Dentistry in Nigeria: past, present and the way forward

No Abstrac

The use of observational process recording to identify children's initial reactions to hospitalization

Thesis (M.S.)--Boston Universit

Pattern of juvenile periodontitis in Lagos University Teaching Hospital Dental Centre

Objective: The aim of the survey was to study the pattern of juvenile periodontitis patients that presented at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital Dental Centre from November 1999 to March 2004. Methods: Through review of case files of patients, twenty six juvenile periodontitis patients, within the age range of 18 and 30 years were identified and their dental records reviewed. Results: There were 11 males and 15 females, giving a male female ratio of 0.73:1. Overall, the maxillary and mandibular incisors were the most missing tooth type (47.54%), particularly in the 20 - 24 year age group. Comparatively, more incisors were missing in females compared to males. Conversely, tooth mobility was more common in males; 60% of severely mobile teeth were seen in males. These patients were found to have poor facial aesthetics. Conclusion: Given the late presentation of juvenile periodontitis found in the study, it is recommended that check-ups of patients at the dental clinics for early diagnosis of juvenile periodontitis and regular check-ups to prevent the rapid progression of this condition in juveniles should beKeywors: juvenile, periodontitis, Lagos University Teaching HospitalJournal of Community Medicine and Primary Health Care 2005, 17(1): 51-5

Maternal beliefs about infant teething

Context and objective: Parents ascribe many symptoms to teething despite a lack of evidence to support such claims. A descriptive study of the perceptions of mothers on teething problems was conducted. Methods: Information was obtained on a consecutive sample of 333 mothers from an urban slum in Lagos state, Nigeria drawn from different socioeconomic, educational and ethnic backgrounds on their perceptions on teething problems. Results: The mean age of the mothers was 29.2 years and majority (52%) were in the 20 -29 year age group. Most of the mothers (95.2%) perceived teething to be associated with various symptoms while only 4.8% did not. The commonest problems reported were fever (90.3%) and diarrhoea (87.3%). There was no statistically significant association between perception of teething problems and education, age, and ethnic background. About half of the mothers viewed the symptoms as not serious and would not take the child to the hospital. Conclusion: The beliefs and attitude of mothers about “teething” has serious implications for management of childhood fevers which may deserve urgent medical treatment. There is a need for early oral health education of mothers during the antenatal period to discourage the use of “teething as a ready explanation for childhood diseases.Keywords: infant teething, maternal beliefs, Lagos, NigeriaJournal of Community Medicine and Primary Health Care 2005, 17(1): 61-6

Long Distance Contribution to KL→ℓ+ℓ−K_L \to \ell^+ \ell^-

We revisit the calculation of the long distance contribution to $K_L \to \mu^+ \mu^-$. We discuss this process within the framework of chiral perturbation theory, and also using simple models for the $K_L \gamma^* \gamma^*$ vertex. We argue that it is unlikely that this mode can be used to extract information on short distance parameters. The process $K_L \to e^+ e^-$ is also long-distance dominated and we find that $B(K_L \to e^+ e^-) \approx 9 \times 10^{-12}$.Comment: References added, one typo corrected. Version to appear in Nuclear Physics

Diagnostic and treatment dilemma of gingival enlargement: a report of 3 cases

Gingival enlargement is a common feature of periodontal disease which is occasionally associated with medication use for systemic conditions such as hypertension and epilepsy. However, other local and systemic factors have been implicated in the aetiopathogenesis of this condition which could pose diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for clinicians. This paper presents the management of three cases of gingival enlargement recently seen at the Dental Centre of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos. The association of unusual secondary aetiological factors is emphasized.Key words: Gingival Enlargement, Diagnosis, Treatmen

Use of information and communication technology among dental students and registrars at the faculty of dental sciences, university of Lagos

The aim of this study was to investigate the use of information technology amongst dental students, dental nursing students and resident doctors in training at the faculty of dental Surgery University of Lagos. A structured questionnaire was distributed to 58 clinical dental students in 4th and 5th years of training in the 2010/2011 academic year, 36 dental nursing students and 63 resident doctors undergoing specialist training. All participants have access to the computers, 2.5% within the University and 31% at home and internet cafes and about 50% have the basic skills required. A significant difference was observed between the resident doctors and clinical dental students (P = 0.003), between resident doctors and dental nursing students (P = 0.0001) when the use of computer for study was compared. Over 95% of participants have access to internet and about 50% of them use the internet for their studies. A significant difference (P = 0.005) was observed between clinical dental students and dental nursing students that use the internet and word processing. The resident doctors used the computers for multimedia and MedLine search tools more than clinical dental students (P = 0.004) and dental nursing students (0.0006). The findings of the study show that dental students and resident doctors in training have the requisite knowledge to operate the computer for use in their study and personal activities

Quantitative Examination of a Large Sample of Supra-Arcade Downflows in Eruptive Solar Flares

Sunward-flowing voids above post-coronal mass ejection (CME) flare arcades were first discovered using the soft X-ray telescope (SXT) aboard Yohkoh and have since been observed with TRACE (extreme ultra-violet (EUV)), SOHO/LASCO (white light), SOHO/SUMER (EUV spectra), and Hinode/XRT (soft X-rays (SXR)). Supra-arcade downflow (SAD) observations suggest that they are the cross-sections of thin flux tubes retracting from a reconnection site high in the corona. Supra-arcade downflowing loops (SADLs) have also been observed under similar circumstances and are theorized to be SADs viewed from a perpendicular angle. Previous studies have presented detailed SAD observations for a small number of flares. In this paper we present a substantial SADs and SADLs flare catalog. We have applied semi-automatic detection software to several of these events to detect and track individual downflows thereby providing statistically significant samples of parameters such as velocity, acceleration, area, magnetic flux, shrinkage energy, and reconnection rate. We discuss these measurements, how they were obtained, and potential impact on reconnection models.Comment: Submitted to ApJ -- 33 pages, 13 figure

Acquired monosomy 7 myelodysplastic syndrome in a child with clinical features suggestive of dyskeratosis congenita and IMAGe association

We describe a case of acquired monosomy 7 myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in a boy with congenital adrenocortical insufficiency, genital anomalies, growth delay, skin hyperpigmentation, and chronic lung disease. Some of his clinical manifestations were suggestive of dyskeratosis congenita (DC), while other features resembled IMAGe association. DC has been linked to mutations in telomere maintenance genes. The genetic basis of IMAGe association is unknown, although mice harboring a mutation in a telomere maintenance gene, Tpp1 , have adrenal hypoplasia congenita. We considered the possibility that this patient has a defect in telomere function resulting in features of both DC and IMAGe association. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2010; 54:154–157. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/64444/1/22283_ftp.pd

Dijet resonance from leptophobic Z' and light baryonic cold dark matter

In light of the recent CDF report on the excess in the Wjj channel, we analyze (non)supersymmetric U(1)_B x U(1)_L model, interpreting the dijet peak as a leptophobic U(1)_B gauge boson. If this excess is confirmed, it has an interesting implication for the baryonic cold dark matter (CDM) in the model: there should be light CDM with a few GeV mass, and direct detection cross section at the level of a few x 10^{-2} pb.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, version published in Phys. Lett.