Laboratory Validation of a Novel Indigenously Developed Bite Force Measuring Device.

INTRODUCTION: It is critical to measure the maximum voluntary bite force of patients receiving restorative dentistry. A new device known as "BYTE" has been developed indigenously to measure bite force in humans. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the BYTE device's consistency and accuracy in a lab setting. METHODOLOGY: Testing and calibration were done in the laboratory. The calibration machine with load cell pressed the biting part of the device with various forces from 3 N to 444 N in 3 N increments for two to three seconds each. The recorded force value in Newton by the device was noted down. RESULTS: At numerous standard loads, the minimum accuracy error is 0.333 N, while the maximum is 1.667 N. It marginally underestimates the load with an average accuracy error of 0.833 N. CONCLUSION: The calibration report showed that the BYTE device is precise and reliable and can be used to measure maximum bite force.

Estimation of SARS-CoV-2 IgG Antibodies in Healthcare Worker-Administered Covishield and Covaxin Vaccines at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Jharkhand, India.

Introduction To mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, global distribution of vaccines such as Covishield and Covaxin has been undertaken. This research aimed to assess the responses and potential differences between these vaccines by examining the presence and levels of SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibodies in healthcare professionals who received them. Methodology A comprehensive cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary care facility in Ranchi involving 227 healthcare professionals who had completed both doses of either Covishield or Covaxin. Blood samples were collected and subjected to chemiluminescence immunoassay analysis to measure IgG antibodies. Demographic data, immunization records, and previous COVID-19 infections were recorded. Statistical analyses, including analysis of variance (ANOVA), linear regression, and independent sample t-tests were performed. Results Antibody titers exhibited variability, potentially influenced by factors. There was no difference in antibody titers between recipients of Covishield and Covaxin vaccines. Linear regression analysis revealed a correlation between antibody levels and the number of days after vaccination. Factors such as age, gender, blood group, and prior COVID-19 infections did not significantly impact antibody titers. Conclusions This study contributes to responses elicited by Covishield and Covaxin vaccines among healthcare workers. The results highlight that Covishield showed a higher mean titer value than Covaxin, which is not statistically significant. The overall model showed statistically significant results indicating age, type of vaccine, number of days after vaccination, blood group, and previous history of COVID-19 infection collectively influenced the CoV-2 IgG titer values. The findings indicate that age, number of days after vaccination, and prior history of COVID-19 infection have substantial relationships with the CoV-2 IgG titer, but sex, vaccine type, and blood group show lesser, nonsignificant associations.

Plain Packaging in Tobacco Control: A Bibliometric Analysis.

The tobacco epidemic is affecting 8 million people with 1.2 million deaths worldwide. The Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) was adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO) Member States in 2003 to counter the growing tobacco menace. Articles 11 and 13 of WHO FCTC suggest plain packaging of tobacco products to reduce the visibility and make tobacco products look less attractive. The current bibliometric analysis was conducted to analyze the visibility and impact of the scientific productions contributing to plain packaging globally. The bibliometric analysis allowed a quantitative analysis of all scientific publications indexed in Scopus. The sample was defined using the keywords "plain packaging OR standardized packaging" AND "tobacco." Five broad bibliometric domains were assessed for analysis: namely, scientific production, authors, sources or journals, countries, and thematic areas using R programming v4.2.2 and VOSviewer. The total number of documents published regarding plain packaging in tobacco control from 1992 till mid-2022 was determined. Australia tops the list with 99 publications, followed by the United Kingdom, United States, New Zealand, Canada, France, India, Netherlands, Spain, and Egypt. The author citation network showcases the link between the 21 top documents, with a minimum of 50 citations per document. The two main indicators assessed were the total number of articles published in the journal and the h index. Bibliometric indicators in this study illustrated that scientific publications/efforts to implement the WHO FCTC guideline concerning plain packing laws were neglected in most countries.

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Assessing the Role of Oral Health as a Risk Factor in Oral Cancer.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma is the leading type of cancer in Southeast Asian countries and many parts of the world. Many factors increase the risk of oral cancer, like tobacco, betel nuts, alcohol consumption, sharp teeth, infections, and other factors. Oral health-related issues have been reported in many studies of oral cancer, but there is a need to understand the role of the same as a risk factor. The systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted to assess the role of oral health as a risk factor in oral cancer. The population diagnosed with oral cancer (P) of all age groups and both gender, exposure (E) is oral health (includes poor oral hygiene, periodontal disease, and other oral diseases excluding oral potentially malignant disorders (OPMD)), the comparator (C), is patients without oral health issues, outcome (O) is the role of poor oral health as a risk factor for oral cancer. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted. The databases used for the search were PubMed, Cochrane Database, Embase, Scopus, and Google Scholar. The unpublished reports, reviews, and grey literature were considered. Case-control studies were included assessing poor oral health as a risk factor with odds ratio as an effective measure. Newcastle Ottawa Scale for risk of bias in the case-control study was considered. The study results showed that tooth loss odds ratio (OR)=1.13, CI (0.99-1.26), I2 value of 71.7%, Oral hygiene OR=1.29, CI (1.04-1.54), I2 value of 19.7% and in periodontal diseases OR=2.14 CI (1.70-2.58), I2 value of 75.3% had a higher risk of developing oral cancer. The risk factors for tooth loss and periodontal disease showed moderate heterogenicity and less heterogenicity for oral hygiene. Poor oral health factors such as periodontal disease, poor oral hygiene, and loss of teeth show higher odds of oral cancer than the control. The periodontal disease shows the highest odds than other factors. These risk factors can be considered for the primordial prevention of oral cancer.

Bibliometric Analysis of Poor Oral Health as a Risk Factor for Oral Cancer.

Poor oral health is a risk factor for oral cancer, and bibliometrics can tell us important things about publication trends and research. Oral cancer risk factors include smoking, betel nut chewing, alcohol consumption, trauma from sharp teeth, chronic infections, and other factors related to oral health. There is a need to understand the role of poor oral health as a risk factor. Thus, this study aimed to conduct a bibliometric analysis of the literature on poor oral health as a risk factor for oral cancer. A bibliometric analysis was conducted for poor oral health as a risk factor for oral cancer using RStudio 2021.09.0+351 "Ghost Orchid" Release (2021-09-20) for Windows, package "bibliometrix." The literary data for this study were derived from Elsevier's Scopus database, and the data were exported in BibTex format. The results considered the time frame of 1983 to 2022, with journals, books, newspaper articles, and others as sources, accounting for a total of 543 documents. The search yielded a total of 2,882 authors, with a total of 3,306 appearances. The results show that the research on poor oral health and oral cancer is mainly led by the United States (106), India (49), and China (46). The top author is Warnakulasuriya S, followed by Worthington HV. The research shows the countries that are currently working on the topics and helps set up future collaborations to improve the evidence produced and help the scientific community by finding research gaps and experts in this area of research.

Plagiarism-related Dilemmas in Scientific Writing.

The scientific writing in the present time has become an essential skill to express your research or ideas righteously. There are many scientific misconducts reported; plagiarism is one such issue in academic writing.

Knowledge and practice of, and attitudes toward, pulp therapy in deciduous teeth among pediatric dentists in India.

AIM: The aim of the present study was to assess the knowledge and practice of, and attitudes toward, pulp therapy in deciduous dentition among pediatric dentists. METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational survey was conducted using a closed-ended, multiple-choice questionnaire evaluating the knowledge and practice of, and attitudes toward, pulp therapy in deciduous dentition, which was formulated and sent to 360 pediatric dentists across India. Descriptive statistics were done, followed by χ2 -test to test the association between years of experience and the questionnaire items. RESULTS: A total of 3.5% of pediatric dentists performed their treatment using a rubber dam in all cases; 30% preferred to use local anesthesia prior to indirect pulp therapy (IPT). Traditional indirect pulp capping was preferred to IPT, and only 48% of them believed in not removing it completely. Pulpotomy was preferred over IPT (70%) when there was a probability of pulp exposure following complete caries excavation. Calcium hydroxide, along with iodoform, was the material of choice for the obturation of primary teeth (73.5%). A stainless steel crown was placed after pulp therapy in the primary tooth (86.3%). Most dentists believed requested immediate and 3-month follow up. CONCLUSION: The survey helps in assessing whether our views or approaches are in line with recent trends.

Institutional Ethics Committee Regulations and Current Updates in India.

AIM: The aim of the review is to provide current updates on regulations for ethics committees and researchers in India. BACKGROUND: Ethical dilemmas in research since time immemorial have been a major concern for researchers worldwide. The question "what makes clinical research ethical" is significant and difficult to answer as multiple factors are involved. REVIEW RESULTS: The research involving human participants in clinical trials should follow the required rules, regulations, and guidelines in one's own country. It is a dynamic process, and updates have to be learned by researcher and committee members. The review highlights the ethical regulation from the Drug Controller General of India, Clinical Trial Registry of India, and Indian Council of Medical Research guidelines. CONCLUSION: In this article, the updates on Indian scenario of the Ethical Committee and guidelines are compiled. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: The review comes handy for clinical researchers and ethics committee members in academic institutions to check on the current updates and keep abreast with the knowledge on regulations of ethics in India.

Dental plaque pH variation with regular soft drink, diet soft drink and high energy drink: an in vivo study.

BACKGROUND: A high incidence of dental caries and dental erosion associated with frequent consumption of soft drinks has been reported. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pH response of dental plaque to a regular, diet and high energy drink. METHODOLOGY: Twenty subjects were recruited for this study. All subjects were between the ages of 20 and 25 and had at least four restored tooth surfaces present. The subjects were asked to refrain from brushing for 48 hours prior to the study. At baseline, plaque pH was measured from four separate locations using harvesting method. Subjects were asked to swish with 15 ml of the respective soft drink for 1 minute. Plaque pH was measured at the four designated tooth sites at 5, 10 and 20 minutes intervals. Subjects then repeated the experiment using the other two soft drinks. RESULTS: pH was minimum for regular soft drink (2.65 ± 0.026) followed by high energy drink (3.39 ± 0.026) and diet soft drink (3.78 ± 0.006). The maximum drop in plaque pH was seen with regular soft drink followed by high energy drink and diet soft drink. CONCLUSION: Regular soft drink possesses a greater acid challenge potential on enamel than diet and high energy soft drinks. However, in this clinical trial, the pH associated with either soft drink did not reach the critical pH which is expected for enamel demineralization and dissolution.