Effectiveness of Propolis in the Treatment of Periodontal Disease: Updated Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis.

In recent times, the use of natural products has gained momentum, either as a treatment or as adjuvants for other drugs in the treatment of different conditions. Propolis is a natural substance produced by bees which has proven useful for treating periodontal disease. This systematic review and meta-analysis gather evidence of the effectiveness of propolis in this kind of condition. The MEDLINE, CENTRAL, PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science databases were searched for scientific articles to identify the findings published up to October 2020. The MeSH phrases used in the search were: "periodontal diseases AND propolis treatment"; "gingivitis AND propolis treatment"; "periodontitis AND propolis treatment"; "propolis treatment AND oral health"; "propolis AND oxidative stress AND periodontitis". The Boolean operator "AND" was used to combine the searches. Randomized trials where propolis was used in the treatment of different periodontal conditions were included. Non-randomized clinical studies were systematically reviewed and 224 studies were detected, eight of which met the criteria for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Only three of these were selected for quantitative synthesis. In conclusion, propolis is safe to use and can improve the results of periodontal disease treatment, reducing probing pocket depth compared with treatment with a placebo (difference in means, fixed effects -0.67 [95% CI: -0.84, -0.50]).

Use of Virtual Reality for the Management of Anxiety and Pain in Dental Treatments: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

(1) Background: Dental treatments often cause pain and anxiety in patients. Virtual reality (VR) is a novel procedure that can provide distraction during dental procedures or prepare patients to receive such type of treatments. This meta-analysis is the first to gather evidence on the effectiveness of VR on the reduction of pain (P) and dental anxiety (DA) in patients undergoing dental treatment, regardless of age. (2) Methods: MEDLINE, CENTRAL, PubMed, EMBASE, Wiley Library and Web of Science were searched for scientific articles in November 2019. The keywords used were: "virtual reality", "distraction systems", "dental anxiety" and "pain". Studies where VR was used for children and adults as a measure against anxiety and pain during dental treatments were included. VR was defined as a three-dimensional environment that provides patients with a sense of immersion, transporting them to appealing and interactive settings. Anxiety and pain results were assessed during dental treatments where VR was used and in standard care situations. (3) Results: 32 studies were identified, of which 8 met the inclusion criteria. The effect of VR in children was significant, both for anxiety (standardized mean difference (SMD) = -1.75) and pain (SMD = -1.46). (4) Conclusions: The findings of the meta-analysis show that VR is an effective distraction method to reduce pain and anxiety in patients undergoing a variety of dental treatments; however, further research on VR as a tool to prepare patients for dental treatment is required because of the scarcity of studies in this area.

Retraction: López-Valverde, N.; et al. Use of Virtual Reality for the Management of Anxiety and Pain in Dental Treatments: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J. Clin. Med. 2020, 9, 1025.

The authors of a recent published paper [...].

Use of Virtual Reality for the Management of Anxiety and Pain in Dental Treatments: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Dental treatments often cause pain and anxiety in patients. Virtual reality (VR) is a novel procedure that can provide distraction during dental procedures or prepare patients to receive such type of treatments. This meta-analysis is the first to gather evidence on the effectiveness of VR on the reduction of pain (P) and dental anxiety (DA) in patients undergoing dental treatment, regardless of age. METHODS: MEDLINE, CENTRAL, PubMed, EMBASE, Wiley Library and Web of Science were searched for scientific articles in November 2019. The keywords used were: "virtual reality", "distraction systems", "dental anxiety" and "pain". Studies where VR was used for children and adults as a measure against anxiety and pain during dental treatments were included. VR was defined as a three-dimensional environment that provides patients with a sense of immersion, transporting them to appealing and interactive settings. Anxiety and pain results were assessed during dental treatments where VR was used, and in standard care situations. RESULTS: 31 studies were identified, of which 14 met the inclusion criteria. Pain levels were evaluated in four studies (n = 4), anxiety levels in three (n = 3) and anxiety and pain together in seven (n = 7). Our meta-analysis was based on ten studies (n = 10). The effect of VR was studied mainly in the pediatric population (for pain SMD = -0.82). In the adult population, only two studies (not significant) were considered. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the meta-analysis show that VR is an effective distraction method to reduce pain and anxiety in patients undergoing a variety of dental treatments; however, further research on VR as a tool to prepare patients for dental treatment is required because of the scarcity of studies in this area.

Cardiotrophin-1 administration protects from ischemia-reperfusion renal injury and inflammation.

BACKGROUND: Ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) remains a major problem in renal transplantation, and the inflammatory response to IRI exacerbates the resultant renal injury. We have investigated whether the systemic administration of cardiotrophin-1 (CT-1) is able to improve renal function and to decrease inflammatory responses in a rat model of renal IRI. METHODS: IRI was induced by renal pedicle clamping (60 min) followed by reperfusion and contralateral nephrectomy. CT-1 was injected through the penile vein 30 min before clamping release and its effects were compared with a saline-treated group at five different time points of reperfusion. RESULTS: Survival in the CT-1-treated group was higher than in the untreated group and prevented IRI-induced reduction in the glomerular filtration rate, as shown by blunted increases in creatinine and urea plasma levels and less severe decrease in creatinine clearance. These effects of CT-1 seem to be mediated by reduction in oxygen-radical production, increased superoxide dismutase expression, attenuation of neutrophil and macrophage infiltration, lower adhesion molecule expression, lower inflammation demonstrated by a decrease of plasma levels of proinflammatory cytokine secretion such as tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1ß and interferon-γ, lower inducible nitric oxide synthase expression and lower nuclear factor-κB activation, and reduced apoptosis. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, these results suggest that CT-1 administration prevents IRI and it might be used as a therapeutic strategy to protect the kidney against IRI.

Changes in pituitary and prolactin cells of Wistar rats after two dental fillings with bisphenolic resins.

UNLABELLED: Bisphenol-A (BPA) is used to manufacture dental materials such as sealants, fillings and cements. There is evidence of its estrogenic effects on recipients after the placement of dental sealants. Pituitary and especially prolactin (PRL) cells are targets for estrogens. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this research was to determine if BPA eluted from dental resins can alter the proliferation of pituitary cells and PRL cells in the short, medium and long term in a case-control assay. METHODS: Two dental fillings were inserted in the lower incisors of Wistar rats divided into groups sacrificed after one, three, five and seven months. Immunocytochemical treatment was carried out in order to determine proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) positive cells, PRL-positive cells, PRL- and PCNA-positive cells. RESULTS: A significant increase of PCNA-positive cells after one (p < 0.05), three (p < 0.01) and five months (p < 0.01) was recorded. PRL-positive cells showed no statistically significant difference between intervened animals and controls. PRL- and PCNA-positive cells manifested a significant increase after five months (p < 0.05). A significant decrease in proliferating cells was observed after seven months (p < 0.05) for PCNA-positive cells and (p < 0.01) for PRL- and PCNA-positive cells. CONCLUSION: Low quantities of BPA eluted during mastication can affect immunocytochemical patterns of pituitary cells, increasing cellular proliferation in the short, medium and long term although PRL cell population remained unaffected after dental fillings.