The Saudi Dental Journal

Editorial Board

2012-04-01

Engineering of dental tissues; reality or distant prospect

John A. Jansen — 2012-04-01

Tissue engineering envelops a fast developing multidisciplinary field. Both from a medical and dental social point of view, there is great need to safeguard tissues and organs to overcome the shortage of donor organs and to reduce the health care cost.

A review on miswak (Salvadora persica) and its effect on various aspects of oral health

Hassan Suliman Halawany — 2012-04-01

Abstract: Plants have been used for centuries to improve dental health and to promote oral hygiene, and this practice persists in several communities throughout the world. “Miswak” is an Arabic word meaning “tooth-cleaning stick,” and Salvadora persica miswak has a wide geographic distribution. It was used by ancient Arabs to whiten and polish the teeth. This review discusses the history and chemical composition of S. persica miswak and its influence on oral health, including the advantages and disadvantages of its use.

The efficacy of Salvadora persica extract in the elimination of the intracanal smear layer: A SEM study

Hanan Balto, Basma Ghandourah, Hala Al-Sulaiman — 2012-04-01

Abstract: Aim: To evaluate the efficacy of an ethanolic Salvadora persica extract in removing the smear layer following a root canal procedure.Methods: Sixty extracted, single-rooted human teeth were cleaned, shaped, and divided into four groups. Experimental groups 1 (n=20) and 2 (n=20) were irrigated with 1mg/ml and 5mg/ml of S. persica, respectively. The positive controls (n=10) were irrigated with 17% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), while the negative controls (n=10) were irrigated with saline. Approximately 5ml of the irrigating solution was delivered into the root canals for 5min, and the final rinse was performed with 5ml of 1% sodium hypochlorite. Scanning electron microscopy was used to evaluate the endodontic smear layer removal at the coronal, middle, and apical thirds of the specimens.Results: A significant difference in smear layer removal between groups 1 and 2 at the coronal and middle thirds of the canal was observed, and no significant difference was seen between group 2 and the positive control at the coronal third. At the apical third, both concentrations of S. persica had similar effects and were less effective than the positive control in removing the smear layer.Conclusion: The 5mg/ml S. persica solution was significantly more effective than the 1mg/ml solution. In addition, the 5mg/ml S. persica solution was as effective as 17% EDTA in removing the smear layer from the coronal third of the canal wall.

The influence of resin infiltration system on enamel microhardness and surface roughness: An in vitro study

Nadia Malek Taher, Haifa Abdulrahman Alkhamis, Sarah Mesha’l Dowaidi — 2012-04-01

Abstract: Objective: To investigate the effect of a resin infiltrant on the surface microhardness and roughness of healthy enamel and, as a subsidiary aim, to compare it with a fissure sealant.Materials and methods: Twenty freshly extracted premolars were used. Sound enamel surfaces were treated with a resin infiltrant (Icon) or fissure sealant (Seal-Rite). The average roughness (Ra, μm) of the specimens was measured with a profilometer (Surtronic 10 Tylor Hobson). Surface hardness was determined by utilizing Vicker’s surface hardness (VHN) with a Micromet II Microhardness tester. Each specimen acted as its own control. Data were analyzed with 2-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and mean values were compared with independent t-test. All analyses were performed with the SPSS program version 16 (USA). Differences with a P-value of ⩽0.05 were considered statistically significant.Results: Comparison of enamel surfaces before and after application of resin infiltrant revealed no significant differences in surface hardness; however, enamel surfaces treated by infiltrant showed significantly higher VHN (244.0±79.8) values than those treated with fissure sealant (37.5±14.2). Surface roughness did not differ before and after application of either material to sound enamel. Enamel surfaces treated with fissure sealant (5.3±1.4) were significantly smoother than those treated with infiltrant (6.9±2.0).Conclusion: Within the limitations of the study, the results showed that enamels treated with the resin infiltrant showed approximately the same microhardness and surface roughness as sound enamel, indicating that this material might be suitable for the treatment of enamel subsurface lesions.

Color change of some aesthetic dental materials: Effect of immersion solutions and finishing of their surfaces

Elizabeth Sarkis — 2012-04-01

Abstract: Objectives: The purpose of this research was to evaluate the color change of five aesthetic dental materials, before and after immersion in distilled water and blue food color solution for 7 and 21days, and to study the effect of finishing the surfaces on any color change.Methods: Disc shaped samples of five types of light curing composite (A2) (n=10 samples/composite) were prepared and all samples were light-cured with a Plasma Arc light cure unit for ten seconds. One side of each sample disc was finished and polished with a Super-Snap system all samples. After 24h, color measurements of each sample were conducted using a digital spectrophotometer. Five sample discs from each composite group were immersed in 30ml of food color solution for 7 and 21days, while the remaining five sample discs were immersed in 30ml of distilled water as a control. Color measurements were repeated for all samples at 7 and 21days after immersion. The color changes were statistically analyzed using t-tests within the same group. A result was considered statistically significant at α=0.05.Results: The color differences (ΔE) ranged from 0.4 to 4.66 and statistically significant differences on the finished and unfinished surfaces were observed after immersion in the food color solution for 7days. No significant differences were found in any group after immersion in the food color solution for 21days. The Tetric EvoCeram and Arabesk groups showed less color differences after 7 and 21days than other composites.Conclusion: Finished composite surfaces showed less coloration than unfinished surfaces after 7days, but all surfaces (finished and unfinished) were highly colored for all composite types after 21days.

Characterization of heat emission of light-curing units

2012-04-01

Abstract: Objectives: This study was designed to analyze the heat emissions produced by light-curing units (LCUs) of different intensities during their operation. The null hypothesis was that the tested LCUs would show no differences in their temperature rises.Methods: Five commercially available LCUs were tested: a “Flipo” plasma arc, “Cromalux 100” quartz–tungsten–halogen, “L.E. Demetron 1” second-generation light-emitting diode (LED), and “Blue Phase C5” and “UltraLume 5” third-generation LED LCUs. The intensity of each LCU was measured with two radiometers. The temperature rise due to illumination was registered with a type-K thermocouple, which was connected to a computer-based data acquisition system. Temperature changes were recorded in continues 10 and 20s intervals up to 300s.Results: The Flipo (ARC) light source revealed the highest mean heat emission while the L.E. Demetron 1 LED showing the lowest mean value at 10 and 20s exposure times. Moreover, Cromalux (QTH) recorded the second highest value for all intervals (12.71, 14.63, 14.60) of heat emission than Blue Phase C5 (LED) (12.25, 13.87, 13.69), interestingly at 20s illumination for all intervals the highest results (18.15, 19.27, 20.31) were also recorded with Flipo (PAC) LCU, and the lowest (6.71, 5.97, 5.55) with L.E. Demetron 1 LED, while Blue Phase C5 (LED) recorded the second highest value at the 1st and 2nd 20s intervals (14.12, 11.84, 10.18) of heat emission than Cromalux (QTH) (12.26, 11.43, 10.26). The speed of temperature or heat rise during the 10 and 20s depends on light intensity of emitted light. However, the QTH LCU was investigated resulted in a higher temperature rise than LED curing units of the same power density.Conclusion: The PAC curing unit induced a significantly higher heat emission and temperature increase in all periods, and data were statistically different than the other tested groups (p<.05). LED (Blue Phase C5) was not statistically significant (p<.05) (at 10s) than QTH units, also LED (Blue Phase C5, UltraLume 5) generates obvious heat emission and temperature rises than QTH units (at 20s) except for those which have lower power density of LED curing units (first generation). Thus, the null hypothesis was rejected.

Female sex hormones and periodontal health-awareness among gynecologists – A questionnaire survey

2012-04-01

Abstract: Sex hormones play an important role in periodontal health and disease. For example, puberty, menses, pregnancy, menopause, and oral contraceptive use influence a woman’s periodontal health. Periodontal infection has also been associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Subsequently, it is important that gynecologists are educated about hormonal effects on women’s oral health. The current study assessed gynecologist’s awareness regarding the effect of female sex hormones on periodontal health, preterm delivery, and maternal periodontal disease.Methods: Gynecologists from the Bagalkot district of the Karnataka state, India, completed a questionnaire regarding female hormonal and periodontal health. Respondents were divided into two groups: Group A (doctors that practiced at a medical college or hospital) and Group B (doctors that practiced at private hospitals). Out of 73 gynecologists, 62 (85%) completed the survey, with 19 (30.6%) participants in Group A and 43 (69.4%) participants in Group B. Survey responses were collected in the presence of the investigator, and data between the groups were statistically compared.Results: Our findings showed that most gynecologists were aware and concerned about female patient’s oral health during various hormonal phases. However, gynecologists practicing at medical colleges and hospitals (Group A) had significantly greater health awareness than doctors practicing at private hospitals (Group B).Conclusion: Women have special periodontal health care considerations, and there is a need for better oral health education among caregivers. Our results suggest that increasing dental health awareness among gynecologists would significantly improve women’s health and pregnancy outcomes.

Simple removable appliances to correct anterior and posterior crossbite in mixed dentition: Case report

Naif A. Bindayel — 2012-04-01

Abstract: Different techniques have been used to correct anterior and posterior crossbites in mixed dentition. This case report illustrates the treatment of anterior and unilateral posterior crossbites during the mixed dentition. The patient was a 9-year-old boy with a crossbite of the maxillary right permanent central incisor and a unilateral right posterior crossbite, both expressed by a functional shift in the sagittal and transverse dimensions. Two upper acrylic removable appliances, each with an expansion jackscrew, were used to correct the crossbites. The total active treatment time was 4months; the treatment outcomes were successfully maintained for the subsequent 4months. General and pediatric dentists, as well as orthodontists, may find this technique useful in managing crossbite cases of the mixed dentition and utilizing the discussion and illustrations for further clinical guidance.

Tongue pearl: A novel technique for treatment of an infant with median facial cleft and microcephaly

Sherif Essam Zahra, Mamdouh Aboul Hassan — 2012-04-01

Abstract: This case report illustrates the presurgical treatment of a patient having a median facial cleft and microcephaly, using a guidance appliance. The appliance was custom designed and modified with a pearl-like acrylic structure attached to its lingual surface for pushing the extremely protruded tongue back to its normal position to facilitate anesthesia and surgical lip closure. Total treatment time was 5weeks. Regaining normal tongue position, in turn, facilitated both intubation and extubation, preventing the postoperative respiratory distress the authors had experienced with similar cases.

Plagiarism reporting: My experience

Thorakkal Shamim — 2012-04-01

Plagiarism refers to the use of published ideas, words, or illustrations of others without permission and presenting them as new and original rather than as derived from an existing source ().