Dentists' knowledge of occlusal splint therapy for bruxism and temporomandibular joint disorders.

AIMS: The aim of this study was to investigate dentist's approaches to the use of splint therapy for myofascial pain, bruxism, and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders and to assessment of treatment modalities. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A 12-item questionnaire was developed to determine dentists' knowledge of TMJ disorders and approaches for occlusal splint treatments. The researchers spoke with each dentist included in the study at his/her clinic or by telephone to assess their immediate knowledge and approach to the TMJ disorders. Chi-squared test was performed to analyze the values. The confidence interval was set as 95%. RESULTS: A total of 370 dentists working in Turkey were participated in this study. The most common splint application reason for occlusal splint treatment was bruxism (77.8%) while TMJ pain was very rare (%1.4). The use of hard splint ratios for 0-5 years of professional experience was 57.0%, 42.4.0%, and 26.8% for the experience of 5-15 years and over 15 years groups, respectively (P < 0.001). While the dentists' with sufficient knowledge soft splint application rates were 11.6%, hard splint application rates were 43.4% for the dentists with sufficient knowledge. Occlusion adjustment rate of dentists who practice in all three groups was under 16.0%. CONCLUSIONS: The knowledge of the dentists about TMJ disorders and occlusal splint therapy were found to be insufficient. Their knowledge decreased with increasing experience.

Validity of the Demirjian method for dental age estimation for Southern Turkish children.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the applicability of the Demirjian method for southern Turkish population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Panoramic radiographs of 535 patients (276 females, 259 males aged from 10 to 18 years) selected retrospectively. Dental age was calculated using the Demirjian's method. Chronologic age was calculated by subtracting the date of the birth from the date of the panoramic radiograph after having converted both to a decimal age. The chronologic and dental ages were compared using the paired t-test. RESULTS: The mean difference between the chronologic and dental ages ranged from 0.02 to 0.79 years in females. These differences in females between the chronologic and dental ages were statistically significant in total (P < 0.050) and in G1 (10-10.90 years) (P < 0.010) and G2 (11-11.90 years) (P < 0.001). The mean difference between the chronologic and dental ages ranged from 0.04 to 0.85 years in males. These differences in males between the chronologic age and dental age were statistically significant in total (P < 0.010) and in G4 (13-13.90 years) G5 (14-14.90 years) G6 (15-15.90 years) groups (P < 0.050). CONCLUSIONS: It is appropriate to use the Demirjian method in southern Turkish children; however, a revision is needed in some age groups.

Maxillary dental anomalies in patients with cleft lip and palate: a cone beam computed tomography study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the frequency of maxillary dental anomalies in patients affected by unilateral (UCLP) and bilateral (BCLP) cleft lip with palate and to determine whether statistical differences were present or not between cleft and normal sides in UCLP group by using cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). In addition, the frequency of those dental anomalies was compared with previous studies presenting the same population without cleft Study Design: Fifty non-syndromic patients affected by UCLP (28 patients) and BCLP (22 patients) were selected for analysis of dental anomalies by means of CBCT. The frequency of maxillary dental anomalies including tooth agenesis, microdontia of lateral incisor, ectopic eruption and impaction of canine and supernumerary tooth were examined. Pearson chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were performed for statistical comparisons. RESULTS: All patients affected by UCLP and BCLP were found to have at least one maxillary dental anomaly. The most frequently observed dental anomaly was tooth agenesis (92.5% and 86.4%, respectively) in UCLP and BCLP groups. Tooth agenesis and canine impaction were observed more commonly in the cleft side (75.0% and 35.7%, respectively) than in the normal side (57.1% and 14.3%, respectively) in UCLP group (p≯0.05). All dental anomalies were found to be higher in both cleft groups than in general populations not affected by cleft. CONCLUSION: Since patients affected by UCLP and BCLP had at least one dental anomaly and higher dental anomaly frequency as compared to patients without cleft, those patients should be examined carefully prior to orthodontic treatment.

Prevalence and intra-oral distribution of agenesis of permanent teeth among Eastern Turkish children.

AIM: The aim of this study was to describe agenesis of permanent teeth, excluding the third molars, in a sample of children in Eastern Turkey. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study assessed 1,291 digital orthopantomograms (OPT) (678 males and 613 females), taken at the Faculty of Dentistry, Ataturk University, Erzurum. The chi-square test was used to compare maxillary and mandibular hypodontia in males and females. RESULTS: Eighty children were found to have at least one tooth absent from their permanent set of teeth. The prevalence of tooth agenesis was 6.2%. A total of 135 permanent teeth were missing as a result of the congenital condition. Tooth agenesis was found more frequently in females than in males. Although there was no significant difference between genders in the prevalence of hypodontia among the children (p>0.05), the difference between genders in children who had congenitally missing teeth (CMT) reached a statistically significant level (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: When hypodontia in a Turkish paediatric population was compared to other populations, the characteristics were found to be similar to the Western population. However, the population in Eastern Turkey differs from the population in Asia, where there is less incisor tooth agenesis and more second molar tooth agenesis.

Dental age assessment in orthodontic patients with and without skeletal malocclusions.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this report was to investigate the dental development in an orthodontic patient population with and without different sagittal skeletal malocclusions. SETTING AND SAMPLE POPULATION: Department of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Ataturk University, Turkey. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective study was performed on a sample of panoramic radiographs taken from 525 orthodontic patients (Class II: 186, Class III: 177, Class I: 162) aged between 9.00 and 15.00 years. Dental age (DA) from panoramic radiographs was assessed. Statistical analyses showing the differences between chronological age (CA) and DA were compared by using the one-way anova, paired, and Student's t-tests. RESULTS: Both genders were advanced in dental maturity when compared with the reference samples (p = 0.000). The mean difference between CA and DA in orthodontic patients with different skeletal malocclusions was approximately twice the difference in the Class I group. However, the difference between CA and DA was statistically significant for girls in Class III group (p = 0.021). CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed that DA of patients with sagittal skeletal malocclusions was approximately twice more advanced when compared with patients without sagittal skeletal anomaly patterns.

Inhaled corticosteroids may reduce neutrophilic inflammation in patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

BACKGROUND: Although both inhaled and oral corticosteroids have anti-inflammatory effects causing improvement in clinical symptoms and spirometry in the treatment of asthma, the role of corticosteroids in the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is controversial. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of inhaled corticosteroids on sputum neutrophilia in clinically stable COPD patients. METHODS: In total, 18 patients were enrolled in the study. During 2 months, 9 patients in group A inhaled fluticasone propionate (FP) 500 microg 3 times daily. In group B 9 patients received placebo. All of the patients continued to inhale both salbutamol and ipratropium bromide. In 9 patients, sustained-released theophylline was also administered. Blood samples, spirometric tests, blood gas analyses, and either spontaneous or induced sputum cultures were evaluated on entry into the study, after a 2 months of treatment and following the 6-week washout period. RESULTS: After the 2-month FP treatment, no significant changes in the number of peripheral blood neutrophils, blood gas and spirometry data were observed in both groups. In group A, the total cell number and the number of neutrophils decreased from a mean of 3. 4 +/- 1.3 x 10(6) cells/g and 0.6 +/- 0.3 x 10(6) neutrophils/g on entry into study to 1.9 +/- 0.6 x 10(6) cells/g and 0.02 +/- 0.01 x 10(6) neutrophils/g after 8-week treatment with FP, returning to 3.3 +/- 1.1 x 10(6) cells/g and 0.5 +/- 0.3 x 10(6) neutrophils/g following the washout period. The percentages of neutrophils were 55. 6 and 77.9% in groups A and B after 2 months of FP treatment. There was no significant change in group B values during the study. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that neutrophilic inflammation in sputum may be decreased by inhaled corticosteroids in clinically stable COPD patients.