Class I and Class II Patients Treated with Damon System: A Study of Transversal, Sagittal and Torque Values Variations

ABSTRACT Objective: To analyze the transversal and anterior-posterior changes obtained in patients treated only with the Damon system. Material and Methods: 51 patients with either class I or class II division 1 sagittal relationship treated with the Damon system and the same archwire sequence were retrospectively selected. Dental casts of each patient before (T0) and after treatment (T1) were scanned and analyzed using NEMOCAST 3D software. Inter-molar, inter first-premolar, inter-second premolar and inter-canine distances were measured in both upper and lower arches. Initial and final lateral cephalograms were traced using the OrisCeph program. Pre and post-treatment measurements were compared using the t-test for repeated measurements. The Pearson Correlation Index and Linear Regression Analysis were used to determine the dependence between continuous variables. The significance level was set at 0.05. Results: Transversal diameters in the upper arch increase statistically significantly, especially in the bicuspid area. Initial intra-arch diameter was the only statistically significant variable correlated with the final expansion obtained. A linear negative correlation between the initial latero-posterior torque and the final expansion was observed in both arches. Conclusion: Using identical arches in patients with very different initial characteristics, the changes in bicuspids' diameters remain the most predominant. Patients with initial more negative torque in the posterior region had a higher expansion amount.

Health professionals' perception of appropriateness of care: a qualitative study in Italian pediatric hospices.

BACKGROUND: Appropriateness is particularly relevant in palliative care, an area in which it is essential to question the real need for treatments. Few studies explored the perception of appropriateness by professionals in pediatric palliative care, revealing the conflict sometimes faced when confronted with the uncertainty of prognosis and end-of-life decisions. AIMS: The objective of this study is firstly to investigate the perception that doctors, nurses and psychologists, operating in Italian pediatric hospices, have of the appropriateness of the care they provide. Secondly, to understand what repercussions the perception of non-appropriateness has at individual and team level. METHODS: A qualitative study was conducted between 2019 and 2020 through semi-structured interviews with a convenience sample of 17 professionals working it Italian pediatric hospices. RESULTS: The interviewees do not refer to a common concept of appropriateness, but compare the latter to: the quality of life, the global care of the assisted person, the proportionality of care, the early recognition of the need for palliative care. The discussion within the team emerges as a privileged place to manage the discomfort of individual professionals in the face of treatment choices in conflict with their own values. CONCLUSION: the non-referring to a univocal conception of appropriateness deprives professionals of an objective criterion to resolve the most difficult decisions. However, it allows them to establish what from time to time seems to be the most appropriate care pathway for a given patient, at a given time and context, preserving the goal of personalized care.