Epidemiological and Clinicopathological Analysis of Odontogenic Tumors: A 20-Year Study

ABSTRACT Objective: To perform the epidemiological and clinicopathological analyses of odontogenic tumors in Kerman for 20 years. Material and Methods: The present study investigated collected records from pathology departments of the Faculty of Dentistry, Bahonar, and Shafa teaching-medical hospitals for 20 years. Data on odontogenic tumors was recorded based on age, sex, and tumor location in the information forms. The statistical t-test and the Kappa coefficient computer codes were utilized for data analysis. Results: 38 samples of odontogenic tumors were considered in the present study. The mean age of participants was 31.7± 10.3 years. The frequency of tumors was higher in women (63.2%) and in the lower jaw) 78.9%). Among various tumors, ameloblastoma (63.1%) and odontoma (18.4%) were the most common tumors, respectively. The correlation between clinical and histopathologic diagnoses was 71.8% using the kappa coefficient. Conclusion: Ameloblastoma is the most common odontogenic tumor. The incidence of lesions was higher in the mandible, and odontogenic tumors were higher in women. Since the diagnosis of odontogenic tumors is based on radiographic and histologic appearances, clinical physicians and pathologists should collaborate for the definitive diagnosis of the disease.

Relationship between Quality of Life and Oral Health Status of Patients with Chronic Liver Disease

ABSTRACT Objective: To investigate the relationship between the quality of life and work ability related to the oral health status of patients with chronic liver diseases. Material and Methods: The sample size contains all patients referred to the internal ward of Afzalipour and Bahonar hospitals due to chronic liver disease from 2019 to 2020. Patient selection was based on a simple census and a questionnaire that contained characteristics information of the patient, Work Ability Index questionnaire and SF-36 questionnaire were completed by the patients and some information was extracted from medical file. The SF-36 questionnaire assesses the quality of life in two general dimensions (physical health and mental health) with the physical function subscale. DMFT, Gingival index, and Periodontal disease index are used to evaluate the severity and extent of gingivitis and periodontitis. For data analysis, ANOVA, Spearman correlation coefficients were used and the significant level was p<0.05. Results: a total of 108 patients were examined. The mean age of participants was 41.2 ± 4.3 years. The DMFT index in patients was also reported as 22.6 ± 7.35. Also, 32.4% of people described their ability to do work as poor, 21.3% as good, and 7.4% as excellent. Patients with poor or moderate workability reported a higher index of DMFT. Among the participants, 61 and 21 patients had gingivitis and periodontitis, respectively. Mean results of total SF-36 indices were reported at a low level in patients with increased DMFT and gum diseases. Patients with poor or moderate workability had a higher index of DMFT. There was a significant relationship between these two variables (p=0.001). However, they were not significantly associated with periodontitis. Conclusion: There was a significant relationship between the SF-36 index, the ability to work and the type of liver disease.

Quality of Life in Patients with Chronic Oral Mucosal Conditions: A Qualitative Research

ABSTRACT Objective: To use qualitative research methods to evaluate the experiences of patients with chronic oral diseases. Material and Methods: Purposive sampling was used to recruit patients from the Oral Medicine Unit of Kerman University Dental School. An experienced independent facilitator convened the focus groups and conducted individual interviews in a non-clinical setting. Focus groups were mixed regarding their gender, age, chronic oral mucosal condition, time since diagnosis, and severity. A total of 39 patients participated in the study, including patients with oral lichen planus, pemphigus, recurrent aphthous stomatitis and leukoplakia. Results: Analysis of the interviews revealed that patient views could be divided into the following themes: biopsychosocial issues, treatment limitations and side effects, unpredictability of the conditions and the potential for malignant transformation. Chronic oral mucosal conditions affected patients' daily lives in various areas, from physical health and functioning to concerns about their future. Conclusion: The oral medicine practitioner's role in treating patients with chronic oral mucosal diseases extended beyond active management and symptomatic relief to the management of all aspects of these conditions that affected their daily lives.

Impacts of Toothache on Daily Activities of Children Aged 5 to 9 Years in Kerman, Iran

Abstract Objective: To investigate the impacts of toothache on the daily activities of children aged 5 to 9 years. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among 465 children (220 boys and 245 girls) aged between 5-9 years, using the Child Dental Pain Questionnaire (Child-DPQ), in the city of Kerman. They were categorized into two groups based on the clinical status: (1) untreated dental caries and (2) no dental caries or treated dental caries. For data analysis, the Chi-square, Mann-Whitney test, multiple logistic regressions, Spearman's correlation coefficient and t-test were used. Results: Regarding the severity of pain, about 28.3% reported mild pain, 30.1% moderate pain, and 21.9% very severe pain. The prevalence of reported dental pain increased by increasing the number of reported dental visits and more strongly among those having dmft>1. Toothache in children caused to stop eating (73.3%) and to sleep (63.8.1%) and provoked a dental visit in more than 40%. Conclusion: The toothache stopped many children eating and sleeping and provoked a dental visit in more than 40%. Among the children under study, 55.9% had to miss school.

Patients Attitudes Toward Chairside Medical Screening in a Dental Setting

Abstract Objective: To assess patient's attitudes toward chairside medical screening in a dental setting. Material and Methods: In this descriptive-analytic study, subjects referring to the dental school, dental offices, and clinics of Kerman were evaluated. Each subject filled a questionnaire containing demographic data, patient's attitude towards the performance of examination and the medical status of the subjects. The questionnaire consisted of seven main questions and the subjects were asked to rate them from very important (score 5) to not important at all (score 1). Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney tests and t-test were used. Friedman's nonparametric analysis of variance was used to compare response items within each question. Results: Screening for medical conditions by dentists was important for most of the participants, and it was important for them to be monitored for their medical condition by the dentists. The majority of patients had the will to be screened for each medical condition by the dentists. Male subjects stated skillfulness and professionality (88.4%) as the most important characteristics of the dentist and compassion as the least important one (56.2%). Female subjects stated knowledge of the dentists (96.3%) as the most essential characteristic and compassion as the least important one (85.8%). The will to undertake screening tests was higher in elder subjects. Conclusion: Dental patients have a positive attitude for medical conditions screening. Screening for medical conditions in a dental setting is a new approach, which might be an important contributor to disease control in the general population.

Knowledge of Medical and Dental Iranian Students about the Infection and Vaccination of Human Papilloma Virus

Objective: To evaluate awareness of medical and dental students of Kerman University of medical science about the infection and vaccination of the human papilloma virus. Material and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 290 medical and dental students. The data were collected using a questionnaire, which consisted of demographic data, and awareness-raising questions whose validity and reliability were confirmed. Mann-Whitney U and linear regression test were used for statistical analysis, and significance level of 0.05% was measured. Results: From 290 participants, 44.5% were male, 69.7% were single, 51.7% were medical students and 92.4% of individuals had awareness about HPV. The most common source of information (83.7%) was textbook. 39.9% of respondents were not familiar with the HPV vaccine and 62.1% tended to be vaccinated. Most of individuals (69.4%) were willing to pay a vaccination fee of less than $10. Most of respondents were not aware of HPV vaccination in Iran (68.3%). The mean score of knowledge was 6.1 ± 2.4. There was a statistically significant relationship between gender, field of study and marital status with mean score of knowledge (p<0.05). Conclusion: The students' knowledge was moderate. The awareness of men and women about HPV was poor. Further studies are recommended on other community groups, especially young people. Risk groups should be identified and referred to the relevant organs for vaccination.

Can Internet Anxiety Affect Electronic Journals Usage? A Cross- Sectional Study with Iranian Postgraduate Dental Students

Objective: To investigate internet anxiety among the dentistry students at Kerman University of Medical Sciences and its relationship with electronic journals use. Material and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, all 72 postgraduate dental assistants at Dentistry School of Kerman University of Medical Sciences were considered. Internet anxiety questionnaire included demographic questions and questions measuring online journals use and the barriers of using. The data then analyzed using independent t-test and linear regression, with significance level set at 5%. Results: The use of printed books was reported by 78.2% of the sample while the use of electronic books was 45.8%. The use of atlas was 28.9%, while the use of indexes and abstracts was 57.2. The participants used online journals mostly for research (30.8%) and education (27.7%). The most important advantages of online journals were fast access (25.1%) and easy use (19.9%). To get informed about online journals contents, they mostly used search engines and online databases (79%). The most important criterion was indexing in Web of Science (20.8%). A significant relationship between Internet anxiety and academic year was detected (p<0.05) also increase in internet use significantly increased Internet anxiety (p=0.001). We suggested increasing the knowledge and skill of dental students with online resources toward decreasing the level of their Internet anxiety. Conclusion: A reverse relationship was observed between the academic year and internet anxiety, in other words, senior students were more anxious than the junior ones. This study did not ask about computer literacy, other studies have reported a negative relationship between computer literacy, Internet literacy and internet anxiety, so it is suggested to increase the knowledge and skill of students with computer, internet and online resources.

Pattern of Logical Drug Prescription Among Iranian General Dental Practitioners

Objective: To determine the prescribing patterns of the general dental practitioners in Kerman province in Iran. Material and Methods: In this cross sectional study 1200 prescriptions, which were prescribed by general dentists in Kerman province during one-year period, were evaluated. Each prescription was assessed for the number of drugs per prescription, drug (category, name, route of administration, frequency) and duration of treatment. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate the absolute and relative frequencies, mean and standard deviation. The Chi-square test, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and t-test were used. The statistical tests were performed at the significance level of 0.05. Results: The mean number of drugs per prescription was 2.59. Antibiotics, Analgesics, corticosteroids and antiseptics were the most common drug category prescribed drugs by general dentists. Oral route was the commonest route of drug prescription (84.1%). Amoxicillin capsule (60.5%) was the commonest drug prescribed by general practitioners followed by ibuprofen derivatives (55.4%). Spelling errors was found in 62.7% of prescriptions. The mean score of prescriptions for logical prescription pattern was 7.36 ± 1.32 out of 9. Conclusion: Dental prescribing patterns should be considered as a potential area for improvement in the treatment process and patient safety. It is suggested to emphasis more on principles of prescription at university and retraining courses for dentists.

Knowledge and Attitude of Iranian Dental and Medical Students towards Oral Precancerous Lesions

Objective: To investigate the level of dental and medical students' awareness and their attitude towards Oral cancer in Kerman, Iran. Material and Methods: The research is considered as a cross-sectional analytical study. A questionnaire was distributed among dental and medical students, reliability and validity of which has been confirmed through statistical tests and experts' point of views. The questionnaire includes some questions for measurement of awareness and attitude of students in terms of diagnose, risk factor, and prognosis of lesions suspicious of malignancy, in the mouth. The results were analyzed using Mann-Whitney, Chi-square, Spearman, and ANOVA. Results: 350 questionnaires were distributed among dentistry and medical students, of which 318 were returned (90.8%). Dental students (16.32 ±3.1) achieved higher awareness score compared to the medical students (11.67 ±3.1). No significant relationship existed between age, gender, and average awareness score (p=0.023, and p=0.014, respectively). Dental students had more positive attitude in comparison to medical students; however, there was no significant relationship between age and positive attitude. Conclusion: Dentists and physicians do not have enough knowledge for cancer-related examinations, despite their professional obligations. The study shows training programs to be required in relation to risk factors and prognosis of oral cancer in form of refresher programs, and more emphasis in students' curriculum.