Prevalence of soft tissue calcifications in panoramic radiographs of the maxillofacial region of older adults.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the presence of soft tissue calcifications in the head and neck region on panoramic radiographs of older adults. METHODS: We analysed 1176 panoramic radiographs obtained between January 2013 and December 2018 from individuals of both sexes aged 60 years or older, who were referred by dental specialities to the Dental Imaginology Service of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. The types of soft tissue calcification evaluated were as follows: carotid artery calcification (CAC), thyroid cartilage calcifications, triticeous cartilage calcifications, sialoliths, tonsilloliths and lymph node calcifications. The presence of soft tissue calcifications was correlated with age and sex. The chi-square test with continuity correction was used for the calculation of p values and the evaluation of the proposed associations. Prevalence ratios and 95% confidence intervals were also calculated. RESULTS: At least one type of soft tissue calcification was found in 43% of the sample. The main calcifications detected were CAC, thyroid and triticeous cartilage calcifications, tonsilloliths, sialoliths, calcified lymph nodes, and phleboliths. Mean patient age was 67.47 years and there was a predominance of females (62.8%) in the sample. Bivariate analysis showed a statistically significant association between female sex and the presence of thyroid and triticeous cartilage calcifications and between male sex and the presence of tonsilloliths. CONCLUSION: Routine panoramic radiography permits the identification of soft tissue calcifications that may be indicators of future cardiovascular disorders, the referral to a medical service and the establishment of therapies for stroke prevention.

Impact of orthognathic surgery on the treatment of gummy smile: an integrative review.

The gingival smile is considered unpleasant and can be treated in different ways according to its etiological factor. When caused by maxillary vertical growth excess, orthognathic surgery may be indicated to correct the vertical excess. The aim of this integrative review was to evaluate the impact of orthognathic surgery on the treatment of gingival smile. An electronic search was performed of the PubMed/Medline, Cochrane Library, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases. The selection of studies was performed by two blinded reviewers. Firstly, studies were selected by reading the titles and the abstracts of articles. The references from each study selected were then searched to find articles that were not found in the electronic search. After reading the full-text articles, studies that met the inclusion criteria were selected. A total of 667 studies were identified, but only 19 were selected for the integrative review after applying the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The selected articles reported maxillary impaction from 2 to 10 mm, but this amount of superior repositioning of maxilla does not appear to be related to the initial gingival exposure described. Orthognathic surgery is not the first choice of treatment for gingival smile, but it appears to be a suitable therapy for other conditions in the same patient for improving a gummy smile by correction of gingival exposure.

Correlação entre os estágios de maturação da sutura palatina mediana e das vértebras cervicais / Correlation between the maturation stages of the median palatal suture and cervical vertebrae

Introdução: Atualmente, a avaliação da maturação da sutura palatina mediana (MSPM) em pacientes que precisam ser submetidos à expansão rápida da maxila é realizada por meio de tomografias computadorizadas de feixe cônico (TCFC). No entanto, doses adicionais de radiação são induzidas ao paciente para a aquisição desse exame. Objetivo: Correlacionar os estágios de MSPM com os estágios de maturação das vértebras cervicais (MVC). Material e métodos: Um total de 268 TCFC da região da cabeça e do pescoço de indivíduos de ambos os sexos e com idades variando entre 5 e 76 anos foram analisadas de forma cega por uma única examinadora. O estágio de MSPM foi avaliado por meio da observação da maxila no corte axial e foi classificado como A, B, C, D ou E. Por outro lado, o estágio de MVC foi avaliado por meio do corte sagital das vértebras cervicais e foi classificado como CS1, CS2, CS3, CS4, CS5 ou CS6. A concordância intraexaminador foi avaliada por meio do Coeficiente Kappa. O teste de Correlação de Spearman foi utilizado para avaliar a correlação entre os estágios de MSPM e os estágios de MVC. Resultados: Uma correlação positiva forte foi encontrada entre os estágios de MSPM e MVC. Os estágios A e B mostraram correlação com os estágios CS1, CS2 e CS3. Diferentemente, o estágio C se correlacionou com maior frequência com os estágios CS4 e CS5. Por fim, os estágios D e E, se mostraram mais frequentes em indivíduos nos estágios CS5 e CS6 de forma similar. Conclusão: A predição da MSPM por meio da MVC em telerradiografias laterais pode ser uma alternativa viável à avaliação sutural na TCFC em pacientes nos estágios CS1, CS2 e CS3. A partir do estágio CS4, uma TCFC é recomendável para avaliar com maior segurança o estágio de MSPM e definir a melhor modalidade de expansão (AU).

Introduction: Currently, the assessment of maturation of the midpalatal suture (MPSM) in patients who need to undergo rapid maxillary expansion is performed using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). However, additional doses of radiation are induced to the patient for the acquisition of this exam. Objective: To correlate the stages of MPSM with the stages of maturation of the cervical vertebrae (CVM). Material and methods: A total of 268 CBCT of the head and neck of individuals of both sexes and aged between 5 and 76 years were analyzed blindly by a single examiner. The MPSM stage was assessed by observing the maxilla in the axial view and was classified as A, B, C, D or E. On the other hand, the CVM stage was assessed in the sagittal view of the cervical vertebrae and was classified as CS1, CS2, CS3, CS4, CS5 or CS6. Intraexaminer agreement was analyzed using the Kappa coefficient. Spearman's Correlation test was used to assess the correlation between MPSM and CVM stages Results: A strong positive correlation was found between MPSM and CVM stages. Stages A and B showed correlation with stages CS1, CS2 and CS3. Differently, stage C correlated more frequently with stages CS4 and CS5. Finally, stages D and E were more frequent in individuals in stages CS5 and CS6, similarly. Conclusion: The prediction of MPSM by assessing CVM in lateral cephalograms seems to be a viable alternative to the sutural evaluation in CBCT in patients in stages CS1, CS2 and CS3. From the CS4 stage onwards, a CBCT is recommended to assess the MPSM stage and define the most adequate expansion modality for patients (AU).