Periodontal status among adult cigarette smokers using Miswak (Salvadora persica) for oral hygiene: A crosssectional study from Asir Region of Saudi Arabia

Purpose: To compare the periodontal status of exclusive users of Miswak (Salvadora persica) with that of exclusive toothbrush users among adult smokers of cigarettes in Saudi Arabia.Methods: This educational-institutional study included one hundred and fifty adult patients (age and socioeconomic status matched, SES) between the ages of 18 and 75, and were listed as the group I, II, and III, with 50 participants each (participants with no oral hygiene, toothbrush users and miswak users respectively). Oral hygiene habits, the number of cigarettes smoked, and time since the habit began. Periodontal and radiographic parameters were reported.Results: All parameters related to periodontium (plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), bleeding on probing (BOP), probing pocket depth (PPD), gingival recession (Rec), clinical attachment level (CAL) and bone loss (BL)) showed that the analysed groups exhibited differences (p < 0.001). Least amount of BL (anterior and posterior) was found in toothbrush users and Miswak users, while least amount of attachment loss (both anterior and posterior) was recorded among Miswak users (p > 0.05). Positive association was found for GI (r = 0.753) and recession (r = 0.436, p < 0.001) in terms of the number of cigarettes smoked in group I, and anterior PPD (r = 0.388, p < 0.001) in group III for the duration of smoking. A negative correlation was found for BOP in group III (r = - 0.339, p < 0.05) in terms of frequency of tooth cleaning and GI (r = - 0.381) (p < 0.001) in group II, in terms of time taken attain oral hygiene.Conclusion: This study indicates less severe periodontal damage among adult current cigarette smokers in miswak users than in toothbrush users. Thus, there some potentials for miswak use for promotion of oral hygiene. Keywords: Periodontal status, Adult cigarette smokers, Miswak, Oral hygien

Efficacy of Pluronic F-127 gel containing green tea catechin extract on chronic periodontitis – A clinical study

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy of pluronic F-127 gel containing green tea catechin extract as a local drug delivery system in the treatment of chronic periodontitis. Methods: A total of 20 chronic periodontitis patients participated as per the set inclusion and exclusion criteria. Complete scaling and root planing (SRP) was done for all subjects and pluronic F-127 gel containing green tea catechin was applied on one site. The contralateral site received SRP alone. The plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), and probing pocket depth (PPD) were recorded at baseline and on the 28th day. Results: At the 28th-day follow-up, green tea catechin tooth sites showed significantly lower mean scores (GI = 0.55, p = 0.30 and PPD = 3.35 mm) than the corresponding SRP tooth sites (GI = 1.25, PI = 1.15, and PPD = 4.40 mm) (p < 0.05). Conclusion: When compared to scaling and root planing alone, the local drug delivery gel containing green tea catechin as an adjuvant was more effective in reducing the clinical parameters of periodontitis. Keywords: Adjuvant therapy, Camellia sinensis, Local drug delivery, Periodontal pocke

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

Oral health knowledge and attitudes of primary school teachers toward school-based oral health programs in Abha-Khamis, Saudi Arabia

Background: The effectiveness of school-based dental health programs has been vastly reported. The objective of the present study was to assess the oral health knowledge and attitudes of primary school teachers in Saudi Arabia and to identify any barriers in implementing school oral health programs. Methodology: A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to assess the oral health knowledge and attitudes of primary school teachers including barriers in implementing school oral health programs. Results: A total of 61 primary schools were included in the present study with responses from 1186 teachers. The mean oral health knowledge score among primary school teacher of Abha-Khamis was found to be 16 ± 2.7. The overall attitude of primary school teachers regarding implementing school-based oral health program was found to be positive on Likert scale. The responses for barriers in implementing school oral health program were almost equally distributed: lack of material resources (21%), lack of professional training (25%), lack of availability of time (25%), lack of support from school administration (22%), and teacher's attitude was least perceived as a barriers (7%). Conclusions: The oral health knowledge among primary school teachers was found to be good with positive attitudes toward school-based oral health programs. The most significant barriers in implementing a school oral health program were administrative barriers. There is a need for concerned school authorities and health policy makers to address these barriers and to promote oral health in the community

Dental calculus – An emerging bio resource for past SARS CoV2 detection, studying its evolution and relationship with oral microflora

The most grievous threat to human health has been witnessed worldwide with the recent outbreak of Corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19). There is mounting evidence available regarding theconnect of COVID −19 and oral cavity, particularly periodontal disease. The current review provides an update on the diagnostic potential of dental calculus and how this bio resource may help in providing us huge amount of diagnostic regarding the causative virus. Contemporary standard method of diagnosis via nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) is tedious, may enhance the risk of aerosol contamination by inducing sneezing and detects the presence of active infection only.However,dental calculus being a mineralized deposit serves as a reservoir for biomoleculesand provides detection of past SARS CoV2 infection. Further, the abundance of information that can be obtained from this remarkable mineralized deposit on teeth regarding the viral genome, its evolution and interactions with the oral microflora shall enhance the understanding of the viral disease process and its connection with the periodontal disease. Additional diagnostic information, which may be obtained from this simple bio reservoir can complement the contemporary diagnostic strategies adopted in the management of COVID-19pandemic and enhance our existing knowledge for developing improvised novel approaches to mitigate the effects of mutated variants of the infectious agent