Virtual learning object about oral ulcerative lesions: controlled educational intervention study.

The aim of this study was to develop a virtual learning object (VLO) to teach undergraduate dental students about the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to oral ulcerative lesions. The VLO was developed with information on the diagnostic process, lesion classification, and clinical-surgical management of oral ulcerative lesions. The VLO content was initially validated by a group of specialists. Learning was evaluated in a sample of 58 undergraduate dental students, divided into control group (conventional theoretical class, n = 29) and intervention group (interaction with VLO, n = 29). All students answered a pre-test and post-test questionnaire. The VLO group also answered a specific questionnaire on the evaluation of the VLO. Both quantitative and qualitative descriptive analyses were performed. The validation showed that professors and students considered the VLO adequate. The use of the VLO was recommended by 100% of professors and 86.6% of students. In the intervention group, the results showed a significantly higher number of correct answers in the post-test (p < 0.01). In conclusion, the VLO proved to be a useful tool for teaching oral medicine, contributing significantly to the knowledge of ulcerated lesions in the mouth.

Virtual learning object about oral ulcerative lesions: controlled educational intervention study

Abstract The aim of this study was to develop a virtual learning object (VLO) to teach undergraduate dental students about the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to oral ulcerative lesions. The VLO was developed with information on the diagnostic process, lesion classification, and clinical-surgical management of oral ulcerative lesions. The VLO content was initially validated by a group of specialists. Learning was evaluated in a sample of 58 undergraduate dental students, divided into control group (conventional theoretical class, n = 29) and intervention group (interaction with VLO, n = 29). All students answered a pre-test and post-test questionnaire. The VLO group also answered a specific questionnaire on the evaluation of the VLO. Both quantitative and qualitative descriptive analyses were performed. The validation showed that professors and students considered the VLO adequate. The use of the VLO was recommended by 100% of professors and 86.6% of students. In the intervention group, the results showed a significantly higher number of correct answers in the post-test (p < 0.01). In conclusion, the VLO proved to be a useful tool for teaching oral medicine, contributing significantly to the knowledge of ulcerated lesions in the mouth.

Comparative study of royal jelly, propolis, and photobiomodulation therapies in 5-fluorouracil-related oral mucositis in rats.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the effects and mechanisms of action of royal jelly (RJ) and propolis compared to photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) in an animal model of 5-fluorouracil-related oral mucositis (OM). METHODS: Seventy-two male Wistar rats were randomly allocated to four groups (n = 18 each): control (no treatment), PBMT (intraoral laser, 6 J/cm2), RJ, and propolis. On days 0 and 2, the animals received an injection of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). The buccal mucosa was scratched (days 3 and 4) and the treatments were initiated on day 5. Six animals of each group were euthanized on days 8, 10, and 14. Phytochemical analysis (thin-layer chromatography, TLC) and clinical, histopathological, and immunohistochemical analysis of pS6, pAKT, and NF-κB were performed, and oxidative stress markers were also investigated. RESULTS: TLC revealed the presence of large amounts of sucrose (Rf 0.34) in RJ and of flavonoids in propolis. Lower clinical OM scores were observed on day 8, and improved morphological data were observed on day 10 in the PBMT, RJ, and propolis groups (p < 0.05). On day 8, immunoexpression of pS6, pAKT, and NF-κB was increased compared to control. On day 14, reduced glutathione (GSH) antioxidant levels were increased in the propolis group compared to control (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed that RJ and propolis, as well as PBMT, are effective in the treatment of OM. Considering that some patients who develop OM do not have access to PBMT, the present study demonstrated that topical application of RJ and propolis may be an important alternative for the treatment of OM.

Cistos e tumores odontogênicos: estudo retrospectivo dos casos diagnosticados no período de 10 anos em um hospital no sul do Brasil / Odontogenic cysts and tumors: a retrospective study of the cases diagnosed in a period of 10 years in a southern Brazilian hospital

Introdução: as lesões odontogênicas (LOs) compreendem um grupo heterogêneo de patologias orais e maxilofaciais que apresentam características distintas. O objetivo do presente estudo foi identificar as características clínico--patológicas das LOs diagnosticadas em um hospital da região sul do Brasil. Materiais e métodos: foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo para levantamento dos casos com diagnóstico histopatológico de LOs no período entre 2007 e 2017. Os laudos dos pacientes foram avaliados para extração das características clínico-patológicas e dos diagnósticos histopatológicos de cada caso. Resultados: um total de 255 casos de LOs foram identificados. Destes casos, 197 (77%) cistos odontogênicos e 58 (23%) tumores odontogênicos foram coletados, sendo que somente um caso (0,39%) possuiu o diagnóstico de neoplasia odonto-gênica maligna. Os diagnósticos mais prevalentes foram cisto radicular (32,5%) e cisto dentígero (31,76%), seguidos de ceratocisto odontogênico (10,98%), odontoma (10%) e ameloblastoma (10%). A maioria dos casos acometeu mandíbula (53,7%), com uma discreta predileção pelo sexo feminino (51%). A média de idade foi de 34±20,53 anos. Discussão: os dados apresentados corroboram com a literatura no que se refere à raridade do diagnóstico de tumores odontogênicos. Conclusão: o presente estudo demonstrou as principais características clínico-pato-lógicas de LOs diagnosticadas em um hospital no sul do Brasil, contribuindo para um maior conhecimento do perfil destas lesões.

Introduction: odontogenic lesions (OLs) represent a heterogeneous group of oral and maxillofacial patho-logies presenting distinct characteristics. The present study aimed to identify the clinical and pathological characteristics of OLs diagnosed in a southern Brazilian hospital. Materials and methods: a retrospective study was performed to evaluate cases with histopathological diagnosis of OLs identified in the period between 2007 and 2017. The patient's medical records were evaluated in order to obtain the clinical and pathological charac-teristics and the histopathological diagnosis from each case. Results: a total of 255 cases of OLs were identified. From these, 197 (77%) odontogenic cysts and 58 (23%) odontogenic tumors were surveyed, with only one case (0,39%) of a malignant odontogenic neoplasm. The most prevalent diagnosis were radicular cyst (32.5%) and den-tigerous cyst (31.76%), followed by odontogenic keratocyst (10.98%), odontoma (10%) and ameloblastoma (10%). The majority of the cases affected the mandible (53.7%) with a slight preference by female individuals (51%). The mean age was 34±20.53 years old. Discussion: the presented data are in accordance with the literature regarding the rarity of the diagnosis of odontogenic tumors.Conclusion: the present study demonstrated the main clinical and pathological characteristics of OLs diagnosed in a southern Brazilian hospital, contrib-uting to a better understanding of these injuries profiles.

Salivary gland cancer in Southern Brazil: a prognostic study of 107 cases / Cáncer de glándula salival en el sur de Brasil: un estudio pronóstico de 107 casos

Background: Salivary gland cancers (SGC) represent an uncommon group of heterogeneous tumors. We per-formed a retrospective survey of SGC diagnosed in a reference center for treatment of malignant tumors from thesouth of Brazil aiming to determine the prognostic value of demographic, clinic and pathologic features.Material and Methods: Cases diagnosed as SGC between 2006 and 2016 were retrospectively collected. Medicalrecords were examined to extract demographic, clinic, pathologic and follow-up information.Results: One-hundred and seven cases of SGC were identified. The most common SGC were mucoepidermoidcarcinoma (MEC) (n = 39) followed by adenoid cystic carcinoma (AdCC) (n = 29). Among AdCCs, 55.2% of caseswere classified as cribriform, 27.6% as tubular and 17.2% as solid. The tubular subtype had the highest percentageof cases with perineural invasion (p=0.01). Among MEC, 61.5% of cases were classified as low grade, 15.4% asintermediate grade and 19.9% as high grade. Low grade MEC had the lowest percentage of cases with perineuralinvasion (p=0.04). The 5-year survival for loco-regional control, disease-free survival (DFS) and disease-specificsurvival were 75%, 70% and 84%, respectively. The following features were associated with poor DFS: advanced age (p=0.03), rural residency (p=0.01), being a smoker or former smoker (p=0.01), pain (p=0.03), nodal metastasis(p<0.001), need for chemotherapy (p=0.02), neck dissection (p=0.04), perineural invasion (p=0.01), and being diag-nosed with AdCC compared to MEC (p=0.02).Conclusions: The clinco-demographic and pathologic features identified as prognostic factors reveal the profile ofpatients at increased risk of recurrence and who would benefit from closer follow-up.(AU)

Immunoexpression of BDNF, TrkB, and p75NTR receptors in peripheral neural lesions of the head and neck.

BACKGROUND: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin receptors have been recognized as fundamental regulators of normal brain development, homeostasis, and plasticity. They have also been studied in the behavior of central nervous system tumors. Here, we studied the pattern of BDNF, TrkB and p75NTR immunoexpression in peripheral benign and malignant neural lesions in head and neck. METHODS: This cross-sectional analytical study included 79 cases of head and neck neural lesions. Nineteen cases of traumatic neuromas (TN), 20 cases of granular cell tumors (GCT), 16 cases of neurofibromas (NF), 20 cases of schwannomas (SC), and 4 malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) were submitted to immunohistochemistry with BDNF, TrkB, and p75NTR antibodies. A semi-quantitative analysis was performed. RESULTS: The analysis of BDNF demonstrated a high percentage of positive cells in TN, GCT and SC with a decrease in cases of NF and MPNST. TrkB presented a lower significant immunoexpression in GCT in relation to the TN, NF, SC, and MPNST (P < .0001); and TN showed less percentage of positive cell compared to SC (P = .0017). Regarding p75NTR, the percentage of positive cell was significantly reduced in MPNST compared GCT (P = .009), NF (P = .0138) and SC (P = .0069). Also, a decrease in TN compared to GCT (P = .007) was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed the immunoreactivity of BDNF, TrkB, and p75NTR in head and neck peripheral neural lesions. Reduction of BDNF and p75NTR in MPNST might suggest down-regulation during the acquisition of malignant phenotype.

Comparison of photobiomodulation using either an intraoral or an extraoral laser on oral mucositis induced by chemotherapy in rats.

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to compare the effect of intraoral (IO) and extraoral (EO) diode laser irradiation on oral mucositis (OM) induced by 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in rats. METHODS: Animals (n = 78) were divided into the following groups: negative control (NC), positive control (PC), IO 6 J/cm2, EO with 6 J/cm2 (EO 6 J/cm2), and 12 J/cm2 (EO 12 J/cm2). OM was induced with an intraperitoneal injection of 5-FU and scarification of the buccal mucosa. Over the following 14 days, animals received photobiomodulation (PBM) daily. Clinical and histological evaluation was done by scores at days 8, 10, and 14. The redox state was evaluated by reactive species levels, antioxidant network, and immunohistochemistry analysis. RESULTS: Clinically, on day 8, PBM groups showed lower scores of OM with EO 6 J/cm2 presenting a significantly lower degree compared to PC (p < 0.05). On days 10 and 14, all PBM groups exhibited improvement of OM compared to PC (p < 0.01). On day 8, all PBM groups exhibited an accelerated healing process compared to PC (p < 0.01) and reduction of reactive species (p < 0.001). Also, all PBM groups demonstrated higher levels of antioxidant GPx compared to PC (p < 0.001). Analysis of nitrotyrosine revealed that on day 14, this protein damage marker was significantly reduced in the EO 6 J/cm2 group (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: An EO diode laser protocol promoted positive effects in the clinical, histopathological, and redox state in OM induced by 5-FU in rats. Among the EO protocols, EO 6 J/cm2 showed the most encouraging results.