Otodental syndrome

The otodental syndrome also named otodental dysplasia, is characterised by a striking dental phenotype known as globodontia, associated with sensorineural high frequency hearing loss and eye coloboma. Globodontia occurs in both primary and permanent dentition, affecting canine and molar teeth (i.e. enlarged bulbous malformed posterior teeth with almost no discernable cusps or grooves). The condition appears to be inherited in an autosomal dominant mode, although sporadic cases have been reported. It is a rare disease, a few families have been described in the literature. In the British family, the locus for oculo-oto-dental syndrome was mapped to 20q13.1 within a 12-cM critical chromosomal region. Dental management is complex, interdisciplinary and will include regular follow up, scheduled teeth extraction and orthodontic treatment. Hearing checks and, if necessary, hearing aids are mandatory, as well as eye examination and ad hoc treatment if necessary

Minimally-invasive treatments for benign thyroid nodules: recommendations for information to patients and referring physicians by the Italian Minimally-Invasive Treatments of the Thyroid group

Purpose: In this paper, the members of the Italian Working Group on Minimally-Invasive Treatments of the Thyroid (MITT group) aim to summarize the most relevant information that could be of help to referring physicians and that should be provided to patients when considering the use of MITT for the treatment of benign thyroid nodules. Methods: An interdisciplinary board of physicians with specific expertise in the management of thyroid nodules was appointed by the Italian MITT Group. A systematic literature search was performed, and an evidence-based approach was used, including also the knowledge and the practical experience of the panelists to develop the paper. Results: The paper provides a list of questions that are frequently asked by patients to operators performing MITT, each with a brief and detailed answer and more relevant literature references to be consulted. Conclusions: This paper summarizes the most relevant information to be provided to patients and general practitioners/referring physicians about the use of MITT for the treatment of benign thyroid nodules

Speech evaluation during maxillary mini-dental implant overdenture treatment: A prospective study.

Large proportions of patients are edentulous and wear removable dentures leading to reduced functional comfort and less oral health-related quality of life. Satisfaction with the oral situation after implantation depends on the outcome in eating comfort, speech comfort and aesthetics. Modification in form and location of the teeth may affect speech. The aim of this study is to determine speech, oromyofunctional behaviour, satisfaction with the treatment and the impact on quality of life of the horse-shoe overdenture retained by mini-dental implants (MDIs) in the maxilla. This prospective multicentre cohort study included 32 patients for treatment. 5 to 6 implants were placed, traumatically piercing the mucosa. Patients were evaluated three times during treatment (pre-operatively with conventional prosthesis including full palatal coverage (CD), post-operatively with provisionally relined CD and with horse-shoe overdenture on MDI). The assessment included a phonetic evaluation, examination of oromyofunctional behaviour, evaluation of the impact on quality of life (OHIP-14) and a rating of satisfaction with the treatment and speech on a visual analogue scale. Several speech sounds are found to be disturbed before treatment. In the next two stages of the treatment, the number of speech issues decreases. In the final stage, ten people show minor speech problems, especially with the /s/ sound. In this stage, seven people still present with oromyofunctional problems, especially whistling problems. In this last stage, people are very satisfied with the treatment (83%) and with speech (84%). The impact on quality of life is low (8.23/56)

Work, family, and managerial attitudes and practices in the European workplace: comparing Dutch, British, and Slovenian financial sector managers

Managers are key actors shaping employees’ capabilities to utilize work–life policies. However, most research on managers’ implementation of these policies has been conducted in liberal welfare states and ignores the impact of institutional context. In this study, we situate managers within specific workplace and national layers of context. We investigated how managers in financial organizations in the Netherlands, UK, and Slovenia talk about the utilization of work–life policies. Managers’ discourses stressed disruption and dependency considerations in these case studies, as in the US research. However, a further management discourse of the moral case or right thing to do also emerged. The lack of resources for replacing staff on leave creates disruption and reduces managers capability to support the use of work–life policies, even when they are statutory or if managers are inclined be supportive (dependency or moral argument). This is likely to impact on parents' capabilities

"Longitudinal Oral Health-Related Quality of Life in maxillary mini dental implant overdentures after 3 years in function"

Contains fulltext : 229066.pdf (publisher's version ) (Closed access)OBJECTIVES: Longitudinal evaluation of Oral Health-Related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) during treatment of flaplessly placed, one-piece mini-dental-implants (MDIs) for maxillary overdentures is rarely investigated, nor is the impact of MDI failures. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This multicenter prospective cohort study evaluated the 3-year outcome of 5-6 MDIs in the edentulous maxilla in patients above 50 years with dentate mandible. Provisional dentures were provided before final prosthetic connection was established at 6 months. Postoperative discomfort was assessed using a visual analogue score (VAS). OHRQoL was investigated using the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 at baseline (preoperatively), postoperatively, post-prosthetic connection and after 3 years in function. RESULTS: 164 (78.4%) of the 204 placed MDIs were still in situ after 3 years, in 29/31 patients. Two patients lost 5/6 MDIs resulting in two prosthetic failures (6.45%). With regard to pain, a score of 4.1/10 (SD 2.8) was recorded on day 1, and 1.1/10 (SD 1.7) on day 7. A decrease in total OHIP-14 scores was observed postoperatively (15.6; SD 12.8) as compared to baseline (21.3; SD 13.1), with improvement of OHRQoL. Furthermore, this was statistically significant at connection of the final prosthesis (7.3; SD 6.7) (p = .006). The OHIP-14 improved less (p = .011) when experiencing one or more implant losses (9.5; SD: 9.85), in comparison with no implant loss (20.7; SD: 13.97). A failure of one MDI did not affect OHIP-14 score (p = .658); however, multiple failures did (p = .007). CONCLUSION: Maxillary MDI overdenture treatment yields significant OHRQoL improvement when at least 5 MDIs survive, preserving functional comfort