Evaluation of Bone Gain and Complication Rates after Guided Bone Regeneration with Titanium Foils: A Systematic Review

Guided bone regeneration techniques are increasingly used to enable the subsequent placement of dental implants. This systematic review aims to analyze the success rate of these techniques in terms of bone gain and complications rate using titanium membranes as a barrier element. Electronic and hand searches were conducted in PubMed/Medline, Scielo, Scopus and Cochrane Library databases for case reports, case series, cohort studies and clinical trials in humans published up to and including 19 September 2020. Thirteen articles were included in the qualitative analysis. Bone gain both horizontally and vertically was comparable to that obtained with other types of membranes more commonly used. The postoperative complication rate was higher that of native collagen membranes and non-resorbable titanium-reinforced membranes, and similar that of crosslinked collagen membranes and titanium meshes. The survival rate of the implants was similar to that of implants placed in native bone. Due to the limited scientific literature published on this issue, more randomized clinical trials comparing occlusive titanium barriers and other types of membranes are necessary to reach more valid conclusions

Etiopatogenia de la halitosis. Revisión

La halitosis o mal aliento es un problema importante dado que puede comprometer la vida de relación de las personas. Es frecuente que se atribuya el origen al estómago o a problemas nasales o pulmonares. No obstante, sabemos que hasta en el 90% de los casos, el origen se encuentra en la cavidad oral, y de forma preponderante debido al acúmulo de placa en el dorso lingual 'cubierta lingual'. La enfermedad periodontal también está directamente relacionada con el mal aliento, de manera que el acumulo de placa, bolsas y/o sangrado son aspectos directamente relacionados con el problema. Desde el punto de vista patogénico, las proteínas de la dieta, las de las bacterias y las de los propios tejidos de la boca, son degradadas por la acción de las proteasas bacterianas hasta aminoácidos. Los aminoácidos ricos en azufre son los máximos responsables del mal aliento. De hecho los tres productos más directamente relacionados son el sulfuro de hidrógeno, el metil mercaptano y el dimetil sulfuro. En la presente revisión repasamos todos estos aspectos y las causas más directamente relacionadas con el problema, revisando igualmente el concepto de halitofobia y pseudohalitosis

Tratamiento de la boca seca. Nuevas tendencias

La disminución de saliva afecta la calidad de vida de los pacientes, que pueden mejorar cambiando ciertos hábitos de salud general como hidratación, uso de humidificadores ambientales, evitar tóxicos y conductas saludables, incluyendo visitas frecuentes al dentista. La prevención en los pacientes que van a ser irradiados, la modificación de los fármacos xerostomizantes en los casos posibles contribuyen al bienestar de estos pacientes. Los diferentes métodos de estimulación salivar tanto farmacológicos (ácidos, pilocarpina) como no farmacológicos (mecánicos, eléctricos, láser, acupuntura u oxígeno hiperbárico) y el uso de sustitutos salivales ayudan a mantener mejor hidratación bucal. En el futuro, el desarrollo de componentes orgánicos a partir de células madre será probablemente una posibilidad de tratamiento efectiva

Oral manifestations of Diabetes Mellitus. A systematic review

Background: Diabetes Mellitus has become a global epidemic and presents many complications, usually proportional to the degree and duration of hyperglycemia. The aim of this systematic review was to investigate the different oral manifestations associated with Diabetes Mellitus. Material and Methods: A MEDLINE search for “Diabetes Mellitus and oral manifestations” was performed. A further search was conducted for “diabetes” and its individual oral manifestation. Inclusion criteria were as follows: human clinical studies with a minimum of 30 patients; studies published in relevant scientific journals between January 1998 and January 2016. Nineteen studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were analyzed, assessing the strength of scientific evidence according to recommendations made by the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine, Oxford (OCEBM), which permits adequate assessment of prevalence studies. Results: A total 3,712 patients (2,084 diabetics) were included in the studies reviewed. Of the 19 studies analyzed, 4 were longitudinal studies and 15 cross-sectional studies. Periodontal disease, periapical lesions, xerostomia and taste disturbance were more prevalent among diabetic patients. An association between diabetes and caries and mucosal lesions proved positive in 5 out of 10 studies. Conclusions: Despite multiple oral manifestations associated with DM, awareness of the associations between diabetes, oral health, and general health is inadequate. It is necessary for doctors and dentists to be aware of the various oral manifestations of diabetes in order to make an early diagnosis. Key words:Diabetes Mellitus, oral manifestations, oral pathology

Probiotics and oral health : a systematic review

Probiotics are microorganisms, mainly bacteria, which benefit the host?s health. Many studies support the role of probiotics as a contributor to gastrointestinal health, and nowadays many authors are trying to prove its influence in oral health maintenance. To review the published literature with the purpose of knowing the importance of using probiotics as a preventive and therapeutic method for oral infectious diseases management. An electronic search in PubMed database with the keywords ?oral health AND probiotics AND dentistry? was conducted. The inclusion criteria were: randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that assess the action of any probiotic strain in the treatment and / or prevention of an infectious oral disease, RCTs that assess the action of any probiotic strain on counting colony forming units (CFU) of oral pathogens, systematic reviews and meta-analysis. The Jadad scale was used to assess the high quality of RCTs. Fifteen articles were considered for this review. Of which, 12 were RCTs of good / high quality (Jadad scale), two meta-analysis and one systematic review. The literature reviewed suggests probiotics usage could be beneficial for the maintenance of oral health, due to its ability to decrease the colony forming units (CFU) counts of the oral pathogens. However, randomized clinical trials with long-term follow-up periods are needed to confirm their efficacy in reducing the prevalence/incidence of oral infectious diseases. Furthermore, the recognition of specific strains with probiotic activity for each infectious oral disease is required, in order to determine exact dose, treatment time and ideal vehicles

Effectiveness of dentist's intervention in smoking cessation: a review

Introduction: Smoking is one of the main public health problems in developed countries. Despite extensive evidence on the effects of smoking on both oral and general health, the rate of smoking cessation is not promising. Material and Methods: To review the evidence on knowledge and programs for smoking cessation developed by dentists, a literature review was carried out on programs for smoking cessation from the dentist’s perspective, as well as a review of behavioral guidelines that have been recently proposed for these interventions. We used the keywords “Tobacco”, “Smoking Prevention”, “Public Health” AND “Dentistry”, to identify controlled studies, systematic reviews and meta-analyses published between 1999 and 2014, in Google Scholar, SCOPUS and PubMed. Results: Out of 177 studies found, 35 were considered, and these were divided into 2 groups of 20 and 15 articles respectively, according to type of study and inclusion criteria. Conclusions: There is considerable scientific evidence describing the programs for smoking cessation used in dentistry, which support their effectiveness. Overall, these are brief behavioral interventions complemented by pharmacological treatment, with the participation of the entire dental team

Confinement by COVID-19 and Degree of Mental Health of a Sample of Students of Health Sciences

Background: In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, most countries have taken important measures to control the spread of the virus, such as population confinement and the closure of universities. Objective: The main objective of this study is to evaluate how the situation resulting from COVID-19 has affected the mental health of a group of health sciences students. Material and methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, observational study with a sample of 160 people, conducted through an online survey of final-year students of dentistry, nursing and medicine at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of the University of Barcelona. Results: A total of 82.4% of students reported having suffered stress, anxiety and distress due to the pandemic situation, and 83.10% of participants are worried about not knowing when the academic year will restart. Conclusions: Confinement has negatively affected the mental health of students

Validity of a self-reported questionnaire for periodontitis in Spanish population

Background: clinical examination is the gold-standard approach for surveillance of periodontitis; however, it requires large resources. Several self-reported measures have been developed and tested in diverse scenarios with results suggesting that it may be a useful tool for screening periodontal disease in different populations; yet they have not being tested in Spanish population. We aimed to assess the validity of a self-reported questionnaire for periodontitis in a Spanish population from Barcelona during 2018. Methods: one hundred and twelve participants were enrolled in the study and, in one appointment; a dentist performed the self-reported questionnaire and a full-mouth periodontal examination. Periodontitis was defined as at least mild periodontitis according to three criterion of classification. Receiver-operating characteristics curve analyses were used to test the discriminatory capability, sensitivity and specificity of the self-reported questionnaire and logistic regression models were adjusted to estimate the minimal-set of questions associated with periodontitis. Results: the self-reported questionnaire had a useful discriminative capability for detecting individuals with periodontitis (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.85 95% CI 0.78-0.92) and its moderate/severe form (AUC = 0.86 95% CI 0.79-0.04) with sensitivity and specificity of 77% and 74% and 73% and 87%, respectively; representing moderate validity. The combination of four-specific questions had high accuracy (AUC = 0.88 95% CI 0.81-0.94) and validity (sensitivity = 92.2%) and was strongly associated with moderate/severe periodontitis after adjusting by socio-demographic factors. Conclusions: the use of several self-reported questions proved to have a good performance for screening periodontitis in the population under study; specifically, those related with tooth mobility and gum migration. Large community-based studies are needed to test its validity and predictive capability

Analysis of Healthy Lifestyle Habits and Oral Health in a Patient Sample at the Dental Hospital of the University of Barcelona

The association between general health and oral health has been studied over recent years. In order to evaluate the lifestyle and the presence of healthy habits, a descriptive observational study was conducted from December 2018 to April 2019 with 230 patients, aged from 18 to 65 years old, that attended the Dental Hospital of the University of Barcelona for the first time. A total of 230 participants were considered, 98 (43%) were men and 132 (57%) were women, with a mean age of 37 years old. Our hypothesis was that patients with healthy habits had a better oral status in comparison with patients with bad lifestyle habits. No statistically significant results were found regarding oral hygiene between gender, smokers and patients with systemic pathology. Regarding a healthy lifestyle (High adherence to dietary intake), no statistically significant results were found. No significant differences were found regarding physical activity between male and female patients. Our hypothesis wasn't confirmed; therefore, we cannot conclude that patients with healthy habits have better oral status in comparison with patients with bad lifestyle habits. Consequently, more prospective longitudinal studies should be carried out

Effectiveness of dentist's intervention in smoking cessation: a review

Introduction: Smoking is one of the main public health problems in developed countries. Despite extensive evidence on the effects of smoking on both oral and general health, the rate of smoking cessation is not promising. Material and methods: To review the evidence on knowledge and programs for smoking cessation developed by dentists, a literature review was carried out on programs for smoking cessation from the dentist's perspective, as well as a review of behavioral guidelines that have been recently proposed for these interventions. We used the keywords 'Tobacco', 'Smoking Prevention', 'Public Health' AND 'Dentistry', to identify controlled studies, systematic reviews and meta-analyses published between 1999 and 2014, in Google Scholar, SCOPUS and PubMed. Results: Out of 177 studies found, 35 were considered, and these were divided into 2 groups of 20 and 15 articles respectively, according to type of study and inclusion criteria. Conclusions: There is considerable scientific evidence describing the programs for smoking cessation used in dentistry, which support their effectiveness. Overall, these are brief behavioral interventions complemented by pharmacological treatment, with the participation of the entire dental team