All’asilo si previene

Progetto asilo Asilo Mariuccia: interventi di promozione alla salute orale. Informare ed educare persone che affrontano una vita difficile, affinch\ue9 siano rieducate ed inserite al meglio nella societ\ue0 odierna, togliendole dai margini dimenticati della societ\ue0 e uno stile di vita sano e corretto

Concentration in saliva and antibacterial effect of xylitol chewing gum : in vivo and In vitro study

Purpose. The saliva concentration of xylitol released from two chewing gums was recorded, the first containing xylitol as the only sweetener (100% xylitol) and the second containing only 22% of the polyol. In addition, the in vitro antibacterial effect of the two chewing gums was evaluated. Materials and Methods. The salivary concentration of Xylitol in 32 subjects was determined before and at 0.30, 1.00, 2.00, 5.00, and 10.00 min while using the chewing gums, and at 15.00, 20.00, and 25.00 min after the gums were discarded. In vitro antibacterial activity was determined on a pooled subgingival plaque sample obtained from four patients with periodontal disease. Cariogenic and periodontal bacteria were evaluated before and 15 min, 60 min, and 24 h after gum contact. Results. Using the 100% xylitol chewing gum, saliva levels increased bimodally, one peak after 30 s (1.49 \ub1 1.41 log\u3bcg/L) and a second one at a 10-min evaluation (1.41 \ub1 1.11 log\u3bcg/L); the 22% chewing gum peaked only two minute after contact (1.21 \ub1 1.24 log\u3bcg/L). Overall, a statistically significantly higher salivary concentration of xylitol was detected using the 100% xylitol gum. All bacteria decreased after the addition of the two chewing gums; the 100% gum achieved a greater decrease than the 22% gum. Conclusion. The use of both chewing gums increased the concentrations of xylitol in saliva, with a statistically significantly higher concentration using the 100% xylitol gum. Cariogenic and periodontal bacteria were reduced by both chewing gums; 100% xylitol gum produced the highest and longest lasting effect. This study opens up to the use of xylitol against periodontal disease

Comparison of ICDAS, CAST, Nyvad’s Criteria, and WHO-DMFT for Caries Detection in a Sample of Italian Schoolchildren

Caries measurement methods vary considerably in terms of the stages of lesion considered making the comparison problematic among different surveys. In this cross-sectional study, four caries measurement methods, the WHO-DMFT, the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS), the Caries Assessment Spectrum and Treatment (CAST), and the Nyvad Criteria were tested in a sample of children. Five-hundred 12-year old children (236 males and 264 females) were examined four times by four calibrated examiners. The calibration process showed that Cohen\u2019s Kappa exceeded the criterion of K = 0.75 and K = 0.80 for inter/intra-examiner agreement, respectively. In the survey, the total number of misclassification errors for the four methods amounted to 312 observations (67.94% regarding enamel lesions). The greatest difference among methods was shown by number of sound teeth (p < 0.01): WHO-DMFT n = 9505, 74.14%; ICDAS n = 2628, 20.49%; CAST n = 5053, 39.41%; and Nyvad Criteria n = 4117, 32.11%. At the level of dentinal Distinct/Active Cavity lesions, no statistically significant difference was observed (p = 0.40) between ICDAS (n = 1373, 10.71%), CAST (n = 1371, 0.69%), and Nyvad Criteria (n = 1720, 13.41%). In the severe caries levels, all methods were partially in agreement, while no accordance was found for the initial (enamel) lesions. A common language in caries detection is critical when different studies are compared

The role of vitamins in oral health. A systematic review and meta-analysis

The association between vitamins and oral health have recently been discussed, yielding increased attention from medical and dental perspectives. The present review aimed to systematically evaluate and appraise the most recently scientific papers investigating the role of vitamins in the prevention and treatment of the main oral diseases as hard dental pathological processes and gum/periodontal disease. Randomized controlled trials, cross-sectional studies, cohort studies, comparative studies, validation studies and evaluation studies, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, reporting associations between vitamins and oral diseases or the use of vitamins to prevent or treat oral diseases in patients of any age were included. PubMed, Embase and Scopus were searched to November 2019 using an ad hoc prepared search string. All the papers meeting the inclusion criteria were subjected to a quality assessment. The search identified 1597 papers; 741 were selected after removing duplicates. A total of 334 articles were excluded after title and abstract evaluation; 407 were assessed and 73 papers were full-text assessed; other 14 papers were discharged after full text evaluation, leaving finally 58 papers included. In general, there is weak evidence supporting the association between vitamins and both gingival/periodontal disease and hard dental pathological processes

Changing trend of caries from 1989 to 2004 among 12-year old Sardinian children

BACKGROUND: During the past decades, the prevalence of caries disease in the population of Western industrialized countries has decreased markedly. In children also, a reduction of dental caries experience has been reported by many authors. The aim of this paper was to evaluate the trend of dental caries prevalence in 12-year-old children living in the city of Sassari, (Italy), by five cross-sectional studies conducted in 1989, 1992, 1995, 1998 and 2004. METHODS: In all cohorts, dental caries (DMFT and SiC Index according to WHO indications), was measured. For each variable measured (DMFT and sub-indices, SiC Index), differences in proportions among the five cohorts during the fifteen years were tested using chi2-square test. RESULTS: The mean DMFT index decreased from 4.3 +/- 3.1 in 1989 to 0.8 +/- 1.5 in 2004. The prevalence of untreated caries (DT) had a notable decrease between 1992 and 1995, increased slightly between 1995 and 1998 and had the greatest decrease in 2004. The number of filled teeth remains low. The percentage of caries-free children increased from 10% to 64%, whereas the percentage of untreated caries changed from 44% in 1989 to 62% in 2004. SiC Index decreased from 7.8 in 1989 to 3.9 in 2004. CONCLUSION: On the basis of the results of DMFT and SiC Index, caries experience has been reduced. The vigilance and the promotion of a higher standard of personal oral hygiene and dental check-ups are necessary to obtain an improvement of oral status in the future adult population and to reach the new WHO global goals

Carie precoce dell’infanzia e batteri cariogeni materni : quale associazione? Studio retrospettivo

Razionale - La carie rapidamente destruente dell\u2019infanzia rappresenta un grave problema di salute pubblica nella maggior parte dei Paesi industrializzati. Obiettivi - Scopo del presente lavoro \ue8 stato quello di quantificare le concentrazioni salivari degli streptococchi del gruppo mutans (sm) nelle madri nel puerperio e di associarle con la prevalenza della patologia cariosa rilevata nei bambini durante il quarto anno di et\ue0. Materiali e Metodi - Lo studio \ue8 stato di tipo retrospettivo. \uc8 stata registrata la prevalenza di carie su 494 bambini di et\ue0 media 48 mesi, calcolando l\u2019indice di carie dmfs (decayed missing, filled surface). Sono state inoltre raccolte informazioni di carattere generale dei genitori e alcune variabili correlate alla carie relative ai bambini con l\u2019ausilio di un questionario autosomministrato rivolto ai genitori. I dati clinici e quelli comportamentali/anamnestici sono stati associati con la concentrazione salivare di sm registrati nelle madri (n=489) entro il terzo giorno dal parto. Risultati - Il 31,27% delle madri (n=178) presentava una positivit\ue0 agli sm, mentre il 69,73% (n=311) \ue8 risultato negativo. L\u2019esperienza di carie registrata nei bambini non \ue8 risultata statisticamente associata alla concentrazione di sm registrati nelle mamme al puerperio (p=0,62). N\ue9 il livello di istruzione della madre, n\ue9 la lingua parlata in famiglia risultano associate alle concentrazioni degli sm in maniera statisticamente significativa (p=0,76 e 0,50 rispettivamente). Solo la frequenza di cibi dolci assunti dal bambino pi\uf9 di una volta al giorno \ue8 risultata statisticamente associata alla concentrazione di sm materni. I figli di madri con una concentrazione di sm superiore al valore soglia di 105 CFU/ml hanno un rischio di 1,61 di assumere cibi dolci pi\uf9 di una volta al giorno (p=0,01). Conclusioni - I risultati del presente studio confermano che la carie \ue8 una malattia legata ai comportamenti e come tale prevenibile con strategie preventive a carattere educativo di cui il pediatra dovrebbe farsi carico.Background - The early childhood caries is a serious public health problem in most industrialized countries. Objectives - The purpose of this study was to quantify the concentrations of salivary mutans streptococci (ms) in mothers immediately after delivery and to associate them with the prevalence of caries disease registered in children during the fourth year of age. Materials and Methods - A retrospective study was designed and performed. The caries prevalence of 494 children (mean age 48 months) was evaluated, using the caries index dmfs (decayed missing, filled surface). General information on parents and some variables related to dental caries in children were collected through a self-administered questionnaire to parents. Clinical data and behavioural/medical history were associated with the concentration of ms recorded in mothers (n = 489) in the third day after delivery. Results - 31.3% of mothers (n=178) had high concentrations of ms, while 69.7% (n=311) showed low concentrations. The children\u2019s caries experience was not statistically associated with the concentration of ms registered in mothers (p=0.62). Neither the mother\u2019s education level, nor the language spoken at home, were statistically significant associated with the concentration of ms (p = 0.76 and 0.50, respectively). Only the frequent intake of sweetened foods by children (more than once a day) was statistically associated with the concentration of maternal ms. The children from mothers with a concentration of ms higher than a threshold value of 105 CFU/ml had a risk of 1.61 to take sweet foods more than once per day (p = 0.01). Conclusion - The results of the present study confirm that caries is a disease strongly related to behaviours; prevention strategies performed by the paediatrician, such as educational intervention, are necessary to reduce the prevalence of the disease

World Café at Summer School of WHO Collaborating Centre for Epidemiology and Community Dentistry

This study is a qualitative evaluation of a teaching method. The 2015 Summer School organized by the WHO Collaborating Centre for Epidemiology and Community Dentistry of Milan took place in Sardinia. The educational objectives of the first day included: make an informal conversation with other members of the summer school; create an interesting exchange of ideas and experiences also between new, \u201chabitu\ue9\u201d and beginners with senior professionals of this event; make a group for the works in the next days. Considering the different professional roles, age and context of origin, the purpose of the Pedagogists was to create a positive, relaxed but intimate atmosphere using the pleasure of \u201cinformal\u201d conversation, through a creative and practical method: The World Caf\ue8. Materials & methods: The Pedagogists\u2019 first task focused on: caring of the location and the physical setup of the table, creating relevant questions to the concerns of the group, establishing the rules, managing the process to encourage participants to have a non- formal learning experience consequently improving thinking, speaking and listening skills. Finally the participants answered self-administered questionnaire to write about their emotions and cognitive processes that went out during the World Caf\ue8. Results: The analysis of the questionnaires was carried out with Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), The interpretative steps identified two emerging themes: \u201cdifferent vs peer\u201d and \u201cdiscovering vs practicing\u201d. Conclusions: The World Caf\ue9 experience improves learning by connection; thinking and learning become dynamic processes instead of learning outcomes