Evaluation of Anti-plaque and Anti-gingivitis Efficacy of Two Commercially Available Herbal and Non-herbal Toothpastes.

BACKGROUND:  Plaque-associated oral disease affects a considerable portion of the population and is considered one of the major causes of tooth loss. The presence of plaque may be the reason for dental caries, gingivitis, periodontal problems, and halitosis. Many mechanical aids are used to control plaque, including toothbrushes, dental floss, mouth rinses, and dentifrices, and the most effective method of controlling gingivitis is supragingival plaque control. AIM AND OBJECTIVE: To evaluate and compare the anti-plaque and anti-gingivitis efficacy of commercially available herbal toothpaste (Meswak) and non-herbal toothpaste (Pepsodent). MATERIALS AND METHOD: 50 subjects aged between 10 and 15 years with a full complement of dentition were included in the study. The two toothpastes were provided to the subjects in plain white tubes by the investigator. Subjects were instructed to brush their teeth twice daily using the given toothpaste for 21 days. Plaque and gingival scores on days 0, 7, and 21 were recorded, and the data were subjected to statistical analysis. RESULT: At the end of the 21-day study, there was a statistically significant difference between the groups for plaque and gingival scores. CONCLUSION: The plaque and gingival scores were significantly reduced throughout the study in both groups. In comparison, the herbal dentifrices show more effectiveness in reducing plaque and gingival scores, but no statistically significant difference was seen between the two groups.

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Health Care Professionals Working in Jumbo COVID Care Center Towards Mental Health Care Needs: A Cross Sectional Survey.

Background: The present COVID-19 pandemic is a major threat worldwide. Health professionals being within the front line of the COVID-19 outbreak response are at the highest risk of getting infected. Such pandemics are always associated with ill effects on mental health also. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study included all the health care professionals working in the Jumbo COVID Care Center, Mumbai. Details of health care professionals were obtained from the authority of Jumbo COVID Care Center, Mumbai. Amongst 350 health care professionals, 285 responded (Response rate: 81.42%). A questionnaire, consisting of 19 structured, self-administered, and closed-ended questions, was employed online, and information regarding age, gender, profession, etc., was collected. It was then tabulated and subjected further to an analysis. Results: Most health care professionals (96.1%) were aware that COVID-19 is not only affecting physical but mental health too, also posts on social media (86.3%) are affecting mental health more than the actual disease. A total of 95.8% agreed that health care/frontline workers are at the highest risk and felt the need for psychiatrists in the present pandemic. (81.4%) They were also worried thinking about elderly people with comorbidities in their homes. (82.1%). Conclusion: From the present study, it can be concluded that the present pandemic is affecting not only physical but mental health also, and there is an increased need for psychiatrists and mental health care professionals to overcome the same.

Oral Health Status of Mothers According to Different Personality Traits and Influence on their Child's Oral Health: A Cross-sectional Survey.

Objective: Oral hygiene practices vary as per different personalities. The objective of this study was to evaluate the oral health status of mothers of various personality traits and its influence on their child's oral health. Materials and methods: The present study was a cross-sectional survey conducted among 450 mothers of 20-40 years having child of 3-7 years. "Eysenck Personality Questionnaire" was given to all the mothers to classify them into four different personality traits, i.e., Extroversion, Neuroticism, Lie scale, and Psychoticism; followed by an assessment of oral health status of both mothers and their child. Collected data were compiled in MS-Excel sheet and subjected to statistical analysis. Results: Results were statistically analyzed with the analysis of variance (ANOVA). For pairwise intergroup multiple comparisons, post hoc Tukey test was applied. Association of child's oral health status with mother's oral health with respect to four different personality traits was done by linear regression analysis. From the present study it was seen that severity of dental caries status was more in psychoticism group as compared to other personality groups (p < 0.05) for mothers as well as children. Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) was seen to be statistically significant with highest mean in Lie scale group. Conclusion: From the present study, it was concluded that there is a positive correlation with mother's personality traits and oral health status of mothers and their children. How to cite this article: Khobragade VR, Vishwakarma P, Dodamani AS, et al. Oral Health Status of Mothers According to Different Personality Traits and Influence on their Child's Oral Health: A Cross-sectional Survey. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2022;15(3):316-321.

Impact of Covid-19 on Mental Health: An Overview.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 (2019-nCoV) pandemic is a major threat to public health worldwide; it has been identified as originating in Wuhan, Hubei province, China. It has spread across the globe, causing an outbreak of acute infectious pneumonia. Such a global outbreak is associated with adverse effects on mental health. Fear, stress and anxiety seem more definitely an outcome of mass quarantine. METHODS: Keeping this pandemic situation in mind, existing literature on the COVID-19 crisis relevant to mental health was redeemed via a literature search from the PubMed database. Collected published articles were summarized according to their overall themes. RESULTS: Preliminary evidence suggests that symptoms of self-reported stress, anxiety and depression have a common psychological impact due to the pandemic, and may be associated with disrupted sleep. Regional, state and National-international borders have almost been shut down, economies crashed, and billions of people quarantined or isolated at their own homes and quarantine centers. In this situational frame of covid-19, patients, frontline health-care professionals anf geriatric population with existing psychiatric conditions may be encountering further suffering. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 will continue to affect mental health, which plays an important role in battling the epidemic. With the scare of the COVID-19 pandemic on the rise, it is time that psychiatrists should try to integrate the health-care services keeping mental health at prime.

Teledentistry: A New Horizon in COVID-19 Pandemic for Oral Health.

Currently, all of us are experiencing emotions, thoughts, and situations we have never experienced before. It is not that there were no pandemics earlier. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, health issues are growing. It has shaken the entire world and created global panic. In a way, it is affecting oral health also. Taking care of oral health is as important as looking after physical health. There is a need for a range of treatments to anticipate oral health issues. Strategies to combat these oral health issues should use options like teledentistry to develop effective methods of support. How to cite this article: Kshirsagar MM, Dodamani AS, Dodamani GA, et al. Teledentistry: A New Horizon in COVID-19 Pandemic for Oral Health. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(3):441-442.

Comparative Assessment of Antibacterial Efficacy of Commercially Available Different Dental Gels: An In-vitro Study.

BACKGROUND: The topical routes of administering drugs have certain visible advantages, such as the direct application of a drug to the site of action and persistence of action for a prolonged duration. More stability and better application property of gel allow its use for topical application. OBJECTIVES: To determine and compare antibacterial efficacy of commercially available different dental gels. METHODS: For the evaluation of the antibacterial efficacy of commercially available different antiseptic gels on Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus, well-diffusion method was used. To assess the antibacterial efficacy after incubation in an appropriate culture medium, diameter of zone of inhibition was measured. RESULTS: Maximum zone of inhibition was found with Cure next gel (40 mm,40mm) followed by Hexigel (30 mm, 21mm), Mucopain (17 mm, 17mm), and Dologel (7 mm, 16mm) against S. mutans and L. acidophilus, respectively. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Post Hoc Test were used to analyze results statistically. The difference between commercially available different dental gels was statistically significant (P < 0.001) at a 5%. CONCLUSION: In the present study, it was observed that Curenext gel was more effective, followed by Hexigel, Mucopain gel, and Dologel on S. Mutans and L. Acidophilus.

Impact of COVID-19 on Dentistry.

Pandemic situations always impose devastating aftereffects on communities and cause chronic damaging effects on the healthcare system. Novel coronavirus disese-2019 (COVID-19) which has originated in China (Wuhan) is nowadays an emerging threat to public health across the world. It is spreading worldwide so rapidly and has started infecting people in all possible ways. Several dental care facilities in affected countries are completely closed or have been only providing minimal treatment for emergency cases since the whole lockdown has been announced. However, in some affected countries, they are still providing regular dental treatment. This discrepancy could be because of the dearth of proper awareness, knowledge, protocol, or guidelines. HOW TO CITE THIS ARTICLE: Kshirsagar MM, Dodamani AS, Deokar RN, et al. Impact of COVID-19 on Dentistry. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2021;14(5):711-714.

Oral health status and treatment needs of substance abusers in Western Uttar Pradesh.

BACKGROUND: Substance abuse has often associated with high caries, poor periodontal health, and altered functioning of the individual. The substance abuse may be natural or synthetic in origin, both causing deleterious effect on the oral and overall health of the individual. AIM: To assess the oral health status and treatment needs of substance abusers attending deaddiction centers in Western Uttar Pradesh. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 220 substance abusers from 6 randomly selected deaddiction centers. The subjects were divided into four groups: Group 1, alcohol (A); Group 2, nicotine (N); Group 3, alcohol + nicotine (AN); and Group 4, other drugs (O). A demographic record along with full-mouth examination was recorded based on the World Health Organization pro forma. RESULTS: The overall results showed that out of the total participants, 144 had oral mucosal lesions. Alcohol group had significantly higher mean community periodontal index code 3 (pockets 4-5 mm) than the other groups (P < 0.05). The prevalence of decayed, missing, filled teeth (DMFT) was 83.33%, and the mean DMFT of the alcohol group was significantly higher than the other combinations group (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The oral health status of substance abusers was poor, with a large number of oral mucosal lesions. The dental caries status and periodontal status were the worst among the alcohol group.

Assessment of Oral Health Status and Treatment Needs among Individuals with Thyroid Dysfunction in Nashik City (Maharashtra): A Cross-Sectional Study.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of the study is to assess the prevalence of dental caries and periodontal health status among individuals suffering from thyroid dysfunction in Nashik. To compare the prevalence of thyroid dysfunction between males and females. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The present study is cross-sectional in nature. The study group comprised of randomly selected 100 individuals diagnosed as suffering from thyroid dysfunction and fulfilling eligibility criteria, visiting endocrinology center in Nashik city. Type III clinical examination was used for the assessment of oral health status. Control group was selected from the neighborhood in general population who had matched with the eligibility criteria of the study group. Oral hygiene status was assessed by using the WHO pro forma, 2013. Collected data were compiled into MS-Excel and subjected to statistical analysis using appropriate statistical tests. RESULTS: Severity of dental caries status and periodontal destruction was found more in study group as (P < 0.05). The prevalence of thyroid dysfunction, severity of dental caries status and periodontal destruction was seen more in females as compared to males. CONCLUSION: Thyroid dysfunction has an impact on general and oral health as well. It is necessary to identify it early so as to prevent further progression of disease and destruction of oral tissues. It is also necessary to modify treatment plan if the patient is diagnosed with thyroid dysfunction to prevent further complications.

Antibacterial activity of garlic extract on cariogenic bacteria: An in vitro study.

BACKGROUND: Garlic (Allium Sativum) is ubiquitous, small and commonly used spice for processing food. There are many types of garlic and differ in shape, size, color, taste, number of cloves per bulb and storability. OBJECTIVES: To determine and compare the antibacterial activity of soft neck and hard neck species of garlic against cariogenic bacteria (Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The well diffusion method was used to evaluate the antibacterial activity of garlic against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus. After incubation in an appropriate culture medium, diameter of zone of inhibition was measured to assess the antibacterial efficacy of garlic extract. Chlorhexidine mouthwash (ICPA HEALTH PRODUCTS LTD.) was kept as control group. Results were statistically analyzed using Kruskal Wallis test and independent 't' test. Thus, zone of inhibition (in mm) was analyzed using mean of all the readings obtained and the level of significance at <0.05 was considered statistically significant at 5% of level of significance. RESULTS: Maximum zone of inhibition was found with hard neck garlic extract (24mm) followed by soft neck garlic extract (18mm) and Chlorhexidine (17mm) against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus. CONCLUSION: Action of garlic against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus raises the possibility that it can be used for dental caries and other oral infections possibly.