Conformational variations of the medial epicondyle of the humerus: A case study of fusion anomaly on dry bones.

The estimation of a biological profile in biological anthropology is a central point in the study of human remains. To specify this profile, the observation of variations, and pathologies on the skeleton is a tool that makes an individual unique. In this research, the focus was on the distal part of the humerus. Through the study of five individuals from an osteo-archaeological collection, conformational anomalies of the medial epicondyle of the humerus were highlighted. The aim is to describe them and to propose an etiology of appearance. For this purpose, observation of the rest of the skeleton was carried out, in order to search for the presence of other variations, in particular anomalies of fusion of secondary ossification centers. Overall, a non-fusion of the medial epicondyle of the humerus, two fused medial micro-epicondyles and two supplementary fusions were observed. These are very rare anomalies, with an estimated prevalence of 0.7%. Conformational abnormalities of this area can lead to pain. Therefore, medical imaging for diagnostic purposes may be available: useful data for antemortem documentation in case of a disturbing disappearance. Following the study of the entire skeleton, a common etiology for these different conformations cannot be proposed. However, two categories of etiologies can be proposed: a congenital anomaly and a developmental anomaly with an environmental influence (mechanical or deficiency). The new knowledge of this area will enrich the use of individualization factors, especially in the context of forensic anthropology.

Characteristics and prediction of the alveolar bone loss: essay of modeling.

The alveolar bone loss is a phenomenon which intervenes throughout the life and which can be aggravated by the action of individual and behavioural factors. From this observation we shall try to characterize it and to propose formulas of prediction of the alveolar bone loss according to the age of the patient. We shall expose an analysis of factors bound to the alveolar bone loss and propose a modeling of the alveolar bone loss according to the age in an essentially predictive purpose. The methodology is based on the medical exploitation of CT-dentascanners and medical questionnaire as well as administrative questionnaire used in odontology. Measures of the distance ECJ and the summit of crest are made on the radiology and the individual factors and behavioural factors are scored. The descriptive analysis of the data allowed us to characterize the phenomenon of alveolar bone loss in a therapeutic purpose. The statistical treatment of these data will establish various models according to gender. The described method is simple and its applications seem numerous in the several domains: prevention, improvement of prosthetic and periodontal therapeutics.

Assessment of oral status and oro-pharyngeal candidosis in elderly in short-term hospital care.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate prevalence of oral candidosis and predisposing conditions in hospitalized elderly patients. DESIGN: We examined 104 elder patients recently hospitalized in two geriatric hospitals for shortterm hospital care. METHODS: Information was collected on patients' sex, age, mental and physical disabilities, smoking habits, medical prescriptions, oral pathologies, denture wearing, oral hygiene habits and oral hygiene level. Quality of existing dentures was evaluated. Oral mucosae were examined for clinical signs suggesting oral candidosis. Semiquantitative cultures of Candida were carried out to confirm the clinical diagnosis. RESULTS: The diagnosis of oral candidosis was confirmed in 18/54 patients showing clinical signs of oral candidosis. Confirmed oral candidosis was associated with the presence of other infections, proteo-caloric denutrition, ongoing antibiotic therapy, and denture wearing. Dentures in patients with confirmed oral candidosis at poorer technical quality of the acrylic surface in contact with the underlying mucosa. CONCLUSION: The wearing of removable dentures is a major predisposing factor for oro-pharyngeal candidosis of elderly patients in short-term hospital care. Appropriate oral and denture hygiene measures as well as denture wearing habits should be introduced or maintained to prevent this infection.

A novel approach to identify the presence of fingerprints on wet surfaces.

In forensic science, one of the major problems is trying to reveal the presence of fingerprints on wet surfaces. Not often are fingerprints left in protect environments, so we have to detect their presence on the most different surfaces, after they underwent to the action of atmospheric agents or have been found, for example, on objects floating in the water. Small Particle Reagents (SPR) is a technique performed to detect latent fingerprints left on wet or moist surfaces based upon the reaction between the fatty-acid residuals present in the traces and hydrophobic tails of the specific reagents. Those tails are linked to a hydrophilic head reacting with a titanium dioxide salt giving a white precipitate plainly detectable. In this report, we want to show that exalting fingerprints left on plastic, glass and metal wet surfaces is possible with the SPR technique independently on the time fingerprints were in contact with water, as we performed in our experimental procedure. Results in details.

Limits of the Lamendin method in age determination.

This study shows that epithelial attachment level, used as age determination criterion in Lamendin's method, is not reliable for adults of either sex above the age of 49 years with periodontal diseases in any quadrant. The underestimation of calculated age increases from 7 to 19 years with chronological age. On the other hand, the present paper confirms the pertinence of dentin translucency as an age indicator in Lamendin's method.

Speech intelligibility in patients with complete dentures according to the material used.

The principal purpose of this study was to investigate the speech of two edentulous subjects fitted with a complete maxillary prosthesis made of three different palatal materials: aluminium, resin, stellite. The study was performed using two speakers fitted with a prosthesis (a man and a woman). They took part in the acoustic recording of logatoms read by themselves while wearing various prostheses. These recordings were tested from the auditory point of view by a series of six listeners (four men and two women) in an anechoic room. After 144 different tests, a speech reception threshold (SRT) was defined for each speaker and each different prosthesis. This SRT shows a level of speech intelligibility defined so that the lower the SRT, the more intelligible for the listener. The results show that: (i) both the material and the listener influence SRT: (P < 0.05); (ii) an interaction between the material factor and the speaker factor appears. (P < 0.05); (iii) The hierarchy factors influencing SRT are most important in the order: Listener --> material --> speaker; and (d) The group fitted with a metal prosthesis (aluminium, stellite) was more intelligible regarding the way they were perceived by others.

Polymetallism and osseointegration in oral implantology: pilot study on primate.

In oral implantology, successful results in osseointegration are obtained in the medium term (6-12 months) with commercially pure titanium implants. However, current superstructures can be of a different nature (precious metal or titanium) and of different manufacture (cast or machine-produced). Polymetallism between the implant and the superstructure may lead to conditions of galvanic corrosion, and influence osseointegration. The study described establishes, on the one hand, the procedures of animal experimentation in primates and on the other, the techniques of analysis of histological sections. The first technique of analysis is based on histomorphometry and leads to the definition of an osseointegration index. The second technique of analysis consists of X spectrometry by dispersion of energy which enables a spectral analysis of selected points below the crestal neck of the implant (vulnerable area in the case of corrosive attack) to be obtained. It is noted that after 6months, two of which were of activation, osseointegration did not vary according to the nature of the superstructure (precious alloy or titanium). After 2 months, the presence of a precious alloy superstructure lead to titanium migration towards the area around the cervical region of the implant (10-50 microm). This phenomenon did not occur with a titanium implant. It can therefore be presumed that polymetallism leads to detectable corrosion after 2 months but without apparent modification of osseointegration.

[Determining factors in the wearing of a removable prosthesis: the role of familial example. Prosthetic risk: the influence of parental behavior]. / Facteurs déterminant le port d'une prothèse amovible: rôle particulier de l'exemple familial. Risque prothétique: l'influence du comportement parental.

The aim of the present study was to provide a fuller clarification of the influence of sociocultural and socioeconomic data on the bucco-dental ageing. In Particular, was suspected, the influence of the parental behavior towards the wearing of their own prostheses in the wearing of removable prostheses among the descendants. The study was led in a dental service (CHU of Marseille) on 260 from 50 to 70 years old persons. Variables in the study were mainly basic sociocultural and socioeconomic variables (sex, age, educational level and social-professional groups...); the dental morbidity (DMF); the periodontal state (corrected CPITN, plaque index, gingival index), the prosthetic state of the subjects, the prosthetic state of the parents, the behavior of the parents towards the port of their prosthesis (CPP), the behavior of the subjects in front of dental care. The data were analyzed mainly by the method of logistic regression. They indicated that the most determining variables concerning the wearing of removable prostheses were: the plaque index (OR = 1.730), the behavior in front of dental care (OR = 1.306) and especially, the parental prosthetic behavior (OR = 4.420). In others words, the fact that the parents had removable prostheses and well tolerated it, constituted an important risk factor so that the children had removable prostheses. It was here, according to the authors, about sociological and psychological determinants on the bucco-dental aging.

A "case control" study on the rôle of HLA DR4 in severe periodontitis and rapidly progressive periodontitis. Identification of types and subtypes using molecular biology (PCR.SSO).

HLA DR4 antigens have been considered as a risk factor in periodontal disease. The aim of this "case control" study was to verify and to provide fuller clarification of such data. "Cases" or patients had to be aged between 20 and 48 years. They presented at least 5 sites spread over several teeth with an attachment loss equal or greater than 6 mm, and 10 sites spread over several teeth with periodontal pockets equal to or greater than 5 mm. Verification with a WHO probe showed an individual CPITN score of 4. Moreover, subjects whose average CPITN score for the 6 sextants was less than 3 were excluded from the study. Among these "severe periodontitis" patients, a subgroup was distinguished composed of subjects aged 20-35 years who presented, in accordance with the cases by Katz and co-workers, 5 or more teeth showing pocket depths of 6 mm or more. The dental chartings of these subjects showed an attachment loss of more than 3 mm on certain teeth over an inter-exam period of 1-3 years. They all displayed obvious loss of bony support in the affected sites. This constituted the "rapidly progressive periodontitis" subgroup. The "controls" were all over 20 years of age, and it was clinically verified that they were free of periodontal disease. There were 48 "cases" and 55 "controls". HLA typing of patients and controls was performed using "sequence oligoprobe hybridization after polymerase chain reaction" in accordance with the 11th International Workshop. This method allowed the detection of DR4 alleles as well as DR4 subtypes. The ethno-geographic origin of the subjects, considered as a confounding variable, was neutralized by stratified analysis. Subtypes 0401, 0404, 0405 and 0408 tended to be more frequent (p=0.08) in the cases (Severe Periodontitis). Focusing on analysis of "rapidly progressive periodontitis" in subjects aged 20-35 years, a very significant Mantel-Haenszel chi2 was obtained (p=0.0058) which led to a Mantel-Haenszel standardized odds ratio (OR) equal to 17. The 95% confidence interval was 1.03<0.R.<180.10. In conclusion, this supports previous reports and gives further clarification: in particular subtypes 0401, 0404, 0405 and 0408 can be considered as a risk factor for "rapidly progressive periodontitis". It should be noted that these determinants have been implicated in rheumatoid arthritis.

Oral functional characteristics and gastrointestinal pathology: an epidemiological approach.

One of the main problems for aged people is that of having a balanced diet, improved by correct conditioning of the alimentary bolus. Does the masticatory status influence the appearance of gastrointestinal disorders? Such a question justifies the present study. The present work concerned all the patients (211) of eight geriatric institutions, and was completed by a retrospective approach (case-control study). The main result brought by the case-control study, showed that poor oral functional characteristics represent a risk for gastrointestinal pathology (age being neutralized; odds ratio (OR): 2.62). This result indicates that the loss of teeth must be compensated by functionally effective dentures. Not only will the patients' physical and psychic health improve but also medical and public health problems will be solved.