Oral health status in Greek children and teenagers, with disabilities

Nowadays there is a sharp increase of population with disabilities. The aim of this investigation was a) to survey the dental health status, estimate the treatment requirements of children and adolescents with cerebral palsy, mental retardation and visual disorders and b) to compare the oral health status of these groups of individuals. The investigation entailed the clinical examination of 170 individuals, between 6 and 15 years old, who were attending four special schools in Athens, Greece. In conclusion, our investigation documented the following: The treatment needs regarding both dentitions are extremely high in all groups of individuals. The oral hygiene status is in general, moderate to low-grade, especially in the individuals with mental retardation. The highest rate of malocclusion is observed in the group of individuals with cerebral palsy

Eph-A2 and Eph-A4 expression in human benign and malignant thyroid lesions: An immunohistochemical study

Background: Ephrin receptors (Ephs) are frequently overexpressed in a wide variety of human malignant tumors, being associated with tumor growth, invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical significance of Eph-A2 and Eph-A4 expression in human benign and malignant thyroid lesions. Material/Methods: Eph-A2 and Eph-A4 protein expression was assessed immunohistochemically on paraffin-embedded thyroid tissues from 131 patients with benign and malignant lesions. Results: Eph-A2 was significantly overexpressed in malignant compared to benign thyroid lesions (p<0.001). Papillary carcinoma cases presented significantly increased Eph-A2 expression compared to those with hyperplasia nodules (p<0.001). Eph-A4 expression was not differentiated between cases with malignant or benign thyroid lesions. Papillary carcinoma cases presented significantly increased Eph-A4 expression compared to those with hyperplasia nodules (p=0.006). In the subgroup of malignant thyroid lesions, Eph-A2 and Eph-A4 expression was not associated with TNM stage, capsular, lymphatic or vascular invasion. Conclusions: The present data suggest that Eph-A2, but not Eph-A4, overexpression may be associated with the malignant transformation of thyroid neoplasia. Further studies conducted on cohorts including a higher proportion of patients with advanced nodal and metastatic disease are recommended to draw definite conclusions on the clinical significance of Eph proteins in thyroid neoplasia. © Med Sci Monit

Barrett's esophagus with high-grade dysplasia: Focus on current treatment options

High-grade dysplasia (HGD) in Barrett's esophagus (BE) is the critical step before invasive esophageal adenocarcinoma. Although its natural history remains unclear, an aggressive therapeutic approach is usually indicated. Esophagectomy represents the only treatment able to reliably eradicate the neoplastic epithelium. In healthy patients with reasonable life expectancy, vagal-sparing esophagectomy, with associated low mortality and low early and late postoperative morbidity, is considered the treatment of choice for BE with HGD. Patients unfit for surgery should be managed in a less aggressive manner, using endoscopic ablation or endoscopic mucosal resection of the entire BE segment, followed by lifelong surveillance. Patients eligible for surgery who present with a long BE segment, multifocal dysplastic lesions, severe reflux symptoms, a large fixed hiatal hernia or dysphagia comprise a challenging group with regard to the appropriate treatment, either surgical or endoscopic. © 2011 Baishideng. All rights reserved