Pathogenesis and Nomenclature of Odontogenic Carcinomas: Revisited

Odontogenic carcinoma is rare group of malignant epithelial odontogenic neoplasms with characteristic clinical behavior and histological features, which requires an aggressive surgical approach. The pathogenesis of this rare group remains still controversial and there have been many varied opinions over the classification of this rare group of lesions. As there have not been many reviews on odontogenic carcinoma, the existing knowledge is mostly derived from the published case reports. This review is discussing the pathogenetic mechanisms and is updating the knowledge on nomenclature system of less explored odontogenic carcinomas. This review might throw light on the pathogenesis and nomenclature system of odontogenic carcinoma and this knowledge may be applied therapeutically

Prevalence of risk factors of noncommunicable diseases in a rural population of district Gautam-Budh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh using the World Health Organization STEPS approach

Context: Globally, it is estimated that by 2020, noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) will account for 73% of deaths and 60% of disease burden. India is in the midst of an epidemiological transition leading to increasing the prevalence of NCDs. Targeting the risk factors for NCDs is recognized as an essential preventive strategy. Aims: The rationale of this study was to decipher the baseline data on the prevalence of NCD risk factors among the rural population. Settings and Design: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 207 adults in the rural catchment area of the Department of Community Medicine. Subjects and Methods: The World Health Organization STEPS approach was employed which includes three sequential phases: Collection of information on sociodemographic variables and behavioral risk factors (STEP 1), obtaining physical measurements (STEP 2), and acquiring biochemical measurements (STEP 3). Statistical Analysis: Data were analyzed using the SPSS version 16. P < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Results: Among the study subjects, the prevalence of smoking, smokeless tobacco use, alcohol use, and sedentary lifestyle was 26.0%, 35.1%, 16.9%, and 9.6%, respectively, in males and 4.6%, 15.4%, 0.0%, and 19.0%, respectively, in females. The prevalence of hypertension and diabetes was 15.6% and 13.0% respectively among males and 20.0% and 7.7% respectively among females. Hypercholesterolemia and Hypertriglyceridemia were observed in 5.2% men and 13.8% women and 22.1% men and 16.9% women, respectively. Conclusions: The study reveals high burden of NCD risk factors in rural areas as well and reiterates the need to take preventive measures

Impact of low vision rehabilitation on functional vision performance of children with visual impairment

Purpose: To evaluate the impact of low vision rehabilitation on functional vision of children with visual impairment. Materials and Methods: The LV Prasad-Functional Vision Questionnaire, designed specifically to measure functional performance of visually impaired children of developing countries, was used to assess the level of difficulty in performing various tasks pre and post visual rehabilitation in children with documented visual impairment. Chi-square test was used to assess the impact of rehabilitation intervention on functional vision performance; a P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: LogMAR visual acuity prior to the introduction of low vision devices (LVDs) was 0.90 ± 0.05 for distance and for near it was 0.61 ± 0.05. After the intervention, the acuities improved significantly for distance (0.2 ± 0.27; P < 0.0001) and near (0.42 ± 0.17; P = 0.001). The most common reported difficulties were related to their academic activities like copying from the blackboard (80%), reading textbook at arm′s length (77.2%), and writing along a straight line (77.2%). Absolute raw score of disability pre-LVD was 15.05 which improved to 7.58 post-LVD. An improvement in functional vision post visual rehabilitation was especially found in those activities related to their studying lifestyle like copying from the blackboard (P < 0.0001), reading textbook at arm′s length (P < 0.0001), and writing along a straight line (P = 0.003). Conclusions: In our study group, there was a significant improvement in functional vision post visual rehabilitation, especially with those activities which are related to their academic output. It is important for these children to have an early visual rehabilitation to decrease the impairment associated with these decreased visual output and to enhance their learning abilities

Pathogenesis and Nomenclature of Odontogenic Carcinomas: Revisited

Odontogenic carcinoma is rare group of malignant epithelial odontogenic neoplasms with characteristic clinical behavior and histological features, which requires an aggressive surgical approach. The pathogenesis of this rare group remains still controversial and there have been many varied opinions over the classification of this rare group of lesions. As there have not been many reviews on odontogenic carcinoma, the existing knowledge is mostly derived from the published case reports. This review is discussing the pathogenetic mechanisms and is updating the knowledge on nomenclature system of less explored odontogenic carcinomas. This review might throw light on the pathogenesis and nomenclature system of odontogenic carcinoma and this knowledge may be applied therapeutically