Evaluation of mandibular trabecular bone by fractal analysis in pediatric patients with hypodontia of the mandibular second premolar tooth.

BACKGROUND: It is still unclear whether the trabecular structure of the jaw is different in individuals with hypodontia than in those without hypodontia; this is important for clinicians. The aim was to determine whether the mandibular trabecular bone structure of children and adolescents with hypodontia differs from the control group by using the fractal analysis (FA) method in this study. METHODS: A total of 138 panoramic radiographs of 69 cases and 69 control subjects (mean age 13.2 ± 10.1) were evaluated. The age and gender of subjects in the case and control groups were matched. Three regions of interest (ROIs) were selected from the panoramic radiographs. ROI1 refers to the center of the ramus rising above the mandibular foramen. ROI2 refers to the area between the apical level of the mandibular molar and the upper border of the mandibular canal. ROI3, the missing tooth region, refers to the apical third of the mesial side of the erupting or fully erupted permanent mandibular first molar. Mann-Whitney U and Wilcoxon tests were used. p < 0.05 was accepted for the significance value. RESULTS: The mean fractal dimension (FD) values of ROI1, ROI2, and ROI3 were 1,25, 1,20, and 1,13, respectively. The means FD values obtained from the ramus region were higher than the other regions (p < 0.05). The FD values did not differ significantly according to gender and age (p > 0.05). The FD values of the case group were lower than the control group for ROI3 (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed that the mandibular trabecular bone quality of pediatric patients with one missing tooth was different from the healthy group. The difference in the mean FD values from the ROIs indicates that the ramus has a denser structure than the mandibular corpus. Clinicians should factor this into their dental treatment planning process.

Caries-related salivary parameters and oral microbial flora in patients with type 1 diabetes: A meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to conduct a meta-analysis by synthesising the outcomes of studies that investigated the relationship between type 1 diabetes (T1D) and salivary flow rate (SFR), salivary pH (SpH), salivary buffer capacity (SBC), streptococcus Mutans (SM), and lactobacillus (LB) counts. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The PRISMA statement guide was followed for the meta-analysis. Electronic databases were searched, and study selection and data collection processes were performed. The risks of bias in individual studies and across studies were assessed. Mean differences (MD) and Odds Ratio (OR) were used to measure the effect estimates in the comparisons. RESULTS: 29 studies were included in the qualitative and quantitative syntheses. Significantly higher SFR (MD = -0.22, CI: -0.26, -0.18; p < 0.001) and SpH (MD = -0.59, CI: -0.81, -0.36; p < 0.001) were observed in the healthy individuals than T1D individuals. No significant difference was observed among groups in terms of SBC (MD = 0.10, CI: -0.46,0.66; p = 0.73). An increased odds ratio of SM counts were observed regarding the T1D (OR = 3.09, 95% CI: 1.16, 8.20; p = 0.02). No association was found between LB counts and T1D (OR = 2.15, 95% CI: 0.38, 11.98; p = 0.38). CONCLUSIONS: Subjects with T1D have a significantly lesser SFR and SpH than healthy individuals. But no significant difference is available in terms of SBC. Lower SM counts were observed in individuals with T1D, while no association was observed regarding LB counts. The tendency to dental caries is more likely in subjects with T1D due to lower SFR, SpH, and higher SM.