Oral hygiene negligence among institutionalized mentally disabled children in Mysore city-A call for attention.

BACKGROUND: Oral health is integral part of general health. In certain conditions especially among mentally disabled, oral health is neglected. Studies have shown that mentally disabled population has the risk of poor oral health. People with disabilities deserve the same opportunities for oral health and hygiene as those who are healthy, but sadly dental care is the most common unmet health care need of the disabled people. METHODOLOGY: This comparative, descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among institutionalized mentally disabled and normal children of age group 6-13 years in Mysore city. RESULTS: Majority of mentally disabled children, that is, 36.73% (n = 180), had poor oral hygiene when compared with normal children, that is, 9.18% (n = 45). This difference was statistically highly significant (P < 0.000). The significant differences in the gingival status and severity of mental disability were seen (P < 0.001). The result showed that the gingival health worsens with increase in the severity of mental disability. CONCLUSION: The present study showed the dental negligence among mentally disabled children where the parents, caretakers, and dentists are responsible. Oral health promotion programs should be conducted for special group children, their parents, as well as caretakers.

Prevalence of hepatitis B vaccination among oral health care personnel in Mysore city, India.

BACKGROUND: The transmission of blood borne virus in health care workers is a potential occupational hazard to patients as well as to the Oral Health Care Personnel (OHCP). Hepatitis B remains a serious threat to dental team. PATIENTS AND METHODS: To assess the vaccination status and post vaccination antibody status of oral health care personnel against Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection. Descriptive Cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted among the oral health care personnel of Mysore city. RESULTS: Out of 300 oral health care personnel 256 (85.4%) were vaccinated for HBV infection and 44 (14.6%) had not taken vaccination. Highest frequency of vaccination was seen among dentists and least amongst dental lab technicians and other workers. This difference was highly significant among the different occupation groups (p= 0.001). CONCLUSION: Majority of the OHCP of Mysore city have been vaccinated. Among them, dentists formed the majority group of vaccinated. But there was ignorance and less awareness regarding Hepatitis B vaccination among dental lab technicians and other workers like dental assistants and cleaning staff. Awareness amongst OHCPS against Hepatitis B vaccination has increased significantly over the years, but there are few who do not intend to get vaccinated.

Toothpaste Utilization Profiles among Preschool Children.

BACKGROUND: Oral healthcare for pre-school children is given due priority, as their oral health will determine the oral health status of future generations. Generally, the type, frequency and quantity of toothpaste used by children are based purely on parental preferences. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted among mothers of preschool children by using a questionnaire. RESULTS: Sixty two percent (n=154) mothers started brushing their children's teeth more than one year after eruption of their teeth. A majority of the mothers used adult toothpaste to brush their children's teeth and supervised their children while brushing. Fiftytwo percent mothers were aware about presence of fluoride in tooth paste but its clinical significance. Half the mothers applied full length of tooth paste to their children's brushes and most mothers made their children brush their teeth twice daily. CONCLUSION: Based on the findings of this study, it appears that there is still much lack of awareness on the proper guidelines on the selection and usage of toothpastes in children. Dental professionals should use this knowledge to help and motivate parents to properly supervise and assist their children's brushing, with the goal of reducing the potential risk of fluorosis.

Natural antioxidant activity of commonly consumed plant foods in India: effect of domestic processing.

Phytochemicals protect against oxidative stress which in turn helps in maintaining the balance between oxidants and antioxidants. In recent times natural antioxidants are gaining considerable interest among nutritionists, food manufacturers, and consumers because of their perceived safety, potential therapeutic value, and long shelf life. Plant foods are known to protect against degenerative diseases and ageing due to their antioxidant activity (AOA) attributed to their high polyphenolic content (PC). Data on AOA and PC of Indian plant foods is scanty. Therefore we have determined the antioxidant activity in 107 commonly consumed Indian plant foods and assessed their relation to their PC. Antioxidant activity is presented as the range of values for each of the food groups. The foods studied had good amounts of PC and AOA although they belonged to different food groups. Interestingly, significant correlation was observed between AOA (DPPH and FRAP) and PC in most of the foods, corroborating the literature that polyphenols are potent antioxidants and that they may be important contributors to the AOA of the plant foods. We have also observed that common domestic methods of processing may not affect the PC and AOA of the foods studied in general. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first results of the kind in commonly consumed Indian plant foods.

Oral health related quality of life.

Diseases and disorders that damage the mouth and face can disturb well-being and his self-esteem. Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQOL) is a relatively new but rapidly growing notion. The concept of OHRQOL can become a tool to understand and shape not only the state of clinical practice, dental research and dental education but also that of community at large. There are different approaches to measure OHRQOL; the most popular one is multiple item questionnaires. OHRQOL should be the basis for any oral health programme development. Moreover, research at the conceptual level is needed in countries where OHRQOL has not been previously assessed, including India.

Role of dentist in person identification.

To reinforce awareness among dentists about their role in person identification and the importance of maintaining dental records of all their patients. The article reviews basic procedures of dental identification and some cases where dental identification played a key role in eventual identification of the person. Forensic odontology is an integral part of forensic sciences. Forensic dental identifications, especially in times of mass disasters, depend mainly on the availability of ante mortem dental records. It is the social responsibility of each and every dentist to maintain dental records of their patients for the noble cause of identification in the event of mass disaster.

Incorporation of Cestrum diurnum leaf improves intestinal Ca transport in broilers.

The economy of Ca utilization is under the control of vitamin D(3), particularly its active metabolite 1,25-dihydroxy cholecalciferol [1,25(OH)(2)D(3)]. In sufficient Ca absorption leads to tibial dyschondroplasia resulting in not attaining optimum body weight. Our earlier studies [T.P. Prema, N. Raghuramulu, Phytochemistry 37 (1994) 167] have shown that the Cestrum diurnum (CD) leaves contain vitamin D(3) metabolites. It was felt whether incorporation of CD as a source of 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) could improve the Ca absorption in broilers. Four groups of 60 birds each were fed with either normal diet or normal diet+0.25% CD or normal diet without vitamin D(3) or normal diet without vitamin D(3)+0.25% CD leaf powder for 45 days. In subsample of six birds it was observed that incorporation of CD leaves in the feed had the maximal effect on all the parameters studied. The results indicate that the intestinal Ca transport as represented by Serosa/Mucosa (S/M) ratio was found to be significantly (p<0.01) higher in broilers fed diet with CD leaf powder and the 1alpha hydroxylase activity in kidney is significantly (p<0.001) higher in negative controls. On the other hand the supplementation of CD leaves enhanced the serum Ca, body weight, tibia weight, density and strength resulting in the disappearance of tibial dyschondroplasia. No lesions of toxicity were observed in any of the soft tissue examined. The results suggest that the incorporation of CD leaf powder in poultry feed could be beneficial to the poultry.