Accuracy of Remote Examination for Detecting Potentially Malignant Oral Lesions: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the accuracy of remote examination by photographs compared to in-person clinical examination for detecting potentially malignant oral lesions (PMOLs). Methods: The Reporting Guide and Guidelines for Writing Systematic Reviews (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis [PRISMA]) guided the reporting of findings. The search was conducted by two independent reviewers in six databases with no language restriction until November 2022. The Population, Test-Index, Reference Standard, Outcome and Study Design (PIROS) strategy guided the eligibility criteria, and studies with adult patients (P) examined remotely (I) and in-person (R) to verify the detection of PMOLs (O) were considered. The methodological quality was assessed by QUADAS-2, and the certainty of the evidence was measured by the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE). Results: A total of 769 files were identified. After removing duplicates and reading titles and abstracts, 16 were read in full, from which 6 articles then comprised the qualitative synthesis. The oral clinical examination was the reference standard in four studies. Five studies presented high risk of bias in at least one assessment domain. A high probability of detection of PMOL by remote examination (97.37%) was observed for the three studies included in the meta-analysis, which presented high heterogeneity among them. The certainty of evidence for the outcome was considered very low. Conclusions: Remote tools for detecting PMOLs may be feasible and assertive, but new studies are required to incorporate them into clinical practice. Clinical Relevance: Remote examination for the detection of PMOLs has the potential to favoring the early diagnosis of malignant lesions.

Tooth wear prevalence in individuals with Down syndrome: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVES: This systematic review investigated the prevalence of tooth wear between patients with and without Down syndrome. METHODS: Six databases (Embase, LILACS, Livivo, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science) and grey literature (Google Scholar, OpenGrey and ProQuest) were searched until March 7, 2022. Observational studies were included to assess the differences in tooth wear prevalence and/or severity in Down syndrome and non-syndromic controls. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations were followed. Three reviewers independently screened studies, extracted data, assessed the methodological quality (Joanna Briggs Institute) and graded the certainty of evidence through the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Results were summarized through meta-analyses using a random-effects model. The protocol was registered at PROSPERO (CRD42021266997). RESULTS: Of the 1382 records identified, six cross-sectional studies were included. Individuals with Down syndrome had a higher prevalence and were more likely to have tooth wear than individuals without Down syndrome (44% × 15%; OR = 4.43; 95% CI 3.17-6.18; p < 0.00001; I2 = 8%). Also, the severity of tooth wear was higher in the Down syndrome group (n = 275) compared with the controls (n = 294). The certainty of evidence analysis was very low. CONCLUSIONS: Based on very low certainty of the evidence, patients with Down syndrome had a higher prevalence and likelihood and severity of tooth wear when compared to those without Down syndrome. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Screening early tooth wear lesions should be carefully done in the Down syndrome population since its occurrence is remarkable compared to the general population.

Does the presence of oral health teams influence the incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia and mortality of patients in intensive care units? Systematic review.

AIMS: To verify whether oral health teams influence the oral health status, ventilator-associated pneumonia incidence and mortality rate of patients in Intensive Care Units (ICU). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Bibliographic searches were performed in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Lilacs, Embase, Livivo, Open Grey, Academic Google, and Cochrane databases. The assessment of the methodological quality and risk of bias of the included studies and a random-effects meta-analysis to summarize relative risk data for ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and mortality were performed. An analysis of the certainty of the evidence was performed for the main outcomes analyzed. RESULTS: Records of 518 studies were analyzed by reading titles and abstracts. Five studies were included according to eligibility criteria. The meta-analysis showed that ICU patients undergoing dental care by an oral health team had a lower incidence of VAP (OR = 0.33; 95% CI: 014-0.76) but did not lower mortality rates (OR = 0.46 95% CI: 0.16-1.32). The certainty of the evidence was considered very low. CONCLUSION: Dental care provided by oral health teams in a hospital environment did not influence oral health status or mortality, although it contributed to a reduction in VAP of patients admitted to the ICU.

The impact of oral health education on the incidence and severity of oral mucositis in pediatric cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Oral health education is an effective measure to prevent oral mucositis (OM) by improving self-management and effectively engaging patients in their health care. This systematic review aimed to determine the impact of oral health education interventions on the incidence and severity of OM. Bibliographical searches were carried out by two independent examiners in Medline, Scopus, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Virtual Health Library, and SIGLE, until June 2022. The eligibility criteria were based on the PICO strategy, considering studies with pediatric oncology patients, aged 0 to 19 years, who had attended oral health education activities and had been examined for the incidence and/or severity of OM. Data were extracted for qualitative synthesis and organized in spreadsheets. The quality assessment of the selected studies was performed using the ROBINS-I tool. Meta-analysis was based on the group frequencies of OM ulcerative lesions, adopting a significance level of 5%. The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) was used to define the certainty of the evidence. The primary search retrieved 1827 articles. After removing duplicate records and screening titles and abstracts for eligibility, a total of 21 articles were selected for full-text analysis. Of these, seven eligible studies were included for data extraction and qualitative synthesis, while four studies were selected for quantitative synthesis. All studies had a longitudinal design; three performed a before-after comparison and four were controlled studies. OM was assessed by the following scales: OAG, WHO, ChIMES, and WCCNR. While data analysis of the selected studies was heterogeneous, the implementation of oral health education strategies was found to reduce the incidence and severity of OM during the follow-up period. The meta-analysis showed a favorable outcome for the educational intervention. The likelihood of patients attending oral health education activities to manifest OM ulcerative lesions was significantly lower (P = 0.002) than that of the control. The GRADE analysis presented a low certainty of the evidence. To conclude, oral health education interventions improved OM outcomes in pediatric oncology patients with a low quality of evidence.

The effectiveness of an oral health education and prevention program on the incidence and severity of oral mucositis in pediatric cancer patients: a non-randomized controlled study.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effectiveness of an Oral Health Education and Prevention Program (OHEPP) on the incidence and severity of oral mucositis (OM) in pediatric cancer patients. The OHEEP was a ludic strategy for promoting oral health and monitoring the oral health condition. METHODS: We compared the incidence and severity of OM in patients who attended the OHEPP against those under similar conditions who did not receive educational interventions. Both groups were examined for 6 weeks by calibrated examiners (k > 0.8) using the modified Oral Assessment Guide (OAG). A total of 14 patients aged 2 to 18 years were included in each group and matched for sex, age, tumor type, and treatment modality. The incidence and severity of OM were compared using the chi-squared test (α = 5%), and the relative risk and effectiveness of the OHEPP were calculated with a statistical power of 0.97. Differences in total OAG scores between the groups were determined by the Mann-Whitney test (α = 5%). RESULTS: There was a higher incidence of OM in patients who did not attend the OHEPP (P = 0.005), and the relative risk of developing OM was significantly lower in OHEPP attendants (RR: 0.73; CI 0.60-0.92). No difference in the occurrence of severe OM was observed. OHEPP reduced the risk of developing OM by 1.4-fold, with an effectiveness of 27%. There was a difference in total OAG scores (P = 0.041). CONCLUSION: Participation in OHEPP was an effective measure to reduce the incidence of OM in pediatric cancer patients.

Socioeconomic indicators and economic investments influence oral cancer mortality in Latin America.

BACKGROUND: It is necessary to recognize the influence of socioeconomic factors on oral cancer indicators in Latin American countries. This study aimed to analyze the influence of socioeconomic indicators and economical investments on oral cancer mortality rates in Latin American countries. METHODS: This cross-sectional study considered the age-standardized mortality rate (ASR) of oral cancer within the period 2000-2015. The oral cancer mortality rate (for both sexes and age groups 40-59 and 60 years old or more), socioeconomic aspects (Gini Inequality Index, unemployment rate and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita) and investments in different sectors (%GDP invested in health per capita and by the government, %GDP invested in education by the government and %GDP invested in research and development) were considered. Tweedie multivariate regression was used to estimate the effect of independent variables on the mortality rate of oral cancer, considering p < 0.05. RESULTS: This study showed that being male and aged 60 or over (PR = 14.7) was associated with higher mortality rate for oral cancer. In addition, greater inequality (PR = 1.05), higher health expenditure per capita (PR =1.09) and greater investment in research and development (PR = 1.81) were associated with a higher mortality rate from oral cancer. CONCLUSION: Socioeconomic factors and economical investments influence the mortality rate of oral cancer in Latin American countries. This emphasizes oral cancer is a socioeconomic-mediated disease.

Impact of oral health on nutritional status, self-perception of oral health and quality of life of institutionalized elderly.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to investigate the influence of oral health on nutritional status, self-perception of oral health and health related quality of life of institutionalized elders. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted with 193 institutionalized elders living in the metropolitan region of João Pessoa (Brazil). The independent variables included were: 1) caries experience (DMFT index and its components); 2) use and need of dental prostheses; and 3) type of edentulism. The dependent variables included were related to nutritional status, self-perception of oral health and health-related quality of life. Data were submitted to a descriptive and comparative analysis, through correlation, association and difference tests, considering a significance level of 5% (p<0.05). RESULTS: No statistical significant correlations or associations between the oral health status and nutritional status and quality of life were found (p>0.05). Individuals who did not need prosthesis had higher scores for nutritional status. Self-perception of oral health and health-related quality of life did not vary significantly according to the studied variables. CONCLUSIONS: The oral health status has a limited impact on the nutritional status, and does not impact the self-perception of oral health and quality of life of the institutionalized elders. Key words:Nursing homes, oral health, quality of life.

Impact of Saliva and Cariogenic Microbiota on the Chemotherapy-Induced Oral Mucositis in Oncopediatric Patients: A Preliminary Longitudinal Study.

This study aims to evaluate the salivary parameters and cariogenic microbiota of pediatric oncological patients and their correlation with severe oral mucositis (SOM). A preliminary longitudinal study included patients in the age range from 4 to 18 years (n = 26), with diagnosis of primary cancer, who were followed up before and after time intervals of two, five, and ten weeks of induction chemotherapy. Oral mucosa examinations were performed by means of the modified Oral Assessment Guide (OAG) by calibrated examiners (κ > 0.70). Saliva analysis (unstimulated saliva flow (USF), clinical saliva viscosity (CSV), and pH) and microbiological (total Streptococcus (TS) and Streptococcus of the mutans group (SMG)) tests were performed using unstimulated saliva. The data were analyzed by the Wilcoxon and Spearman Correlation tests (α = 5%). The patients were predominantly of the female sex (n = 15; 57.7%), adolescents (n = 15; 57.7%), and patients with hematological tumors (n = 21; 80.8%). SOM was more frequent in the tenth week (n = 7; 28.6%). The values of USF, CSV, pH, TS, and SMG were not changed by the institution of chemotherapy (p > 0.05). These values were correlated with SOM and the time, TS and SMG, and CSV and SMG. The salivary and microbiological parameters investigated did not influence the severity of oral mucositis in the pediatric patients oncological..

Glass ionomer cements compared with composite resin in restoration of noncarious cervical lesions: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE: Restoring noncarious cervical lesions are challenging to clinical practice. This study aimed to compare the clinical performance/longevity of glass ionomer cements (GIC) and composite resins (CR) used for noncarious cervical lesions (NCCL) through a systematic review and meta-analysis (MA). DATA: Randomized and controlled clinical trials and nonrandomized clinical trials, which compared the clinical performance/longevity of CR and GIC (conventional and/or resin-modified) in the treatment of NCCL, were included. SOURCE: The methodological quality and risk of bias were evaluated using the Cochrane Collaboration tool. Seven MAs were performed considering (1) the clinical performance of the parameters in common: retention, marginal discoloration, marginal adaptation, secondary caries, color, anatomic form, surface texture and (2) a follow-up time of 12, 24 and 36 months. The prevalence of successful restorations and the total number of restorations per clinical parameter/follow-up time were used to calculate the relative risk (95% CI). STUDY SELECTION: After screening of the studies, 13 studies were used for quantitative synthesis. The risk difference (CI 95%, α, I2) between GIC and CR for anatomic form was 0.00 (-0.02, 0.02; p = 0.83; 0%); for color was -0.02 (-0.08, 0.04; p = 0.48; 80%); for surface texture was -0.02 (-0.06, 0.02; p = 0.31; 63%); for secondary caries was -0.00 (-0.01, 0.01; p = 0.87; 0%); for marginal discoloration was 0.01 (-0.01, 0.03; p = 0.23; 3%); for marginal adaptation was 0.01 (-0.01, 0.04; p = 0.34; 32%) and for retention was 0.07 (0.02, 0.12; p = 0.003; 76%). CONCLUSION: GIC showed a clinical performance significantly higher than CR in regard to retention, whereas for the other parameters, GIC was similar to CR. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: NCCLs is increasingly prevalent among the population and this type of lesion causing defects in the tooth that affect not only aesthetics but also everyday habits, such as drinking, eating and teeth brushing, due to the sensitivity these lesions cause.