Utilization of a Cortical Xenogeneic Membrane for Guided Bone Regeneration: A Retrospective Case Series.

Background: Guided bone regeneration (GBR) is a reliable technique used in vertical and horizontal bone defects. The posterior mandibular region is an area limited by anatomic constraints. The use of resorbable membranes with a cortical component could compensate for the lack of rigidity of resorbable membranes without the complications of non-resorbable membranes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the mean bone gains of a xenogeneic cortical membrane in horizontal and vertical bone defects in comparison with other membranes in the literature. Methods: A porcine cortical membrane was used to perform 7 GBR in the posterior mandibular region of five patients. Preoperative (T0) and six months postoperative (T1) cone beam computed tomography were superimposed to measure the horizontal and vertical bone gain. Implants were positioned at all sites, six months after GBR. Complications and bone resorption around the implants were also documented. Results: The mean horizontal and vertical bone gains were 3.83 ± 1.41 mm and 4.17 ± 1.86 mm, respectively. The analysis of repeatability was 0.997. As many as 40% of patients experienced pain refractory to analgesics. No exposure or infectious phenomenon was observed. Conclusions: This xenogeneic cortical membrane seemed to provide interesting results in the regeneration of horizontal and vertical bone defects. Comparative and prospective studies are necessary to validate the effectiveness of this membrane.

Developing the teledentistry acceptance survey for dentists - TAS-D: a Delphi study.

INTRODUCTION: The increasing interest in teledentistry since the COVID-19 pandemic warrants an evaluation of dentists' willingness to adopt it. This study aimed to develop a questionnaire to assess dentist's intention to use teledentistry and the associated factors. METHODS: A literature search was used to identify items for the questionnaire. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) was adopted as framework. A Delphi panel was constituted of researchers with relevant publications and the International Association of Dental Research e-Oral Health Network members. Three Delphi consultations were conducted to establish consensus on items. Consensus was set at 80% agreement and content validity ratio (CVR), reaffirmed iteratively. RESULTS: Nineteen out of 25 (76%) invited experts participated in the first round, 17 in the second and 15 in the third. The preliminary questionnaire had 81 items in three sections, reduced to 66, 45 and 33 items in the first, second and third rounds. After revision, the final version comprised eight items assessing dentists' backgrounds in Sect. 1, seven items identifying teledentistry uses in Sect. 2, and 17 items assessing intention to use teledentistry and its determinants in seven dimensions in Sect. 3. The initial CVR was 0.45, which increased to 0.80 at the end of the third round. CONCLUSION: A survey tool was developed to assess the acceptance of teledentistry, and its determinants based on the UTAUT2 framework through consensus among teledentistry experts. The tool had excellent validity and needs further evaluation of its psychometric properties.

Promoting Health Literacy in the Workplace Among Civil Servants: Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: In 2022, the World Health Organization highlighted the alarming state of oral health (OH) worldwide and urged action to include OH in initiatives on noncommunicable diseases. The population needs improved OH skills and attitudes and an adequate level of OH literacy (OHL) and general health literacy (HL). The implementation of health promotion actions in the workplace, which is a part of most people's lives, appears to be an opportunity. In France, civil servants have several socioprofessional levels and represent an excellent model with results transposable to the population. Objective: This study aimed at determining the OHL and HL level of civil servants in France in order to implement specific prevention actions in their workplaces. Methods: A cross-sectional study of French civil servants was conducted in France from October 2023 to February 2024. Participants completed three validated questionnaires in French: (1) a questionnaire on OH knowledge, (2) the Oral Health Literacy Instrument, French version (OHLI-F; this is composed of reading comprehension and numeracy sections) to assess the OHL level, and (3) the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults, French version (s-TOFHLA-F) to assess the HL level. The scores for OH knowledge, the OHLI-F, and the s-TOFHLA-F were reported as means (SD) and the 95% CI. These scores were classified into 3 categories: adequate (75-100), marginal (60-74) and inadequate (0-59). ANOVA and binary logistic regression were performed. The OHLI-F reading comprehension and OHLI-F numeracy scores were compared using the Welch 2-sample t test and a paired t test (both 2-tailed). For the correlation matrix, the Pearson correlation and related tests were computed. Results: A total of 1917 persons completed the 3 questionnaires, with adequate levels of OHL (n=1610, 84%), OH knowledge (n=1736, 90.6%), and HL (n=1915, 99.9%). The scores on the s-TOFHLA-F (mean 98.2, SD 2.8) were higher than the OHLI-F (mean 80.9, SD 7.9) and OH knowledge (mean 87.6, SD 10.5). The OHLI-F was highly correlated with OH knowledge (P<.001), but the OHLI-F and OH knowledge had a low correlation with s-TOFHLA-F (P=.43). The OHLI-F reading comprehension score was significantly higher than the OHLI-F numeracy score (P<.001). Age, education level, and professional category impacted the 3 scores (P<.001). The professional category was a determinant of adequate OHLI-F and OH knowledge scores. Conclusions: Some French civil servants had inadequate or marginal levels of OH knowledge (n=181, 9.5%) and OHL (n=307, 16%) but none had an inadequate level of HL. Results highlighted the relevance of implementing OH promotion programs in the workplace. They should be nonstandardized, adapted to the literacy level of professional categories of workers, and focused on numeracy skills. Thus, appropriate preventive communication and improved literacy levels are the means to achieve greater disease equity and combat the burden of noncommunicable diseases.

Current knowledge about stackable guides: a scoping review.

PURPOSE: The rise of stereolithographic surgical guides and digital workflow, combined with a better knowledge of materials and loading principle, has enabled the placement of the temporary prosthesis at the time of implant placement. This scoping review aimed to assess the current knowledge available on stackable guides. METHODS: The review focused on fully edentulous or requiring total edentulism patients. The procedure studied was the use of stackable guides for edentulous patients in order to place immediate temporary prostheses. The clinical endpoint was immediate placement of the provisional prosthesis after surgery combined with a prior bone reduction using a stackable guide. RESULTS: 12 case reports or case series articles met inclusion criteria, which did not allow an analysis by a systematic review. The included studies were case reports or case series. Most of the articles showed a base stabilized by 3 or 4 bone-pins, anchored in buccal or lingual part. Regarding the accuracy of bone reduction (ranged from 0.0248 mm to 1.98 mm) and implant placement when compared to planned, only 4 articles reported quantitative data. 11 articles showed an immediate loading with the transitional prosthesis after implant placement. CONCLUSIONS: There are as yet no prospective or comparative studies on the efficiency of this technique. In a reliable way, stackable guides seem to be able to guide the practitioner from the flap elevation to the placement of the temporary screw-retained implant supported prosthesis. Given the lack of studies in this specific field of guided surgery, further studies are needed to confirm the clinical relevance of this technique.

Implication of serum and salivary albumin tests in the recent oral health related epidemiological studies: A narrative review.

Albumin is the most abundant protein in human serum and a specific amount of albumin also can be found in the saliva. It has several physiological functions such as blood colloidal osmotic pressure, antioxidant activity, binding and transporting of endogenous and exogenous substrates. We conducted an electronic search across several databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane, Embase and Science Direct using the relevant MeSH terms and keywords like "albumin", "serum albumin", "salivary albumin", "oral health" "dental caries" and "epidemiology". Only the epidemiological studies published between 2010 and 2023 were included. After the application of the inclusion criteria, a total of 51 studied were included in this narrative review. Serum and salivary albumin tests have been used in various aspects of oral health as a diagnostic and prognostic factor. Some of the results point out to a pattern of association while some of them are inconclusive and even contradictory. This narrative review discusses the role, significance and impact of albumin in epidemiological oral health related studies including the categories of periodontal health and disease, dental caries, oral function and hypofunction, nutrition and malnutrition, tooth loss and its treatment, diabetes and cancer. In addition, it offers a short manual for the researchers on when, where and how to use albumin tests in planning their study designs whether investigating an association or measure them as a covariate.

The Added Value of a Collagenated Thermosensitive Bone Substitute as a Scaffold for Bone Regeneration.

A pre-hydrated thermosensitive collagenated biomaterial which sets at body temperature and maintains the space of the missing alveolar bone volume, OsteoBiol GTO® (GTO), has been released as a bone substitute. This study was designed to check its angiogenic and osteogenic potentials compared to OsteoBiol Gen-Os® (Gen-Os) and Geistlich Bio-Oss® (Bio-Oss). Samples of materials were incubated in culture media to obtain the extracts. Collagen release was measured in the extracts, which were used to investigate human periodontal ligament (hPDL) cell proliferation (MTT), colonization (Scratch assays) and growth factor release (ELISA). The effects on endothelial cell proliferation (MTT) and organization (Matrigel® assays) were also studied. Finally, endothelial and mesenchymal Stem Cell (hMSC) recruitment (Boyden Chambers) were investigated, and hMSC Alkaline Phosphatase (ALP) activity was measured. A higher collagen concentration was found in GTO extract, which led to significantly higher hPDL cell proliferation/colonization. All materials increased VEGF/FGF-2 growth factor secretion, endothelial cell recruitment, proliferation, and organization, but the increase was highest with GTO. All materials increased hMSC recruitment and ALP activity. However, the increase was highest with collagenated GTO and Gen-Os, which enhanced C5a and BMP-2 secretion. Overall, GTO has higher angiogenic/osteogenic potentials than the collagenated Gen-Os and the anorganic Bio-Oss. It provides a suitable scaffold for endothelial and mesenchymal stem cell recruitment, which represent essential bone regeneration requirements.

Methanobrevibacter massiliense and Pyramidobacter piscolens Co-Culture Illustrates Transkingdom Symbiosis.

Among oral microbiota methanogens, Methanobrevibacter massiliense (M. massiliense) has remained less studied than the well-characterised and cultivated methanogens Methanobrevibacter oralis and Methanobrevibacter smithii. M. massiliense has been associated with different oral pathologies and was co-isolated with the Synergistetes bacterium Pyramidobacter piscolens (P. piscolens) in one case of severe periodontitis. Here, reporting on two additional necrotic pulp cases yielded the opportunity to characterise two co-cultivated M. massiliense isolates, both with P. piscolens, as non-motile, 1-2-µm-long and 0.6-0.8-µm-wide Gram-positive coccobacilli which were autofluorescent at 420 nm. The two whole genome sequences featured a 31.3% GC content, gapless 1,834,388-base-pair chromosome exhibiting an 85.9% coding ratio, encoding a formate dehydrogenase promoting M. massiliense growth without hydrogen in GG medium. These data pave the way to understanding a symbiotic, transkingdom association with P. piscolens and its role in oral pathologies.

Laser Hair Removal for Intraoral Flaps: A Review.

Importance: Laser hair removal is a noninvasive technique that has been used for patients with oropharyngolaryngeal hair growth related to surgical flap reconstruction after head and neck cancer resection. The purpose of this work was to perform a rapid review of the literature to determine the therapeutic relevance of laser hair removal and identify laser parameters. Observations: A total of 10 publications addressing depilation of the head and neck sphere were selected and analyzed. Conclusions and Relevance: Laser therapy appears to be a promising treatment for hair removal from flaps with few side effects. However, there is no scientific basis for a standardized protocol or determination of the superiority of laser hair removal over another treatment.

Age estimation from alveolar bone loss, re-evaluation of Ruquet's method.

There are many dental age estimation methods, but all the methods do not correspond, especially for aging methods for adults and mature individuals, to the reality of the forensic field, which favors simple, effective, and easy-to-use methods. Ruquet (2015) developed a method based on alveolar bone loss that predicts age for individuals between 25 and 60 years old and is even more accurate for those 25-40 years old. This study re-evaluated Ruquet's alveolar bone loss method using three-dimensional imaging of individuals whose age and sex were known, without taking into account their medical conditions. Digital measurements, from the cemento-enamel junction (CEJ) to the alveolar bone crest (ABC), were performed on the mesial and distal surfaces of teeth on 243 patients, independent of the tridimensional imaging test. With these measurements, two alveolar bone loss averages (ABL) were calculated, one with all the teeth present on the arches and another with only Ramfjörd's teeth. Bone loss showed a significant correlation with age (p < 0.001). The age estimation with all teeth and with only Ramfjörd's teeth showed a statistically significant difference, and age estimation was more accurate when all teeth were used. The assessment of alveolar resorption appears to be an interesting tool for age estimation in adult individuals. However, the method still lacks precision, and the mean absolute errors (MAEs) obtained by age group were all greater than 5 years, except for the age group 35-39 years old, for the age estimation with all teeth. Further studies should explore this existing correlation between alveolar bone loss and age and refine this method to make it more accurate.

Oral cancer: Current status and public health perspectives / Le cancer oral : état des lieux et perspectives de santé publique

Despite advances in surgical and oncological treatments, the incidence and five-year survival rates (~50 percent) of oral cancers (OC) have not improved over the last decades and remain a major public health problem. Seventy percent are still diagnosed at a late stage (T3 or T4), with an average delay in diagnosis of two to five months. As the cure and survival of patients are directly related to the development stage of the tumor at the time of diagnosis, the objective of this work was to analyze all the determinants related to oral cancer and to propose new clinical approaches for diagnosis and screening. A proposal for new models of screening, training, and concrete action to improve public awareness of the major global problem of OC is made. The strengths and weaknesses of OC screening studies need to be objectively understood to effectively guide and energize testing in primary care settings, with the prospect of using new and emerging technologies that can help improve the discriminatory accuracy of case detection. Most national organizations have not, to date, recommended population-based mass screening, due to a lack of sufficient scientific evidence of associated mortality reduction. Where health care resources are high, opportunistic individual screening is recommended, although the low diagnostic capacity of front-line clinicians is alarming.

Malgré les progrès des traitements chirurgicaux et oncologiques, les taux d'incidence et de survie à 5 ans (~50 %) liés aux cancers oraux (CO) ne se sont pas améliorés au cours des dernières décennies et demeurent un problème majeur de santé publique. 70 % sont encore diagnostiqués à un stade tardif (T3 ou T4), avec un délai de diagnostic moyen de 2 à 5 mois. La guérison et la survie des patients étant directement liées au stade de développement de la tumeur au moment du diagnostic, l'objectif de ce travail est d'analyser l'ensemble des déterminants liés au cancer oral et de proposer de nouvelles approches cliniques de diagnostic et de dépistage. De nouveaux modèles de dépistage, de formations et d'actions concrètes sont proposés pour mieux sensibiliser la population à la problématique mondiale majeure que constitue le CO. Les forces et faiblesses des études de dépistage du CO nécessitent d'être objectivement appréhendées, pour orienter efficacement les essais dans les établissements de soins primaires et les dynamiser, avec la perspective d'utiliser de nouvelles technologies émergentes qui peuvent aider à améliorer la précision discriminatoire de la détection des cas. La plupart des organisations nationales n'ont, jusqu'à présent, pas recommandé le dépistage massif de la population, en raison d'un manque de preuves scientifiques suffisantes quant à la réduction de la mortalité qui lui serait associée. Lorsque les ressources en soins de santé sont élevées, un dépistage individuel opportuniste est recommandé, bien que la faiblesse de la capacité diagnostique des cliniciens en première ligne soit alarmante.

Association between Malnutrition and Dental Caries in Iraqi Kurdish Children.

BACKGROUND: This paper aimed to study the association of serum Vitamin D level and Body Mass Index (BMI) as representatives of malnutrition at micro and macro levels, respectively, on dental caries. METHOD AND PARTICIPANTS: A total of 333 randomly selected children aged 6-12 years in Sulaimani, Kurdistan, Iraq were examined for three variables of the Decayed Missed Filled Tooth (DMFT) index, BMI, and Vitamin D serum levels in a single-time cross-sectional snapshot. RESULTS: The majority of the population studied (70%) were Vitamin D deficient. In the linear regression analysis, both Vitamin D and BMI had insignificant effects on DMFT, with p-values of 0.22 and 0.55, respectively. After the categorization of the data, the risk estimate between normal (≥20 ng/mL) and deficient (<20 ng/mL) Vitamin D groups with regards to the caries and caries-free categories was 1.97 (95% CI: 0.91-4.24). According to the mean and median of the DMFT, which were both 4, the sample is categorized into the low-caries group (DMFT < 4) and high-caries group (DMFT > 4). When these groups are compared to Vitamin D levels and taking 20 and 15 as thresholds, the odds ratios were 1.19 (CI: 0.74-1.92) and 1.88 (CI: 1.20-2.94), respectively. Regarding the BMI, a normal BMI increases the chances of having a lower caries index (OR = 1.83, CI: 1.10-3.03). CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that having a serum Vitamin D level ≥15 ng/mL and having a normal BMI are associated with a lower caries index in children.

A Multidisciplinary Approach for Full-Mouth Rehabilitation in Oligodontia: A Clinical Report.

The absence of teeth in children due to congenital agenesis, syndromic or not, could lead to oral dysfunctions with general repercussions and sociopsychological problems. This case was a 17-year-old girl with severe nonsyndromic oligodontia who was missing 18 permanent teeth and had a class III skeletal pattern. It was challenging to provide functional and esthetically pleasing results in terms of temporary rehabilitation during growth and long-term rehabilitation in adulthood. This case report described the originality of the realization steps of oligodontia management, in 2 main parts. The osseous time by the LeFort 1 osteotomy advancement with simultaneous parietal and xenogenic bone grafting to improve a large bimaxillary bone volume, allowing future early implant placement by absence of growth of adjacent alveolar processes. The prosthetic rehabilitation with the conservation of natural teeth for proprioception and the use of a screw-retained polymethyl-methacrylate immediate prostheses to evaluate the needed vertical dimensional changes and make functional and esthetic results more predictable. This article could be retained as a technical note to manage this kind of case with the intellectual workflow and the difficulties encountered.

Biomimetic Coatings in Implant Dentistry: A Quick Update.

Biomimetic dental implants are regarded as one of the recent clinical advancements in implant surface modification. Coatings with varying thicknesses and roughness may affect the dental implant surface's chemical inertness, cell adhesion, and antibacterial characteristics. Different surface coatings and mechanical surface changes have been studied to improve osseointegration and decrease peri-implantitis. The surface medication increases surface energy, leading to enhanced cell proliferation and growth factors, and, consequently, to a rise in the osseointegration process. This review provides a comprehensive update on the numerous biomimetic coatings used to improve the surface characteristics of dental implants and their applications in two main categories: coating to improve osseointegration, including the hydroxyapatite layer and nanocomposites, growth factors (BMPs, PDGF, FGF), and extracellular matrix (collagen, elastin, fibronectin, chondroitin sulfate, hyaluronan, and other proteoglycans), and coatings for anti-bacterial performance, covering drug-coated dental implants (antibiotic, statin, and bisphosphonate), antimicrobial peptide coating (GL13K and human beta defensins), polysaccharide antibacterial coatings (natural chitosan and its coupling agents) and metal elements (silver, zinc, and copper).

Oral-Hygiene-Related Mobile Apps in the French App Stores: Assessment of Functionality and Quality.

Mobile health apps can contribute to increased quality of individual oral hygiene behaviors. This study provides an overview and an evaluation of quality of oral-hygiene-related mobile apps currently available in Google Play Store and the French Apple App. A shortlist of nine apps was assessed by 10 oral health professionals using the Mobile App Rating Scale. Intraclass correlation was used to evaluate interrater agreement. Best quality scores were obtained by Oral-B (3.4 ± 0.97), Colgate Connect (3.20 ± 0.63), and Preventeeth (3.10 ± 1.1) and worst ones by Mimizaur se brosse les dents (1.80 ± 0.79) and Kolibree (2.30 ± 0.82). The subjective quality scores ranged from 2.62 ± 0.61 (Oral-B) to 1.5 ± 0.61 (MSD). Specificity of the content ranged from 3.46 ± 0.84 (Preventeeth) to 1.78 ± 0.47 (Mimizaur se brosse les dents). Thus, even if oral health professionals positively evaluated the quality of oral-hygiene-related mobile apps, they are less assertive concerning their impact on the user's knowledge, attitudes, and intentions to change, as well as the likelihood of actual change in the oral hygiene behavior. Further investigations are needed to assess whether information from these apps is consistent with oral hygiene recommendations and to determine the long-term impacts of these apps.