partial dentures (FPDs), thus simulating osseointegrated implants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The specimens were divided into two groups (n= 5 each). Group A: FDPs in zirconia-ceramic; Group B: FDPs in PEEK-composite. These 2 groups were subjected to vertical loads so to evaluate structural deformation; then, they have been analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) at different magnifications. RESULTS: In tested samples, different types of mechanical failures have been observed. In Zirconia-specimens, chipping is the main failure noticed in this study, mostly in distal margins of the structure. Also, peek-specimens show failure and fracture. CONCLUSIONS: Zirconia and PEEK could be considered both good materials, but several investigations are needed to use these materials as an alternative to metals for fixed partial dentures.

Gender medicine: the impact of probiotics on male patients.

PURPOSE: Numerous studies in the literature confirm the importance of the use of probiotics in inflammatory states of the prostate in humans. Our pilot study aimed to test probiotics strains ability to improve urinary bacterial load in male subjects. METHODS: Twenty healthy men aged 55-65 years, with recurrent urinatory infections were enrolled and randomized into 2 groups. Urine culturing to detect Enterobacteriaceae (Escherichia Coli and Enterococcus faecalis) was performed at baseline and at 12 weeks after the starting of the study. RESULTS: We found that taking the probiotic reduces the bacterial load of E. coli and E. faecalis in urine cultures. The use of the probiotic in these inflammatory states does not affect the change in weight in the tested subjects. CONCLUSIONS: Our data confirm and improve the main results reported in the scientific literature on the importance of taking probiotics in prostatitis.

The alteration of stress-related physiological parameters after probiotics administration in oral surgeons with different degrees of surgical experience.

PURPOSE: Stress is a multifactorial and complex pathway, gaining growing attention from the healthcare community. Surgeons are subjected to higher levels of stress, due to surgical procedures that are demanding and repetitive; unfortunately, high-stress levels may also cause side-effects, as surgical mistakes. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of specific probiotics strains formula on stress levels in oral and maxillofacial surgeons, to improve their quality of life. METHODS: We have investigated the hormonal (salivary Cortisol; sC), immune (salivary Immunoglobulin A; sIgA) and cardiovascular (Heart rate, HR, and systolic blood pressure, SBP) responses induced by stress conditions in 40 oral surgeons, randomly selected and allocated, according to their experience level, in three categories: senior, expert, and junior. RESULTS: The results described how the number of heartbeats/ minute and SBP are slightly raised in all surgeons at different timepoints. Such data allow us to assess that work-related stress can induce an increase in cardiovascular parameters, even if they are not significantly modified by the use of probiotics. On the other hand, our data indicate that 10 weeks of probiotic integration may induce the improvement of other stress-related physiological parameters in oral surgeons with different degrees of surgical experience, such as the salivary cortisol levels, even under stress conditions. Moreover, in the test group (probiotics administration), the immunoglobulin levels were higher than the control (placebo administration) group: this happens as a consequence of the regular use of probiotics, which may induce an increased number of IgA producing cells. DISCUSSION: Our data indicated that 10 weeks of probiotics-enriched diet modify some stress-related physiological parameters in oral surgeons with different degrees of surgical experience, but it does not impact on the overall cardiovascular risk.

Age estimation in children by measurement of open apices in teeth with Bayesian calibration approach.

Age estimation from teeth by radiological analysis, in both children and adolescents, has wide applications in several scientific and forensic fields. In 2006, Cameriere et al. proposed a regression method to estimate chronological age in children, according to measurements of open apices of permanent teeth. Although several regression models are used to analyze the relationship between age and dental development, one serious limitation is the unavoidable bias in age estimation when regression models are used. The aim of this paper is to develop a full Bayesian calibration method for age estimation in children according to the sum of open apices, S, of the seven left permanent mandibular teeth. This cross-sectional study included 2630 orthopantomographs (OPGs) from healthy living Italian subjects, aged between 4 and 17 years and with no obvious developmental abnormalities. All radiographs were in digital format and were processed by the ImageJ computer-aided drawing program. The distance between the inner side of the open apex was measured for each tooth. Dental maturity was then evaluated according to the sum of normalized open apices (S). Intra- and inter-observer agreement was satisfactory, according to an intra-class correlation coefficient of S on 50 randomly selected OPGs. Mean absolute errors were 0.72 years (standard deviation 0.60) and 0.73 years (standard deviation 0.61) in boys and girls, respectively. The mean interquartile range (MIQR) of the calibrating distribution was 1.37 years (standard deviation 0.46) and 1.51 years (standard deviation 0.52) in boys and girls, respectively. Estimate bias was ßERR=-0.005 and 0.003 for boys and girls, corresponding to a bias of a few days for all individuals in the sample. Neither of the ßERR values was significantly different from 0 (p>0.682). In conclusion, the Bayesian calibration method overcomes problems of bias in age estimation when regression models are used, and appears to be suitable for assessing both age and age distribution in children according to tooth maturity.

Clinical Management of a Peri-Implant Giant Cell Granuloma.

Purpose. Implant therapy plays an important role in contemporary dentistry with high rates of long-term success. However, in recent years, the incidence of peri-implantitis and implant failures has significantly increased. The peripheral giant cell granuloma (PGCG) rarely occurs in peri-implant tissues and it is clinically comparable to the lesions associated with natural teeth. Therefore, the study of possible diseases associated with dental implants plays an important role in order to be able to diagnose and treat these conditions. Materials and Methods. This report described a 60-year-old Caucasian male who presented a reddish-purple pedunculated mass, of about 2 cm in diameter, associated with a dental implant and the adjacent natural tooth. Results. An excisional biopsy was performed and the dental implant was not removed. Histological examination provided the diagnosis of PGCG. After 19-month follow-up, there were no signs of recurrence of peri-implantitis around the implant. Conclusion. The correct diagnosis and appropriate surgical treatment of peri-implant giant cell granuloma are very important for a proper management of the lesion in order to preserve the implant prosthetic rehabilitation and prevent recurrences.

Preoperative and postoperative evaluation of latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap vascularization by color flow duplex scanning.

At the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department of the University of Perugia, 104 patients have been examined by color flow duplex scanning in order to study latissimus dorsi vascular supply before and after surgical procedures. This noninvasive ultrasound technique provides a precise and accurate measurement of blood flow velocity (15 cm/s) and volume (27 ml/min) within the thoracodorsal artery, which represents the vascular pedicle of the flap, and it allows us to detect the exact location of the perforating branches with their cutaneous distribution. This preoperative evaluation, pointing out vascular pathologies that contraindicate use of the latissimus dorsi flap, can be considered a great help for the reconstructive surgeon in the choice of the most suitable operation, and it can surely lead to a significant decrease in postoperative graft failure rates.

Preoperative evaluation of inferior vena cava involvement secondary to malignant abdominal neoplasms.

The authors report their experience of different imaging techniques (US, CT, MRI, and cavography) used to evaluate inferior vena cava involvement due to abdominal malignant neoplasms. The study is a retrospective analysis of preoperative data on 15 patients of both sexes in comparison with intraoperative and/or pathological findings. All patients underwent ultrasonography, with good results in all the venous segments studied, as for the CT scan; the limitation of both techniques is the unsafe evaluation of venous wall involvement when the neoplastic tissue is confined inside the vessel. The results obtained using MRI seem to be very encouraging, but we only studied three cases with this technique, and so cannot assess the real value of the method. In nine patients we performed inferior cava phlebography: we believe this to be a very reliable exam to demonstrate vessel wall invasion, even if it is a very invasive procedure, its limits being the inability to observe proximal thrombotic extension when the vein is completely obstructed by the tumor. On the basis of their experience the authors suggest a multi-technique imaging diagnostic procedure for preoperative staging with a view to obtaining as much information as possible to correctly program surgical procedure.

Anatomo-clinical study of rectus abdominis myocutaneous flap.

At the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department of Perugia, 52 patients were examined by color flow duplex scanning, in order to study rectus abdominis myocutaneous flap vascular supply before surgical procedures. This ultrasound technique permits a precise and accurate measurement of blood flow volume and velocity within the epigastric arteries (which represent the superior and inferior vascular pedicles of the flap) and makes it possible to detect the exact location of the perforating branches with their cutaneous distribution. This preoperative evaluation, pointing out vascular pathologies which contra-indicate the use of rectus abdominis flap, can be considered a great help for the reconstructive surgeon in the choice of the operative procedure and can surely lead to a significant decrease in postoperative complication rate.

[Penetrating wounds of the thorax]. / Ferite penetranti del torace.

From January 1989 to December 1993 at the Institute of Clinical Surgery of the University of Perugia, 5 patients were under observation for penetrating chest injuries. Two of them had show-wounds, one a slash, one a stabbing and slash and one a cutting blow. One of the patients with shot-wounds died on the operating table from a haemorrhage while the other was saved by surgery. One patient successfully underwent surgery for loss of tissue in the thorax walls. Another had a mini-thoracotomy plus lung suture which were successful. Finally, in the patient with a slash in the front region of the thorax and a slight pneumothorax, we inserted a chest thorax tube and so obtained a complete re-expansion of the lung. Total mortality was 20%. Surgical exploration of the thorax we believe is necessary wherever there is a risk of haemorrhage or possible lung damage requiring only surgery. According to many authors, video-thoracoscopy has the advantage of a reliable diagnosis and above all, enable us to repair lung wounds without opening the thorax. In one of our patients we could have avoided the mini-thoracotomy and used thoracoscopy to repair the lung damage.

[Intestinal obstructions caused by colorectal carcinoma in the aged]. / Le occlusioni intestinali da carcinoma del colon-retto in età geriatrica.

Colorectal cancer is the second most common malignancy of the adult population in the United States. It is exceeded only by lung cancer among males and breast cancer among females. Malignancies of the colon and rectum are responsible for approximately 12 per cent of all adult cancer deaths. These tumors appear as surgical urgency by intestinal obstruction for 15-20 per cent and by perforation for 3-8 per cent of all cases. It often occurs in elderly patients; in fact, urgent surgical operations are especially performed in patients older than seventy. The mortality rate for urgent surgical operation in elderly patients is about 32-54 per cent. This high mortality is even due to concurrent pathologies and particular locoregional and/or general alterations induced by tumor. The authors studied all patients older than 75 years affected by colorectal cancer and treated by choice or by urgency at Dept. of Surgery of the University of Perugia from January 1987 to February 1993 to individualize some clinical, anatomo-pathological and therapeutical significant characteristics about colorectal cancer in geriatric age.