Oral health and related factors in a group of children with cystic fibrosis in Istanbul, Turkey

Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients can be considered as high caries risk patients because they frequently consume sugar.rich food between meals and they have a high intake of sugar containing syrups, aerosols, and salivary flow reducing medication. Variable caries prevalences were reported in CF patients in previous studies. There are no studies related to CF and salivary thromboplastic activity, which can be presented as a marker of wound healing and bleeding tendency of oral cavity.Objective: The aim of this study was to compare oral health status and salivary pH, flow rate, and thromboplastic activity in children with CF and healthy controls.Materials and Methods: Asample of 35 children with CF (23 girls and 12 boys), and 12 healthy control subjects (6 girls and 6 boys) were selected. Caries experience, oral hygiene, and dental erosion were assessed. Salivary flow rate, pH, thromboplastic activity, and total protein content were determined. Differences between the groups were evaluated using Chi.square test with a significance level set at 0.05.Results: The differences between children with CF and healthy controls in tooth brushing frequency, use of fluoride tablets, caries experience, dental erosion index, oral hygiene index, salivary flow rate and total protein levels were not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Salivary thromboplastic activity of the CF group was significantly lower than the healthy controls (P < 0.01).Conclusion: Large population studies may be necessary to establish the role of salivary thromboplastic activity in children with CF considering our findings related to the decreased salivary thromboplastic activity, which  may indicate delayed oral wound healing process.Key words: Caries, children, cystic fibrosis, saliva, salivary thromboplastic activit

Micro-shear bond strength and surface micromorphology of a feldspathic ceramic treated with different cleaning methods after hydrofluoric acid etching

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of feldspathic ceramic surface cleaning on micro-shear bond strength and ceramic surface morphology. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Forty discs of feldspathic ceramic were prepared and etched with 10% hydrofluoric acid for 2 minutes. The discs were randomly distributed into five groups (n=8): C: no treatment, S: water spray + air drying for 1 minute, US: immersion in ultrasonic bath for 5 minutes, F: etching with 37% phosphoric acid for 1 minute, followed by 1-minute rinse, F+US: etching with 37% phosphoric acid for 1 minute, 1-minute rinse and ultrasonic bath for 5 minutes. Composite cylinders were bonded to the discs following application of silane and hydrophobic adhesive for micro-shear bond strength testing in a universal testing machine at 0.5 mm/min crosshead speed until failure. Stereomicroscopy was used to classify failure type. Surface micromorphology of each treatment type was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy at 500 and 2,500 times magnification. RESULTS: One-way ANOVA test showed no significant difference between treatments (p=0.3197) and the most common failure types were cohesive resin cohesion followed by adhesive failure. Micro-shear bond strength of the feldspathic ceramic substrate to the adhesive system was not influenced by the different surface cleaning techniques. Absence of or less residue was observed after etching with hydrofluoric acid for the groups US and F+US. CONCLUSIONS: Combining ceramic cleaning techniques with hydrofluoric acid etching did not affect ceramic bond strength, whereas, when cleaning was associated with ultrasound, less residue was observed

Dissolved Nutrient Distributions in Groundwater in the Mediterranean Coastal Plains - the Case of Silifke, Turkey

Total carbon, nitrogen, and phosphate parameters were studied for the first time in the groundwater in the Silifke coastal plain, which is a RAMSAR site in Turkey. Seasonal variations of these parameters in the plain were examined based on groundwater data collected from 21 wells during the winter, spring, summer, and fall seasons. Total dissolved organic carbon (DOC), inorganic carbon (DIC), inorganic phosphate (DIP), inorganic nitrogen (DIN), and total alkalinity (TAlk) average values in the groundwater were low in all seasons (<2.2-mg/L for DOC; <54-mg/L for DIC; <0.06-mg/L for DIP; <1.5-mg/L for DIN; <232-mg/L for TAlk). The results showed a strong relationship between DIC and ${\rm HCO}_{3}^{{-} }$ as expected. The results indicate that the content of these parameters in the groundwater of Silifke coastal plain pose no or little risk at present. However, computed Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) values indicated that the groundwater has a tendency to form scale and CaCO3 precipitation may occur.Data on Dissolved nutrient distributions in groundwater in the Mediterranean coastal plain of Silifke are studied here. The results indicate that the content of DIP, DIN, DIC, DOC, and TAlk pose no or little risk at the moment. However, computed Langelier Saturation Index values indicated that the groundwater has a tendency to form scale and CaCO3 precipitation may occur. © 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

Groundwater hydrochemistry at the Mediterranean coastal plains - The case of Silifke, Turkey

Hydrochemical characterization of the Silifke Plain coastal aquifer was accomplished in this research in order to investigate the water quality of groundwater. The aquifer is located along the Mediterranean coast and forms one of the most productive aquifers in Turkey. Groundwater samples were collected from the aquifer as monthly between December 2007 and November 2008 for 12 months. Twenty one artesian wells were chosen and water sampling was made once a month. The values of electrical conductivity (EC) and pH as well as main anions and cations were determined twice for each month. Based on the observations in the water wells, the EC, sodium adsorption rate (SAR), and chloride (Cl-) concentrations varied between 437 and 3480 µS/cm, 0.13 and 23.1, and 25 and 1661 mg Cl-/L, respectively. Deterioration of water quality was observed in some areas very close to the sea due to seawater intrusion and intense use of groundwater for irrigation. Crown Copyright © 2009

The Fracture Resistance Of Composite Core Materials Reinforced By Varying Fiber Orientations

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