Determination of sexual dimorphism via maxillary first molar teeth in Himachali population.

CONTEXT: Sex determination of skeletal remains forms part of archaeological and medicolegal examinations. It is an aspect of forensic odontology. Forensic odontology primarily deals with identification, based on recognition of unique features present in an individual's dental structures. Correct sex determination limits the pool of missing persons to just one half of the population. AIM OF STUDY: Purpose of this study is to evaluate the existence of sexual dimorphism and variation in left and right maxillary first molars using bucco-lingual and mesio-distal dimensions in population of Sirmour District, H.P. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Base sample comprised 100 subjects (50 males and 50 females) of an age group ranging from 17 to 25 years. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Unpaired t-test. RESULTS: It was observed that the comparison of mean values of bucco-lingual and mesio-distal parameters showed highly statistically significant differences between males and females, measured both intraorally and on study casts. There were no significant differences between the mean values of both the parameters on the left side as compared to right side. CONCLUSION: The study concludes that sexual dimorphism is population specific. Among Himachali people, mesio-distal dimensions and bucco-lingual dimensions of first molar can aid in sex determination.

Epithelioid hemangioma of lingual alveolar mucosa: an immunohistochemical case report.

Epithelioid hemangioma is a rare benign vascular lesion that presents as a nodular lesion in the skin of head and neck region. It is a superficial vascular entity which can either be due to tumor or reactive lesion, but the exact etiology is still unknown. We hereby present a rare case which has been reported with the history of small nodular-like growth on mandibular buccal and lingual area. The excisional biopsy was performed and tissue was submitted for histopathological diagnosis. The immunohistochemistry was performed to check the expression of CD31 marker which proved that origin of epithelioid cells was vascular.

A rare case report of amlodipine-induced gingival enlargement and review of its pathogenesis.

Gingival enlargement is a common clinical feature of gingival and periodontal diseases. It is an unwanted side effect of certain systemic drugs given for nondental treatment. It is being reported with three main groups of drugs like calcium channel blockers (CCBs), immunosuppressants, and anticonvulsants. Among calcium channel blockers, nifedipine causes gingival hyperplasia in about 10% of patients, whereas the incidence of amlodipine-, a third generation calcium channel blocker, induced gingival hyperplasia is very limited. There are very few reports of amlodipine-induced gingival enlargement at a dose of 5 mg. We report a case of amlodipine-induced gingival enlargement in a 45-year-old hypertensive patient taking amlodipine at a dose of 5 mg.

Squamous odontogenic tumor with unusual localization and appearance: a rare case report.

Squamous odontogenic tumor is a rare benign neoplasm and may affect multiple sites in the mouth. SOT was first described by Pullon et al. (1975). Since then, there have been less than 50 reported cases. The tumor is often asymptomatic, although it can present with symptoms of pain and tooth mobility. We report a case of SOT occurring in a 26-year-old female in the anterior mandible with unusual localization and appearance.

A comparative study of p53 expression in hyperplastic, dysplastic epithelium and oral squamous cell carcinoma

Aim: To study oral hyperplastic epithelium, dysplastic epithelium and squamous cell carcinoma to determine (1) the prevalence of p53 protein immunoreactivity, (2) number of p53 positive cells, and (3) the area of localization of p53 protein immunoreactivity. Methods: Two contiguous sections from 30 tissue specimens (10 each from oral hyperplastic epithelium, dysplastic epithelium and squamous cell carcinoma) were subjected to hematoxylin and eosin (H/E) staining forhistopathological diagnosis and immunohistochemical (IHC) staining for demonstration of p53. p53 positivity was looked for in each IHC stained slide and the number of positive cells amongst 1,000 epithelial cells were recorded. The localization of these p53 positive cells within the strata (i.e.basal/suprabasal, spinous and superficial layers) of epithelium between 3 groups, and also with ineach group according to histological grades was recorded. Results: Higher p53 positive cell counts were demonstrated in oral squamous cell carcinoma compared to hyperplastic and dysplastic tissues. The expression of p53 in epithelial hyperkeratosis was mainly localized to basal epithelialcells whereas in epithelial dysplasia, it was predominantly localized to spinous epithelial cells. Conclusions: Qualitatively p53 is not a specific marker for malignancy of oral epithelium. However the quantitative analysis of p53 positive cells and their localization in oral epithelium is of importance as a marker for oral squamous cell carcinoma.