The frequency of occurrence of abnormal frenal attachment of lips and enamel defects in Turner syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the work was to register the frequency of occurrence of abnormal frenal attachment of lips and enamel defects and find the correlation between these anomalies and three types of Turner syndrome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty patients (aged 20-40 years) were clinically and cytogenetically diagnosed and divided into three groups, according to karyotype: 45,X (17 cases), with structural aberrations of chromosome X (12 cases) and with mosaic karyotype (21 cases). The control group consisted of 51 healthy woman aged 21-40 years. Subjects were screened for developmental anomalies in the labial frenula and enamel defects in three groups of Turner syndrome. RESULTS: Some significant anomalies of soft and hard tissues were found in studied patients: abnormal frenal attachments (42% of cases), enamel opacities (58% of cases) and enamel hypoplasia (38% of cases). Differences in the occurrence of these anomaly in all group with Turner syndrome in comparison with the control group were significantly different. Enamel defects were prevalent in the patients with karyotype 45,X and patients with structural aberrations of chromosome X in comparison with the mosaic karyotype. CONCLUSION: The results of the present study have shown, that abnormal attachment of lips and enamel defects were more frequent in Turner syndrome patients than in the control group. Enamel defects were correlated with the karyotypes of Turner syndrome and abnormal attachment of lips was not correlated with the karyotypes of Turner syndrome.

Tobacco smoking problem in a group of 18-year-old high school students in the city of Gdansk--finding causes and preventive methods.

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to evaluate smoking prevalence among 18-year-old secondary school students as well as their awareness of systemic health threats of smoking. Our goal was also to discuss the youth smoking risk factors and effective ways both to prevent and fight smoking problem. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 1516 18-year-old students (808 men, 708 women) from randomly selected 12 high schools were studied. The adolescents fulfilled the anonymus questionaire. RESULTS: 34.1% (517) of all participants smoke every day or occasionally, with the highest percentage of smokers in vocational schools (49.6%); women are the most frequent smokers (52.8%). The lower prevalence of smoking was observed in high schools (21.2% of men, 20% of women). In technical high schools 36.1% of men and 11.1% of women were smokers. The habitual smokers were found in all schools; the highest percentage was observed in vocational schools (32.75%-33.13%). The percentage was particularly high among women (33.13%). 92.09% of studied women and 89.95% of men were aware of smoking systemic health threats (93.84% of high school students, 88.25% of vocational school students). CONCLUSIONS: It is alarming that the percentage of smokers among 18-year-old students is high, in particular among women and vocational schools students. The results indicate that smoking is a serious problem in this population. It is vital to create the preventing and educating programmes addressed especially to adolescents. There is a need of future studies aimed to evaluate smoking risk factors and create effective methods of prevention as well as smoking cessation help resources.

Root morphology of mandibular premolars in 40 patients with Turner syndrome.

AIM: To analyse root morphology of mandibular premolars in 40 females with Turner syndrome. METHODOLOGY: All patients aged 18-50 years (mean+/-SD: 26.2+/-6.22) were clinically and cytogenetically diagnosed and divided into three groups according to karyotype: I-with 45,X (n=19); II-with 46,X,i(Xq) and other structural changes of this chromosome (n=8); III-with mos45,X/46,XX and other mosaic karyotype (n=13). The control group consisted of 30 healthy women aged 20-50 years (mean+/-SD: 31.52+/-5.21) who underwent dental treatment at the Department of Conservative Dentistry and Department of Periodontology and Oral Mucosa Diseases, Medical University of Gdansk, Poland. The root morphology of mandibular premolars was studied based on orthopantomogram X-ray images. The results were analysed using chi-square test with Yates's adjustment. RESULTS: Separate mesial and distal root canals and separate root apices were noted on orthopantomograms in patients with Turner syndrome. Two-rooted mandibular first premolars were observed in 34% of cases in group 45,X (group I), in 31% of cases in the group with structural aberrations of chromosome X (group II) and in 31% of cases with mosaic karyotypes (group III). Two-rooted mandibular second premolars were observed in 39% cases in group 45,X and in 31% of cases in the group with structural aberrations of chromosome X and in 35% of cases with mosaic karyotypes. This type of root morphology was not observed in the control group. No significant difference was found between the three groups of Turner syndrome. CONCLUSION: Highly significant differences in root morphology of mandibular premolars between patients with Turner syndrome and a population control group were found.