Gingival crevicular blood as a potential screening tool: a cross sectional comparative study.

Background: Diabetes is known to be one of the major global epidemic diseases, significantly associated with mortality and morbidity worldwide, conferring a substantial burden to the health care system. The epidemiological transition of this chronic disease tends to worsen unless preventive health strategies are implemented. Appropriate screening devices and standardized methods are crucial to prevent this potentially inauspicious life condition. Currently, the glucometer is the conventional device employed for blood glucose level determination that outputs the blood glucose reading. Glucometer performed in the dental oce may be an important device in screening diabetes, so it can be addressed during a periodontal examination. Because gingival blood is a useful source to detect the glucose level, the focus is placed on the opportunity that might provide valuable diagnostic information. This study aimed to compare gingival crevicular blood with finger-stick blood glucose measurements using a self-monitoring glucometer, to evaluate whether gingival crevicular blood could be an alternative to allow accurate chairside glucose testing. Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was performed among a 31–67-year-old population. Seventy participants with diagnosed type 2 diabetes and seventy healthy subjects, all with positive bleeding on probing, were enrolled. The gingival crevicular blood was collected using a glucometer to estimate the blood glucose level and compared with finger-stick blood glucose level. Results: The mean capillary blood glucose and gingival crevicular blood levels from all samples were, respectively, 160.42 31.31 mg/dL and 161.64 31.56 mg/dL for diabetic participants and 93.51 10.35 mg/dL and 94.47 9.91 mg/dL for healthy patients. In both groups, the dierence between gingival crevicular blood and capillary blood glucose levels was non-significant (P < 0.05). The highly significant correlation between capillary blood glucose and gingival crevicular blood (r = 0.9834 for diabetic patients and r = 0.8153 for healthy participants) in both the groups was found. Conclusions: Gingival crevicular blood test was demonstrated as a feasible and useful primary screening tool test for detecting diabetes and for glucose estimation in non-diabetic patients. Use of gingival crevicular blood for screening is an attractive way of identifying a reasonable option of finger-stick blood glucose measurement under the appropriate circumstances. Rapid assessment may precede diagnostic evaluation in diabetic as well as healthy patients with acute severe bleeding. In addition, gingival crevicular blood levels may be needed to monitor the diabetic output

Probiotics May Improve Serum Folate Availability in Pregnant Women: A Pilot Study

BACKGROUND: Probiotics are living microorganisms that confer a health benefit when administered in adequate amounts. There is evidence in the current literature about the importance of probiotic use in pregnancy. The early supplementation of probiotics in the perinatal and postnatal periods seems to have a positive impact on the overall mother’s health and future health of infants. AIM: Our pilot study aimed to test the ability of specific probiotics strains in combination with the kiwi-unique enzyme actinidin to improve the availability of folic acid in 20 pregnant women. METHODS: We investigate 20 pregnant women in early (4–10 weeks) (6 patients), intermedium (11–20 weeks) (6 patients), and late (21–30 weeks) (8 patients) pregnancy. RESULTS: Our findings show that the tested formula promotes increased concentration of serum folate in women’s blood and contributes to the control of blood sugar and body weight, regardless of the gestational period (early, intermediate or late). CONCLUSIONS: Our data support the main results reported in the scientific literature about the importance of probiotics intake in pregnancy

Exploring the Role of Fusobacterium nucleatum in Preterm Birth: A Narrative Review

In recent years, substantive attention has been drawn to the relationship between oral microbiome homeostatic equilibrium disruption and systemic health, demonstrating the negative impacts of this reciprocal biological interplay. Increasingly, there is a concern over the potential noxious effect of oral microbiome dysbiosis on obstetric poor outcomes, focusing on preterm birth. This epidemiological observation remains unexplained, although biologically plausible mechanism has been proposed. Intrauterine infection has long been associated with adverse pregnancy, when the elicitation of an immune response is determinant. There is evidence that Fusobacterium nucleatum (FN), a Gram-negative anaerobe ubiquitous in the oral cavity, infects the mouse placenta originating in the decidua basalis. Based on the current data in literature, we performed a review to provide resources for the explanation of the potential impact of microbiome dysbiosis on poor obstetric outcomes, focusing on the role of FN

Efficacy of Sea Salt-Based Mouthwash and Xylitol in Improving Oral Hygiene among Adolescent Population: A Pilot Study

The scientific community has definitely demonstrated the importance of the use of mouthwash in daily oral hygiene. In our pilot study, we tested the effectiveness of a novel mouth rinse containing sea salt, xylitol, and lysozyme. Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) growth, and plaque index in adolescent patients aged 14–17 years, were observed. The bacterial load was investigated by in vitro microbiological analysis; the plaque index was assessed through the O’Leary’s Plaque Control Record (PCR). The study has shown that the use of a sea salt-based mouthwash in daily oral hygiene reduces the bacterial levels of S. mutans (p < 0.01) linked to the combined action of xylitol and lysozyme, together with the action of sea salt. Our preliminary data confirm and improve the main results reported in the scientific literature on the importance of the use of xylitol, lysozyme, and sea salt in oral health

Oral Microbiome and Preterm Birth: Correlation or Coincidence? A Narrative Review

AIM: Physiological changes that occur during pregnancy involve, as a natural consequence, also modifications of oral microbiome. However, the addition with microbial imbalance due to pre-existing periodontal infection might impair a pathological alteration in the phylogenetic community structure and composition in the oral cavity, exacerbating an inflammatory status, and becoming a potential risk factor for preterm birth. From the empirical findings about the relationship between periodontal pathogens and systemic diseases, a clear interest focused on the potential impact of some periodontal pathogens on the preterm birth risk has emerged. In this close emerging link, the potential interdependence existing between dysbiosis of oral microbiome and changes in maternal-fetal barrier in premature rupture of membranes was explored. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta- Analyses guidelines, a Medline search was performed for studies focusing on oral microbioma and its association with pre-term birth, and completed by additional hand searching. Two reviewers independently selected studies and extracted data. The search was restricted to only reports written in English. RESULTS: The electronic search produced 66 items. Six duplicates were found. Among the collected studies, 56 were discarded because they met the exclusion criteria. The articles and reports in our review showed a connection between preterm birth and altered oral microbiome, suggesting a potential key role of Fusobacterium nucleatum, a notable periodontal pathogen involved in several pathological periodontal conditions, in increasing the risk of premature birth. CONCLUSIONS: Since F. nucleatum is frequently associated with preterm birth, it is coherent to hypothesize a potential role for the oral microbiota for preterm birth risk. Further studies should be carried out to determine the changes of the oral microflora in pregnancy and to provide comprehensive knowledge of the diversity of oral bacteria involved in preterm birth

Oral Microbiome and Preterm Birth: Correlation or Coincidence? A Narrative Review

BACKGROUND: Physiological changes that occur during pregnancy involve, as a natural consequence, also modifications of oral microbiome. However, the addition with microbial imbalance due to pre-existing periodontal infection might impair a pathological alteration in the phylogenetic community structure and composition in the oral cavity, exacerbating an inflammatory status, and becoming a potential risk factor for preterm birth. From the empirical findings about the relationship between periodontal pathogens and systemic diseases, a clear interest focused on the potential impact of some periodontal pathogens on the preterm birth risk has emerged. AIM: Exploration of the potential interdependence existing between dysbiosis of oral microbiome and changes in maternal-fetal barrier in premature rupture of membranes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In accordance with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a Medline search was performed for studies focusing on oral microbioma and its association with pre-term birth, and completed by additional hand searching. Two reviewers independently selected studies and extracted data. The search was restricted to only reports written in English. RESULTS: The electronic search produced 66 items. Six duplicates were found. Among the collected studies, 56 were discarded because they met the exclusion criteria. The articles and reports in our review showed a connection between preterm birth and altered oral microbiome, suggesting a potential key role of Fusobacterium nucleatum, a notable periodontal pathogen involved in several pathological periodontal conditions, in increasing the risk of premature birth. CONCLUSIONS: Since F. nucleatum is frequently associated with preterm birth, it is coherent to hypothesize a potential role for the oral microbiota for preterm birth risk. Further studies should be carried out to determine the changes of the oral microflora in pregnancy and to provide comprehensive knowledge of the diversity of oral bacteria involved in preterm birth

Turner Syndrome Mosaicism 45,X/46,XY with Genital Ambiguity and Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy:Translational Approach of a Rare Italian Case

Turner syndrome (gonadal dysgenesis with short stature and sterility) is characterized by chromosomal karyotype 45,X in 50% of cases or by mosaicism (45,X/46,XX and 45,X/46,XY) in 30–40% or X structural defects (deletions, long arm isochromosome, ring chromosome). When mosaic Turner syndrome (TS) occurs with a Y chromosome, there may be ambiguous genitalia. Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is an inherited neuromuscular disease with an X-Linked recessive pattern of inheritance that predominantly affects males, while females are usually asymptomatic. DMD has also been observed in groups of females affected by TS, not homozygous for the mutation. Here, we report a case of an Indian neonate born with ambiguous genitalia diagnosed prenatally by ultrasound who had a karyotype of 45,X/46,XY and who also had Duchenne muscular dystrophy caused by a de novo mutation in the DMD gene. Physical examination was normal without the typical dysmorphic features of TS with the exception of the genitourinary system showing ambiguous genitalia. Gender was assigned as female. At the age of three years, she had increasing difficulty walking, running, jumping and climbing stairs, proximal upper and lower extremity muscle weakness and a positive Gowers’ sign. In addition, the serum creatine kinase (CK) value was over 30X the upper limit of normal. This study shows that DMD can occur in females with TS having 45,X/46,XY mosaicism and that this coexistence should be considered in women affected by TS who start to develop potential typical symptoms such as motor or developmental delay

Dental-derived stem cells and biowaste biomaterials: What’s next in bone regenerative medicine applications

The human teeth and oral cavity harbor various populations of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), so called dental-derived stem cells (D-dSCs) with self-renewing and multilineage differentiation capabilities. D-dSCs properties involves a strong paracrine component resulting from the high levels of bioactive molecules they secrete in response to the local microenvironment. Altogether, this viewpoint develops a general picture of current innovative strategies to employ D-dSCs combined with biomaterials and bioactive factors for regenerative medicine purposes, and offers information regarding the available scientific data and possible applications

Biodiversity of Indigenous Saccharomyces Populations from Old Wineries of South-Eastern Sicily (Italy): Preservation and Economic Potential

In recent years, the preservation of biodiversity has become an important issue. Despite much public discussion, however, current practices in the food industry seldom take account of its potential economic importance: on the contrary, the introduction of industrialized agriculture practices over large areas has often resulted in a dramatic reduction in biodiversity