ANALYSIS OF RISK FACTORS FOR MAJOR DENTAL DISEASES IN THE STUDENT POPULATION.

Nowadays, the reduction of widespread dental diseases (caries and periodontitis) is still crucial and appears to be both a medical and social concern. The aim of this study was an investigation of dental health status, determination of leading risk factors, and determination of preventive measures among the students of the Adjara region. Clinical studies were conducted on 392 students aged 18-25 years. The methodology provided by WHO was used to determine the epidemiological data on the prevalence of dental caries. The BOP (Bleeding on probing) method was used to determine the prevalence of inflammatory periodontal diseases. Oral hygiene status was assessed by OHI-S (Simplified Oral Hygiene Index). A survey of students was conducted to determine the impact of various factors. In the study group, caries prevalence equaled 97.04%, the intensity was 5.68±0.21, gingivitis prevalence was 75.4%, and oral hygiene condition was 1.9±0.06. Hygienic condition is correlated with caries and periodontal diseases (p<0.05). A statistically reliable relationship was revealed with hygiene knowledge, nutritional factors, etc. It is necessary to improve treatment and prevention measures among students and adolescents in the region through the implementation of social programs and sanitary educational measures.

COMBINATION THERAPY EFFECTIVENESS OF EZETIMIBE AND ATORVASTATIN IN PATIENTS WITH ACUTE CORONARY SYNDROME.

Atorvastatin reduces low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels and the risk of cardiovascular events, but whether the addition of ezetimibe (EZE) , a nonstatin drug that reduces intestinal cholesterol absorption, can reduce the rate of cardiovascular events further is not known. We conducted a 16-week one-center, prospective, randomized, and open-label clinical trial, involving 323 patients who had been hospitalized for an acute coronary syndrome within the preceding 14 days. They were received atorvastatin 20 mg during 28 days and after that 292 patients, who had LDL cholesterol levels≥1.81 mmol/L, were randomized to ezetimibe 10 mg/day co-administered with atorvastatin therapy (EZE+Statin) or doubling their current atorvastatin dose. The primary end point was a composite of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, unstable angina requiring rehospitalization, coronary revascularization (≥30 days after randomization), or nonfatal stroke. At 16 weeks, the mean LDL cholesterol level during the study was 1.60 mmol per liter in the atorvastatine-ezetimibe group, as compared with 1.91 mmol per liter in the atorvastatin-monotherapy group (p<0.001). The Kaplan-Meier survival rate at 16 weeks were 88 .1 % in the atorvastatin-ezetimibe group and 77.0 % in the atorvastatin monotherapy group (absolute risk reduction, 11.1 percentage points; hazard ratio, 2.099 ; 95% confidence interval, 1.165 to 3.781; p=0.014). Patients receiving ezetimibe and statin were more likely to achieve target LDL-C after 16 weeks compared to patients doubling their statin dose. When added to statin therapy, ezetimibe resulted in incremental lowering of LDL cholesterol levels and improved cardiovascular outcomes. Ezetimibe/statin combination therapy was well tolerated among this patients, without safety concerns.