Prosthetic treatment after teeth extractions in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Introduction: Good and well balanced diet provided by adequate mastication is part of therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). The critical period presents the time immediately after teeth extractions; hence, immediate denture is a rational therapeutical choice for diabetic patients. The presence of immediate denture and its compression might compromise wound healing process, affect chewing ability, food intake and consequently blood glucose level in type 2 DM patients. Objective: The objective of this study was to compare socket opening diameters (SOD), chewing ability, changes in blood glucose level and food intake in type 2 DM patients with and without maxillary immediate complete denture (MICD) during a three-week wound healing period. Methods: The study comprised 78 type 2 DM partially removable denture wearers (42 candidates for teeth extractions and 36 candidates for teeth extractions and insertion of MICDs). During the three-week period participants were followed for SOD, chewing ability and changes in blood glucose level and food intake. Results: Patients with MICD showed significantly lower reduction of SOD (seventh, 14th, 21st day) and higher chewing ability (seventh, 14th, 21st day) in comparison to patients without an MICD. Significantly lower number of patients with an MICD had changes in blood glucose level and food intake. Conclusion: Maxillary immediate complete denture presents a good therapeutic choice for type 2 DM patients, as it provides possibility of adequate mastication after teeth extractions and maintenance of nutritional status and blood glucose level.

The effect of recasting on biological properties of Ni-Cr dental alloy.

Introduction: Increases in market prices of gold over the last 20 years have led to expansion of basic dental alloys, which, primarily due to their good mechanical properties and acceptable prices, have found their place in everyday dental practice. However, within the procedure of making dental prosthetic restorations, the alloys are melted and cast, which leads to changes in their physical, mechanical and biological properties. Objective: The objective of the study was to test biocompatibility of a Ni-Cr dental alloy (WIRON 99) depending on the number of melting and casting processes. Methods: The working method included the testing of cytotoxicity of the alloy obtained by casting after one, after four, and after eight successive processes of melting. Cytotoxicity of samples was tested by means of a 24-hour and a three-day cytotoxicity test, done on L929 fibroblasts. Results: A repeatedly melted and cast alloy shows a reduced biocompatibility and causes specific responses of the tissues in the surrounding area. Since the cytotoxic effect is more significant in the extended contact with the culture cells, a three-day cytotoxicity test showed discrete changes which were the indicator of cell growth inhibition in the cell culture. Conclusion: The obtained results confirm the working hypothesis that repeated alloy melting and casting will decrease biocompatibility of dental alloys and will lead to specific responses of the tissue in the surrounding area.

Reliability of conventional shade guides in teeth color determination.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Color matching in prosthodontic therapy is a very important task because it influences the esthetic value of dental restorations. Visual shade matching represents the most frequently applied method in clinical practice. Instrumental measurements provide objective and quantified data in color assessment of natural teeth and restorations. In instrumental shade analysis, the goal is to achieve the smallest deltaE value possible, indicating the most accurate shade match. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability of commercially available ceramic shade guides. METHODS: VITA Easyshade spectrophotometer (VITA, Germany) was used for instrumental color determination. Utilizing this device, color samples of ten VITA Classical and ten VITA 3D - Master shade guides were analyzed. Each color sample from all shade guides was measured three times and the basic parameters of color quality were examined: deltaL, deltaC, deltaH, deltaE, deltaElc. Based on these parameters spectrophotometer marks the shade matching as good, fair or adjust. RESULTS: After performing 1,248 measurements of ceramic color samples, frequency of evaluations adjust, fair and good were statistically significantly different between VITA Classical and VITA 3D Master shade guides (p = 0.002). There were 27.1% cases scored as adjust, 66.3% as fair and 6.7% as good. In VITA 3D - Master shade guides 30.9% cases were evaluated as adjust, 66.4% as fair and 2.7% cases as good. CONCLUSION: Color samples from different shade guides, produced by the same manufacturer, show variability in basic color parameters, which once again proves the lack of precision and nonuniformity of the conventional method.