Association of high immunohistochemical expression of minichromosome maintenance 3 with human oral squamous cell carcinoma—a preliminary study

Background: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) may arise from premalignant oral lesions (PMOL) in most cases. Minichromosome maintenance 3 (MCM3) is a proliferative marker that has been investigated as a potential diagnostic biomarker in the diagnosis of oral cancer. Objectives: To evaluate the association of MCM3 expression, its clinicopathologic parameters and to identify snuff (also called naswar) as a potential risk factor for changes in MCM3 expression in PMOL and OSCC. Methodology: Immunohistochemistry (IHC) of MCM3 was performed on 32 PMOL, 32 OSCC and 16 normal controls after optimization of IHC methodology. Histoscore (0–300) was used as a scoring system and seven different cut-offs were identified for analyses. Data were analyzed using various statistical tests. Results: Among the seven cutoffs, 40% strong positive cells were found to be a better cut-off as they were associated with many pathological variables (Broder’s grade, Aneroth’s grade, and mitotic activity). The differential MCM3 expression in oral lesions (PMOL and OSCC) was statistically significant (p = 0.03). Moreover, MCM3 expression is raised with increased duration and frequency of snuff use. Conclusion: High MCM3 expression is associated with disease progression and is a potential indicator of malignant transformations from PMOL to OSCC. Moreover, the use of snuff is associated with MCM3 over-expression

Upper Airway Changes in Diverse Orthodontic Looms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Upper airway assessment is particularly important in the daily work of orthodontists, because of its close connection with the development of craniofacial structures and with other pathologies such as Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS). Three-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography images provide a more reliable and comprehensive tool for airway assessment and volumetric measurements. However, the association between upper airway dimensions and skeletal malocclusion is unclear. Therefore, the current systematic review evaluates the effects of different surgical movements on the upper airway. Materials and Methods: Medline (PubMed, OVID Medline, and EBSCO), Cochrane Library (Cochrane Review and Trails), Web of Knowledge (social science, and conference abstracts), Embase (European studies, pharmacological literature, and conference abstracts), CINAHL (nursing and allied health), PsycInfo (psychology and psychiatry), SCOPUS (conference abstracts, and scientific web pages), and ERIC (education) databases were searched. Two authors independently performed the literature search, selection, quality assessment, and data extraction. Inclusion criteria encompassed computed tomography evaluations of the upper airway spaces with retrospective, prospective, and randomised clinical trial study designs. To grade the methodological quality of the included studies a GRADE risk of bias tool was used. Results and conclusion: In total, 29 studies were included. Among these, 17 studies had a low risk of bias, whereas 10 studies had a moderate risk of bias. A meta-analysis was performed with the mean differences using a fixed-effects model. Heterogeneity was assessed with the Q-test and the I2 index. The meta-analysis revealed significant (p ≤ 0.001, 95% confidence interval) increases in upper airway volume after rapid maxillary expansion and surgical advancement for the correction of Class II

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice towards the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study among the General Public in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Background: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease that has been spreading worldwide in an unprecedented manner. The knowledge, attitude and practices of the general population play a vital role in prevention of COVID-19. Objectives: The present study aimed to assess the COVID-19-related knowledge, attitudes and practices of the general public of Sakaka, Saudi Arabia, to identify which populations show low levels of knowledge, attitudes and practices towards COVID-19, making them highly likely to remain vulnerable during the pandemic. Methodology: For this study, a nineteen-item closed-ended questionnaire was hand delivered to the general public, including patients and other hospital attendees attending the Outpatient Department of the College of Dentistry, Jouf University, Saudi Arabia. The research questions focused on the demographic information, knowledge, attitude and practices related to COVID-19. Data analysis is presented through tables and descriptive methods. Results: A total of 722 participants took part in the survey questionnaire. The majority of the respondents belonged to the age group of 28–37 years (n = 320; 44.3%), with female participants (n = 419; 58.0%) outnumbering the male participants (n = 303; 42.0%). Most of the respondents had good knowledge, attitudes and practices towards COVID-19. Patients aged 28–37 years (p = 0.000) with a master’s degree (p = 0.011) and government employees (p = 0.000) had significantly better knowledge than their counterparts. Significantly optimistic attitudes were noticed in participants aged 28–37 years (p = 0.000) with a master’s degree (p = 0.000), the married (p = 0.047) and government employees (p = 0.000). Government employees (p = 0.014) had significantly better practices. Conclusions: Overall, the participants of this study had good COVID-19-related knowledge, attitudes and practices. These findings would be useful in motivating the general population to follow the precautionary measures that will aid in prevention of COVID-19. Furthermore, the findings may help policymakers identify the target populations, especially the less educated and older adults, for COVID-19 prevention and health education

Cone-Beam Computed Tomography: A New Tool on the Horizon for Forensic Dentistry

Teeth and bones of calvarium are important structures from a forensic point of view, as they are extremely resilient to destruction or decomposition, even under temperature variations. Radiology is inevitably an important tool in forensic investigations. Maxillofacial radiology provides a considerable amount of information for the identification of remains and evidence in case of legal matters. The advent of cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) in the arena of maxillofacial 3D imaging has contributed immensely to forensic science such as the age estimation through teeth, analysis of bite marks, determination of race and sex, etc. The advantages of accuracy in imaging the anatomy, digitized technology favoring easier comparison of records and storage of records for a longer period, cost reduction, dose reduction, and easier portability have made it an unavoidable adjunct in forensic investigations. The aim of this paper is to review and highlight the importance of CBCT in successful forensic identification and analysis. This review is written to address the various aspects of CBCT as a recently developed technology that may be very useful in some forensic contexts, based on searches for current studies in the literature using PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases, to identify studies published since inception to December 2021, with no language restriction. In conclusion, CBCT is an accessible 3D imaging technology with many applications, one of them being in forensic sciences