Assessment of the Dentinal Surface Adaptation Efficacy of Different Obturation Systems with Bioceramic Sealer: A Scanning Electron Microscope Study.

AIM: Aim of this study was to evaluate the dentinal surface adaptation effectiveness of different obturation methods with bioceramic sealer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixty recently removed human permanent premolars of the mandible having a solitary, straight as well as completely produced root were chosen on the basis of clinical/radiographic evaluation. The coronal parts of the premolars were subjected to sectioning at the cementoenamel junction (CEJ) with the aid of a water-cooled diamond disk. The regular access opening was done, following which the working length was visually estimated by deducting 1 mm from the length of a 10 size K-file (Dentsply, OK, USA) at the apex. Subsequent to preparing the radicular canal, the premolar specimens were randomly allocated to one of the following three groups. Group I: Lateral compaction (LC) technique; group II: Warm vertical compaction (WVC) technique; and group III: Thermafil obturation technique. Following obturation, the samples were subjected to sectioning in the horizontal direction at three dissimilar points as follows: First at the cervical third, then at the middle, and at the apical third employing a minitom under water irrigation to put off overheating. Internal spaces amid the radicular dentin as well as the obturating agents were appraised with the use of a scanning electron microscope (SEM). RESULTS: Intragroup analysis showed that higher gaps were noted at the coronal level (2.30 ± 0.04), in pursuit by middle part (1.12 ± 0.02) and apical third (0.70 ± 0.02) for the LC method. With the WVC procedure, higher gaps were situated in the coronal level (1.96 ± 0.07), again in pursuit by middle part (1.02 ± 0.02) and apical third (0.86 ± 0.04). Even with the Thermafil obturation method, higher gaps were noted at the coronal level (0.92 ± 0.10), in pursuit by middle part (0.67 ± 0.05) and apical third (0.57 ± 0.01). No statistically significant difference was noted within the group. Upon intergroup comparative assessment of dentinal surface adaptation with dissimilar obturation systems at coronal, middle and apical thirds, there was a statistically noteworthy disparity amid the groups (p <0.001). CONCLUSION: This research arrived at a conclusion that the most superior dentinal adaptation of bioceramic sealer was procured when the Thermafil obturation method was employed for obturating the root canals compared to the WVC technique as well as the LC technique. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Numerous endodontic substances have been promoted for obturating the root canal areas. Majority of the methods use a core substance, in addition to a sealer. Despite the type of core agent, a sealer indispensable to each technique offers a fluid-tight sealing. The oral physicians' comprehension of the characteristics of the endodontic sealer plus method used, enhances the therapeutic effect.

Agenesis of permanent canines: Rare case report.

Agenesis of permanent canines is a rare condition, and that of both maxillary and mandibular permanent canines is extremely rare. It may occur either isolated or in association with other dental anomalies. Reports of such cases are very scarce in the literature. Need for early diagnosis of such conditions should be emphasized because of functional, esthetic, and psychological problems which should be evaluated and treated appropriately. The present paper presents a report of bilaterally missing permanent maxillary and mandibular canines. This case might contribute in the future studies of incidence of agenesis of permanent canines.

Transcription of Case Report Forms from Unstructured Referral Letters: A Semantic Text Analytics Approach.

In this paper we present a framework for the semi-automatic extraction of medical entities from referral letters and use them to transcribe a case report form. Our framework offers the functionality to: (a) extract the medical entity from the unstructured referral letters, (b) classify them according to their semantic type, and (c) transcribe a case report form based on the extracted information from the referral letter. We take a semantic text analytics approach where SNOMED-CT ontology is used to both classify referral concepts and to establish semantic similarities between referral concepts and CRF elements. We used 100 spine injury referral letters, and a standard case report form used by Association of Dalhousie Neurosurgeons, Dalhousie University.

An Odontometric Approach for Estimation of Stature in Indians: Cross- Sectional Analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Height/stature is one of the useful anthropometric parameter for individual identification. Correlation of stature to long bones, even fragmentary bones is frequently reported among various populations. As teeth have the advantage of being composed largely of hard tissue which is relatively indestructible, the careful study of these can enable reliable determination of stature of the person in life. AIM: The present study was designed to elucidate the anthropometric correlation of tooth dimensions with stature and also devises regression formulae. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was carried out on 361 Indian students (151 males and 210 females) in the age range of 21- 45 years to estimate stature using odontometry. Stature and tooth measurements were taken on each partcipant following standard methods and techniques. Karl Pearson's correlation co-efficient and linear regression was used to estimate stature. RESULTS: Regression analysis showed that the canine width can aid in estimation of stature as an adjunct when only teeth are available for identification. CONCLUSION: Tooth dimensions can be used only as a supplementary approach for the estimation of stature but with caution.