Emission Spectra of Isomeric Trifluorotoluidines

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Resorbable versus titanium plates for orthognathic surgery.

BACKGROUND: Recognition of some of the limitations of titanium plates and screws used for the fixation of bones has led to the development of plates manufactured from bioresorbable materials. Whilst resorbable plates appear to offer clinical advantages over metal plates in orthognathic surgery, concerns remain about the stability of fixation and the length of time required for their degradation and the possibility of foreign body reactions. This review compares the use of titanium versus bioresorbable plates in orthognathic surgery and is an update of the Cochrane Review first published in 2007. OBJECTIVES: To compare the effects of bioresorbable fixation systems with titanium systems used during orthognathic surgery. SEARCH METHODS: Cochrane Oral Health's Information Specialist searched the following databases: Cochrane Oral Health's Trials Register (to 20 January 2017); the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL; 2016, Issue 11) in the Cochrane Library (searched 20 January 2017); MEDLINE Ovid (1946 to 20 January 2017); and Embase Ovid (1980 to 20 January 2017). We searched the US National Institutes of Health Ongoing Trials Register ClinicalTrials.gov (clinicaltrials.gov; searched 20 January 2017), and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (searched 20 January 2017) for ongoing trials. No restrictions were placed on the language or date of publication when searching the electronic databases. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised controlled trials comparing bioresorbable versus titanium fixation systems used for orthognathic surgery in adults. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently screened the results of the electronic searches, extracted data and assessed the risk of bias of the included studies. We resolved disagreement by discussion. Clinical heterogeneity between the included trials precluded pooling of data, and only a descriptive summary is presented. MAIN RESULTS: This review included two trials, involving 103 participants, one comparing titanium with resorbable plates and screws and the other titanium with resorbable screws. Both studies were at high risk of bias and provided very limited data for the primary outcomes of this review. All participants in one trial suffered mild to moderate postoperative discomfort with no statistically significant difference between the two plating groups at different follow-up times. Mean scores of patient satisfaction were 7.43 to 8.63 (range 0 to 10) with no statistically significant difference between the two groups throughout follow-up. Adverse effects reported in one study were two plate exposures in each group occurring between the third and ninth months. Plate exposures occurred mainly in the posterior maxillary region, except for one titanium plate exposure in the mandibular premolar region. Known causes of infection were associated with loosened screws and wound dehiscence with no statistically significant difference in the infection rate between titanium (3/196), and resorbable (3/165) plates. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: We do not have sufficient evidence to determine if titanium plates or resorbable plates are superior for fixation of bones after orthognathic surgery. This review provides insufficient evidence to show any difference in postoperative pain and discomfort, level of patient satisfaction, plate exposure or infection for plate and screw fixation using either titanium or resorbable materials

Antibiotic use for irreversible pulpitis

Background Irreversible pulpitis, which is characterised by acute and intense pain, is one of the most frequent reasons that patients attend for emergency dental care. Apart from removal of the tooth, the customary way of relieving the pain of irreversible pulpitis is by drilling into the tooth, removing the inflamed pulp (nerve) and cleaning the root canal. However, a significant number of dentists continue to prescribe antibiotics to stop the pain of irreversible pulpitis.This review updates the previous version published in 2016. Objectives To assess the effects of systemic antibiotics for irreversible pulpitis. Search methods We searched Cochrane Oral Health's Trials Register (to 18 February 2019); the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL; 2019, Issue 1) in the Cochrane Library (searched 18 February 2019); MEDLINE Ovid (1946 to 18 February 2019); Embase Ovid (1980 to 18 February 2019); US National Institutes of Health Ongoing Trials Register ClinicalTrials.gov (searched 18 February 2019); and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (searched 18 February 2019). There were no language restrictions in the searches of the electronic databases. Selection criteria Randomised controlled trials which compared pain relief with systemic antibiotics and analgesics, against placebo and analgesics in the acute preoperative phase of irreversible pulpitis. Data collection and analysis Three review authors screened studies and extracted data independently. We assessed the certainty of the evidence of included studies using GRADE. Pooling of data was not possible and a descriptive summary is presented. Main results No additional trials could be included in this update. One trial at low risk of bias evaluating oral penicillin in combination with analgesics versus placebo with analgesics, involving 40 participants was included in a former update of the review. The certainty of the evidence was rated low for the different outcomes. Our primary outcome was patient‐reported pain (intensity/duration) and pain relief. There was a close parallel distribution of the pain ratings in both the intervention (median 6.0, interquartile range (IQR) 10.5), and for placebo (median 6.0, IQR 9.5) over the seven‐day study period. There was insufficient evidence to claim or refute a benefit for penicillin for pain intensity. There was no significant difference in the mean total number of ibuprofen tablets over the study period: 9.20 (standard deviation (SD) 6.02) in the penicillin group versus 9.60 (SD 6.34) in the placebo group; mean difference ‐0.40 (95% confidence interval (CI) ‐4.23 to 3.43; P = 0.84). This applied equally for the mean total number of Tylenol tablets: 6.90 (SD 6.87) used in the penicillin group versus 4.45 (SD 4.82) in the placebo group; mean difference 2.45 (95% CI ‐1.23 to 6.13; P = 0.19). Our secondary outcome on reporting of adverse events was not addressed in this study

Solid crystalline polymorphism in M-21

This paper reports on the different solid crystalline (SC) forms of 4-cyano-4'-heptyloxy biphenyl (M-21) as revealed through differential scanning calorimetric, polarizing microscopic and infrared spectroscopic investigations. There are three solid crystalline modifications, namely SCI,SCII,SCIII. The appearance and preponderance of the SC forms depend critically on the manner in which the liquid crystalline melt solidifies. Each SC phase has its CN stretching band split into two components because of Davydov or correlation splitting. The position, separation and relative intensities of the two components characterize each SC phase. The systematic study of the variations in these three features with temperature leads to interesting information about the intermolecular ordering forces and the spatial arrangement of the molecules in the unit cell. It is shown that the intermolecular interactions of the dipolar nature play a dominant role in the SC phases but contribute negligibly in stabilizing the nematic phase. The angle between the correlated molecules in the unit cell changes in the order SCI> SCII > SCIII > nematic = 0, resulting in parallel arrangement of molecules in the nematic phase

Antibiotic prescribing for endodontic infections: a survey of dental students in Italy

Aim To determine the knowledge of final year undergraduate students attending Italian universities on the appropriate use of systemic antibiotics for endodontic infections. Methodology Final year dental students from twenty Italian universities completed a one-page questionnaire on antibiotic use for the treatment of endodontic infections. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. Results A total of three hundred and three students completed the questionnaire. The average duration of antibiotic prescription proposed by respondents was 5.48 1.06 days. Amoxicillin with clavulanic acid was the first-choice antibiotic (85.2%) followed by amoxicillin alone (13.5%), azithromycin (1.0%) and clarithromycin (0.3%), for patients not allergic to penicillin. Clarithromycin was the first-choice drug for patients with a penicillin allergy (56.1%), followed from azithromycin (31.7%), clindamycin (11.9%) and levofloxacin (0.3%). Alveolar abscess with systemic manifestations was reported as the principal reason to prescribe antibiotics (97.7%) followed by the same condition without systemic manifestations (85.5%). For the scenario of irreversible pulpitis, 5% of students considered antibiotics necessary. Almost 52% of students would prescribe antibiotics for apical acute periodontitis; 29.7% would prescribe antibiotics for chronic apical periodontitis with sinus tract, and 13.5% indicated these drugs for chronic apical periodontitis without sinus tract. Conclusions The results demonstrate that it is necessary to improve the knowledge of Italian students on antibiotics and indications for their use in endodontics

Irreversible pulpitis - A source of antibiotic over-prescription?

Antibiotic resistance is a growing public health concern. Antibiotics continue to be prescribed by some clinicians to resolve dental pain even though research indicates that antibiotics are not effective for treating conditions such as irreversible pulpitis. The objective of this study was to determine the extent to which current research and evidence around irreversible pulpitis has been translated into dental practice and the gaps in dentists’ knowledge. An on-line clinical vignette format survey questionnaire about treatment of irreversible pulpitis was distributed to the members of the Academy of Operative Dentistry and Academy of General Dentistry (US based international dental bodies). Their responses were recorded and evaluated. A total of 403 dentists participated in the survey. Over a third (39.3%) indicated they would prescribe antibiotics for symptomatic irreversible pulpitis in a permanent tooth occurring without any signs of systemic infection. The rest indicated they would not prescribe antibiotics; most of them would prescribe an analgesic combined with pulpectomy. Those who had undertaken advanced education training achieved a significantly higher mean knowledge score compared to those with just a primary dental degree (p=0.011). Similarly, full or part time academicians had a higher mean knowledge score than the clinicians who work only in private practice (p=0.014). Some dentists continue to prescribe antibiotics inappropriately for alleviating pain due to irreversible pulpitis. Antibiotic prescribing practices of dentists with advanced education or academic engagement were better as compared to the other participants. There is clear evidence of antibiotic over-prescribing for irreversible pulpitis which needs to be addressed urgently

Outcomes in randomised controlled trials in prevention and management of carious lesions:a systematic review

Abstract Background Inconsistent outcome reporting is one significant hurdle to combining results from trials into systematic reviews. Core outcome sets (COS) can reduce this barrier. The aim of this review was to map outcomes reported in caries prevention and management randomised controlled trials (RCT) as a first step to COS development. We also investigated RCT characteristics and reporting of primary outcomes and sample size calculations. Methods PubMed, Embase, Web of Knowledge and Cochrane CENTRAL were systematically searched (1 January 1968 to 25 August 2015). Inclusion criteria: RCTs comparing any technique for prevention or management of caries with another or placebo and RCTs comparing interventions to support patients undergoing treatment of caries (without setting, dentition or age restrictions). Categories were developed through piloting and group consensus and outcomes grouped accordingly. Results Of 4773 search results, 764 were potentially relevant, full text was available for 731 papers and 605 publications met the inclusion criteria and were included. For all outcomes across the time periods 1968–1980 and 2001–2010, reporting of outcome ‘caries experience’ reduced from 39% to 18%; ‘clinical performance of the restoration’ reporting increased from 33% to 42% although there was a reduction to 22% in 2011–2015. Emerging outcome domains include ‘lesion activity’ and ‘pulp health-related outcomes’, accounting for 1% and 0%, respectively, during 1968–1980 and 10% and 4% for 2011–2015. Reporting ‘resource efficiency’ and ‘quality of life measures’ have remained at a low level. No publications reported tooth survival independent of an index such as DMFT or equivalent. Primary outcomes were only identified as such in 414 (68%) of the reports. Conclusions Over the past 50 years, outcome reporting for trials on prevention and management of carious lesions have tended to focus on outcomes measuring caries experience and restoration material clinical performance with lesion activity and cost-effectiveness increasingly being reported. Patient-reported and patient-focused outcomes are becoming more common (although as secondary outcomes) but remain low in use. The challenge with developing a COS will be balancing commonly previously reported outcomes against those more relevant for the future. Trial registration PROSPERO, CRD42015025310 . Registered on 14 August 2015, Trials (Schwendicke et al., Trials 16:397, 2015) and COMET initiative online (COMET, 2017)

PRISMA for abstracts: best practice for reporting abstracts of systematic reviews in Endodontology

An abstract is a brief overview of a scientific, clinical or review manuscript as well as a stand‐alone summary of a conference abstract. Scientists, clinician–scientists and clinicians rely on the summary information provided in the abstracts of systematic reviews to assist in subsequent clinical decision‐making. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) for Abstracts checklist was developed to improve the quality, accuracy and completeness of abstracts associated with systematic reviews and meta‐analyses. The PRISMA for Abstracts checklist provides a framework for authors to follow, which helps them provide in the abstract the key information from the systematic review that is required by stakeholders. The PRISMA for Abstracts checklist contains 12 items (title, objectives, eligibility criteria, information sources, risk of bias, included studies, synthesis of results, description of the effect, strength and limitations, interpretation, funding and systematic review registration) under six sections (title, background, methods, results, discussion, other). The current article highlights the relevance and importance of the items in the PRISMA for Abstracts checklist to the specialty of Endodontology, while offering explanations and specific examples to assist authors when writing abstracts for systematic reviews when reported in manuscripts or submitted to conferences. Strict adherence to the PRISMA for Abstracts checklist by authors, reviewers and journal editors will result in the consistent publication of high‐quality abstracts within Endodontology

Sol-gel technology in electrochromic devices

313-317<span style="font-size:14.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:" times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-font-family:"times="" roman";="" color:black;mso-ansi-language:en-in;mso-fareast-language:en-in;mso-bidi-language:="" hi"="" lang="EN-IN">Last two decades have witnessed renewed interest in the area of electrochromic devices (ECDs) for large area applications and also considerable advances in processing materials. Technology like sol-gel has gained a clear-cut edge over the others. The present ECD technology too seems to have taken over by the sol-gel processing. Sol-gel technology offers preparation of all components of an ECD, opening a possibility of realizing "An All Gel ECD". In sol-gel processing, precursor materials prepared by different routes have been used to deposit films either by dip or spin coating method. The present paper reviews various precursor materials and the involved sol-gel processes for preparing films of materials those can be useful for ECD fabrication.</span

Electrochromic devices: Present and forthcoming technology

320-334<span style="font-size:11.0pt;line-height:115%; font-family:" calibri","sans-serif";mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:="" "times="" new="" roman";mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;mso-hansi-theme-font:="" minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:arial;mso-ansi-language:en-us;mso-fareast-language:="" en-us;mso-bidi-language:ar-sa"="">During last two decades electrochromism in various materials has been investigated very widely. Devices based on electrochromic phenomenon have been found to be useful for a wide range of applications. Electrochromic device (ECD) technology has expanded from its only application of display devices in its early stage to various other applications including in automobile and building industries. An ECD has undergone drastic changes in its different parts and in methods of fabricating them, although the basic structure has remained the same. In particular, significant advancements in the ion conductors -the electrolytes used in ECDs have led to realization of a laminated ECD-an emerging technology of today. This review article discusses general concepts of the phenomenon of electrochromism, the most common electrochromic materials and basic configurational and operational aspects of an ECD with special emphasis to the developmental steps of the electrolytes used in them. The efforts towards commercial development of ECDs for various applications along with a brief analysis of some of the opportunities and challenges faced for successful exploitation of the ECD technology are also presented.</span