Evaluation of the relationship between the maxillary third molars and pterygomaxillary fissure by cephalometric radiographs.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between the third molars which are determined to be closely related to pterygomaxillary fissure (PTM) in cephalometric radiographs. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The material of this study was panoramic from 200 individuals (101 male, 99 female, mean age 19.02 ± 1.62) with three different skeletal malocclusion in the sagittal direction (class I: 109; class II: 66; class III: 25) and lateral cephalometric radiographs. It was observed that 151 of the patients included in this study had unilateral, 49 bilateral impacted maxillary third molars teeth. Angular and millimetric measurements (SNA°, SNB°, ANB°, PTM [Height-x], PTM [Width-y]) were made in accordance with the parameters determined on the lateral cephalometric radiographs of individuals. In this retrospective study, the relation of impaction with PTM evaluated on cephalometric radiographs, whether the impaction was unilateral or bilateral, was investigated in terms of skeletal anomaly. Chi-square test was used for the analysis. RESULTS: Of the 200 individuals with impacted maxillary third molar, 99 were female and 101 were male. There is no statistical difference between them in terms of unilateral and bilateral impacted third molars (p > 0.05). Of the 200 patients, 109 patients were class I, 66 patients were class II, and 25 patients were class III. There is no statistical difference between unilateral and bilateral impacted cases in facial skeletal classification (p > 0.05). According to chi-square test results, the relationship between genders and PTM variable width and height (PTM-x and PTM-y) measurements were not statistically significant (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The fact that the third molar teeth are impacted bilaterally or unilaterally is not affected by PTM change.

Does clinical findings correlate with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in patients with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain? A cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Although magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) helps to clearly visualize the disorders in temporomandibular joint (TMJ), the relationship between cross-sectional and clinical findings has not been precisely established. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between clinical symptoms and MRI findings in individuals with TMJ pain. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study, conducted on the clinical and MRI findings of the patients, who applied to Usak University, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinic with TMJ pain between the years 2016-2019. The primary predictor variables were MRI findings; disc position (normal, disc displacement with reduction (DDWR), disc displacement without reduction (DDWOR)), disc structural distortion (normal, folded, lengthened, round, biconvex, thick), condyle degeneration type (normal, moderate, severe) and joint effusion (JE) (absent, present). The primary outcome variable was pain, recorded on a visual analog scale (VAS) (numbered between 0-10). The other variables were demographic variables (age/gender). The relationship between clinical and MRI findings were statistically evaluated. The data were analysed by Kruskal Wallis and Mann Whitney U test. Chi-square (x2) test was used for categorical variable comparisons. P values < .05 were considered to indicate statistical significance. RESULTS: Clinical and MRI records of 700 TMJ, from 350 patients with the mean age of the 31 (12-65) were evaluated in this study. Statistically significant differences were found between; disc position and pain, disc position and JE; JE and pain; disc structural distortion and pain; and disc structural distortion and disc position. JE was seen more common in DDWOR group. The most common disc distortion, seen in patients with JE, is the folded type. CONCLUSIONS: The present study can infer that pain is associated with disc position, JE, disc structural distortion, and DDWOR is associated with JE. Folded type disc is the most common disc type in TMJ with JE.

Comparison of efficiency of hyaluronic acid and/or bone grafts in healing of bone defects.

BACKGROUND: Reconstruction of bone defects in oral and maxillofacial surgery has widespread uses. In recent years, the capacity of various biomaterials alone or in combination with bone graft materials to increase bone healing has been an intensive research topic. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of hyaluronic acid and/or bone graft material on bone healing in defects created in the rat mandible. Methods: In our study, rats were divided into 4 groups. Group 1 is designated to be treated with no materials, Group 2 with graft material, Group 3 with only hyaluronic acid, and Group with hyaluronic acid and graft material. A critical-size defect of 5 mm in diameter was created bilaterally in the rat mandibles and the rats were divided into the indicated groups accordingly. At the end of the postoperative 6th week, the experiment was terminated. The right halves of the mandibles were evaluated immunohistochemically and histopathologically in terms of bone healing, and the left in terms of mineralization level via microcomputed tomography. RESULTS: Histopathological evaluation showed that healing in the empty group was significantly lower than the other groups that were treated with materials (P < 0.05); but the difference between the material-treated groups was not significant. Immunohistochemical evaluation revealed that the staining was moderately positive/strongly positive in all groups, but the difference between the groups was not significant. The highest mineralization values observed in the defected areas that belonged to 2 groups using hyaluronic acid, and the difference between them was found to be statistically significant (P < 0.05). The lowest mineralization values observed in the defected areas was most frequent in the group where only the hyaluronic acid was used, and there was a statistically significant difference between the other groups (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: In conclusion, the use of hyaluronic acid alone or in combination with bone grafting has been shown to contribute positively to the improvement of bone defects in the jaw area.

The Value of Total antioxidant Status and Serum Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Levels at 24-28 Weeks of Gestation in the Prediction of Optimal Treatment Protocol in Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the serum oxidative stress markers, antioxidant enzyme and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels at 24-28 weeks of gestation and to evaluate the predictive value of them on the subsequent treatment protocol in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS: A total of 58 GDM patients (30 treated with only conventional healthy dietary recommendation (CHDR), 28 treated with insulin) and 30 healthy pregnant women at 24-28 weeks of gestation, were enrolled in this prospective case-control study. The oxidative status, antioxidant enzyme and TNF-α levels were evaluated to determine if there is an association with the need of insulin therapy for glycemic control by using multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: TNF-α (OR=11.976, 95%CI: 2.441-58.754, P=0.002) and total antioxidant status (TAS) (OR=12.769, 95%CI: 2.464-66.182, P=0.002) were found to be predictive for GDM at 24-28 weeks of gestation. Besides, further evaluation considering the treatment modality showed that increased TNF-α (OR=18.615, 95%CI: 2.338-148.240, P=0.006) and lower TAS levels (OR=99.471, 95%CI: 2.865-3 453.061, P=0.011) were independent predictors of the need for insulin treatment in GDM patients. CONCLUSIONS: Increased TNF-α levels and low TAS are significantly associated with the increased risk of insulin requirement for achieving good glycemic control in GDM.

The compromise of dynamic disulfide/thiol homeostasis as a biomarker of oxidative stress in trichloroethylene exposure.

In this study, we aimed to investigate disulfide/thiol homeostasis in trichloroethylene (TCE) exposure. The study was carried out in 30 nonsmoker TCE-exposed workers with a variety of occupations. Additionally, 30 healthy nonsmoker volunteers were recruited as the control group. TCE exposure was determined by measuring urinary trichloroacetic acid (TCA) concentration. Median urinary TCA levels of exposed workers (20.5 mg/L) were significantly higher than control subjects (5 mg/L). Thiol and disulfide concentrations were determined using a novel automated method. Disulfide/thiol ratio was significantly higher in the exposed group (p < 0.001). Thiol/disulfide homeostasis was found to be disturbed in TCE-exposed workers. We predict that in TCE-exposed workers this disturbance can be a therapeutic target, and the efficiency of the treatment can easily be monitored by the novel method we used.

Role of GGT in diagnosis of metabolic syndrome: a clinic-based cross-sectional survey.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to know if the liver function tests (LFT), especially gamma glutamyl transferase (GGT), have a predictive value in diagnosis of metabolic syndrome (MS). METHODS: A cross-sectional, single-center study was carried out with 908 subjects. Four hundred and forty two of these subjects were diagnosed with MS with IDF criteria; while other 466 were sex and age matched healthy control subjects. Blood pressure, liver function tests, fasting blood glucose levels and lipid profile of the subjects were recorded. RESULTS: The mean values of alanine amino transferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and GGT levels were statistically significantly higher in MS group. The mean values of liver enzymes, for female/ male subjects in MS group, AST; ALT and GGT respectively, were; 20.5/19.7 U/l; 25.9/28.5 U/l; 35.9/42.1 U/l. When the sample is divided into quartiles of the GGT levels, increase in GGT is positively correlated with increased MS prevalence. In ROC analysis GGT is as strongly associated with the IDF diagnostic components as is each individual IDF component, except elevated systolic blood pressure. In covariance analysis, there was significant relationship between elevated GGT levels and MS presence after adjustment for age, sex and MS diagnostic criteria; but not AST and ALT levels. In multivariance analysis, in MS group, a high GGT was positively associated with CVD prevalance (odds ratio: 2.011, 95% CI 1.10-4.57) compared to low GGT group independent of age, sex and smoking habits. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: Elevated liver enzymes, although in normal ranges, especially at upper quartiles, play a central role in early diagnosis of fat overflow to the liver. Regarding the availability and simplicity of these tests in routine clinical practice, they, especially GGT, have potential to be considered in algorithms for metabolic syndrome.

Influence of atopy on asthma severity in adult female patients.

BACKGROUND: Although allergy is known to play an important role in the development of asthma, its influence on the severity of the disease remains under discussion. OBJECTIVE: The aim of our study was to examine the relationship between asthma severity and intensity of atopy in adult female asthmatic patients. METHODS: One hundred two consecutive female patients (mean [SD] age, 51.7 [13.4] years) defined as asthmatics according to criteria of the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) were prospectively included in the study and their atopic status was investigated by skin prick tests and immunoglobulin (Ig) E levels in serum. RESULTS: Fifty-six patients were determined to be atopic. The 2 most common allergens were mites (37.2%) and pollens (36.3%). According to GINA classification, 16.7% of the patients had mild intermittent asthma, 27.2% had mild persisten asthma, 33.4% moderate persisten asthma, and 22.5% severe persistent asthma. The mean IgE level was 190.3 (293.8) IU/mL. No differences between atopic and nonatopic asthmatic women were found with regard to severity of asthma, lung functions, age, smoking status, or duration of the disease. Although we found that mean serum total IgE levels tended to increase progressively with asthma severity, the differences were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: Intensity of allergy as measured by number of positive skin prick tests, size of wheal in positive tests, level of total IgE in serum did not influence asthma severity in adult female asthmatics.

Changes in serum carbonyl and malondialdehyde levels following colchicine and vitamin E treatment in Behcet's disease.

Behcet's disease (BD) is an inflammatory disorder of an unknown cause, but growing evidence indicates that the oxidative stress is increased in BD, owing to the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and decreased efficiency of antioxidant defenses. ROS affect proteins and lipids and cause their oxidation, therefore, contributing to the formation of oxidation products: carbonyl, a marker of protein oxidation, and malondialdehyde (MDA), a marker of lipid peroxidation. The investigation was undertaken to evaluate protein oxidation (carbonyl group) levels and lipid peroxidation (MDA) levels, and the role of colchicine and vitamin E therapy on protein carbonyl group and MDA levels in serum samples of patients with BD. In this study, subjects were classified as control group, colchicine therapy group alone and colchicine and vitamin E therapy group. Protein carbonyl and MDA levels at the beginning of the study were significantly (p < 0.05) higher in both therapy groups compared with those of the control group. We found that the protein carbonyl and MDA levels at the end of the study showed no significant (p > 0.05) differences between the therapy groups and control group. These results provide some evidence for a potential effect of colchicine and vitamin E therapies on increased protein oxidation and lipid peroxidation in BD.

Effect of peritoneal dialysis solution type on serum lipid levels in end-stage renal disease.

Among the different cardiovascular risk factors, lipid abnormalities dominate the high mortality in chronic ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patients. So far, no data comparing the effect of standard glucose-containing, amino acid-containing, and icodextrin-containing peritoneal dialysis solutions on serum lipid concentrations in a chronic ambulatory peritoneal dialysis population are available. To determine the effect of peritoneal dialysis solutions on parameters of lipid metabolism, 67 subjects who had continued their usual dialysis for the last six months were enrolled in the study. Group A consisted of 18 patients who were receiving only glucose-based peritoneal dialysis solutions, group B consisted of 18 patients who were receiving glucose and amino acid-based peritoneal dialysis solutions, and group C consisted of 31 patients who were receiving glucose and icodextrin-based peritoneal dialysis solutions. Serum lipid parameters including total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein, triglyceride, and lipoprotein (a) were determined in all groups. No significant difference in serum lipid parameters was found between groups A, B, and C. These results demonstrate the lack of the effect of amino acid or icodextrin-based peritoneal solutions on dyslipidemia of CAPD patients.