Estimation of salivary cortisol level in post-menopausal women with psychosomatic disorders

Background: Stress is an undesirable or health threatening response of the body, which is brought on by deleterious external influences (stressors). Objective measurement of psychosocial stress helps in assessment of pivotal role of stress in precipitation of multitude of health problems and a solution to the same. Salivary biomarkers are suggested to provide a reliable and non-invasive method for the estimation of these general health problems. Salivary cortisol is such biomarker used as tool in the examination of human physiological stress response. Post-menopausal women show an increase in stress levels and hence suffer with multiple health related problems. Hence the present study aimed to estimate salivary cortisol levels in post-menopausal women with clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders of the head and neck region, so as to establish salivary cortisol as a biochemical indicator of stress.Methods: Thorough intra-oral and extra-oral examination was performed to check for the presence of psychosomatic disorder of head and neck. Unstimulated saliva was collected from 100 post-menopausal women with and 100 without clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders through ‘Spit Technique’. Salivary cortisol was estimated using ELISA method.Results: The results were statistically significant as they showed that the salivary cortisol was in higher levels in post- menopausal women with clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders.Conclusion: The geriatric patients feel that they have very little skills or resources to deal with the high levels of stress that they are experiencing and hence suffer from lack of self-worth. The results of this study recommend that stress evaluation should be done on a regular basis for all post- menopausal women. For individuals who do not reveal their psychological distress, salivary analysis of cortisol may be used as an aid to diagnose their situation in conjunction with clinical diagnosis.Keywords: Post-menopausal women, psychosomatic disorder, head and neck, salivary cortisol, biomarker

A CASE REPORT OF TRANSORAL REMOVAL OF SUBMANDIBULAR GLAND SIALOLITH

Salivary calculus or sialolithiasis is a disease that affects the salivary glands characterized by the formation of mineralized structures within the glandular substance or excretory ducts of the salivary gland. The formation of these salivary stones is due to the crystallization of minerals in saliva. It causes blockage of salivary ducts and results in painful inflammation or sialadenitis of the salivary gland. Among the salivary glands submandibular gland has highest incidence of sialolithiasis due its anatomic features. The patient commonly experiences pain and/or edema when the ducts are obstructed. The case report presented here is of sialolithiasis of submandibular gland which had caused pain and swelling in the floor of the mouth

Application of 3-D Imaging in a Familial Case of Cleidocranial Dysplasia

Cleidocranial dysplasia (CCD) is a rare inherited disorder affecting dental and skeletal tissues. CCD usually has an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance and common clinical features seen are aplastic or hypoplastic clavicles, late closure of fontanelle, open skull sutures, retained deciduous teeth, late eruption of permanent teeth and presence of multiple impacted supernumerary teeth. Here, we present a case of CCD in a female patient with positive family history. The diagnosis was confirmed clinically and radiographically. The newer radiographic advancement, CBCT was used to validate the radiographic findings

Palatal piyojenik granülom: sıradışı bir bölgede sık rastlanan bir lezyon

Piyojenik granülom, ağız boşluğunda yaygın görülen bir tümördür. Başlarda, piyojenik organizmalardan kaynaklandığı düşünülsede, şimdilerde enfeksiyon ile ilgili olmadığına inanılmaktadır. İsim olarak lokal iritasyon ve travmaya dokunun verdiği aşırı reaksiyon anlamına gelir. Adına rağmen, tam bir granülom değildir. Sıklıkla diş eti, dudaklar, dil ve yanak mukozasında ortaya çıkar.  Piyojenik granülom damakta nadiren görülür. Bu çalışmada, sert damakta alışılmadık bir şekilde görülen  piyojenik granülomdan bahsedilecektir tanısı (MS) sebebiyle iki kere megadoz steroid tedavisi gördüğünü öğrendik. Röntgen ve MRI bulguları FBAN’u destekler nitelikteydi. Hastaya kordekompresyon operasyonu uyguladık ve eklem sıvısından örnek aldık.  Operasyondan sonra alının örnekte Salmonella bakterisi üremesi üzerine FBAN’nun septik artrit ile birlikte olduğunu anladık. Hastayı ilk operasyonunundan 2 gün sonra tekrar opere ederek sinoviyal dokulara yönelik debridman ve yıkama işlemi uyguladık. Salmonella septik artriti ile FBAN birlikteliği orak hücreli anemisi olan hastalarda bildirilmesine rağmen nadirdir. Erken evre FBAN sebebiyle kordekompresyon uygulanan ve beklenen klinik iyileşme görülmeyen hastalarda septik artrit ekarte edilmelidi

Status of thiocyanate levels in the serum and saliva of non-smokers, ex-smokers and smokers

Background: Use of tobacco is often implicated in the development of oral diseases. Questionable accuracy of the traditional questionnaires to assess cigarette exposure necessitates the use of biomarkers like thiocyanate which provide a definitive quantitative measure.Objective: To assess the rise in the level of thiocyanate for measurement of smoking behaviour in adults.Materials and methods: Serum and salivary thiocyanate levels were estimated in 20 non-smokers, 20 ex-smokers and 40 smokers. Smokers were divided into two groups based on the presence or absence of oral mucosal lesions.Results: The mean serum and salivary thiocyanate levels were increased significantly in smokers when compared to non-smokers and ex-smokers. The levels were not significantly different between ex-smokers and non-smokers and between smokers with tobacco related oral mucosal lesions and those without. Statistically significant correlation was seen between the serum and salivary levels of thiocyanate.Conclusion: This study highlights the high level of thiocyanate in the serum and saliva of smokers when compared to non-smokers and ex-smokers. Significant increase in thiocyanate level was also seen in saliva. Hence it can be stated that saliva can be used as a reliable, non-invasive tool to assess smoking behaviour in the population and its changes over time.Keywords: Thiocyanate, tobacco, smoking, cancer, pre-cancer

Can saliva offer an advantage in monitoring of diabetes mellitus?: a case control study

Objectives: Diabetes Mellitus is emerging as a major health problem over these years. Present method of blood glucose monitoring by venepuncture is invasive leading to reduced patient compliance and thereby ineffective judicious monitoring. The need of the hour is to direct research in the direction of establishing painless and more acceptable blood glucose analysis method.The objective of the study is to conduct a comparative analysis of the concentrations of salivary glucose and blood glucose in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients. Study Design: This study assessed glucose levels using the glucose oxidase method in blood and unstimulated sali - va in 90 subjects who were divided into 3 equal groups of controlled type 2 diabetes, uncontrolled type 2 diabetes and those without diabetes. Statistical analysis was carried out using one way ANOVA, Post hoc Tukeys tests and Pearson's correlation coefficient test. Results: Salivary glucose levels were significantly higher in patients with diabetes than controls. There was a signi - ficant positive correlation between salivary and plasma glucose levels in patients with diabetes. Conclusions: Glucose concentration in saliva is higher in diabetics but hyperglycemia does not influence salivary glucose levels. Further clarification is required to claim the diagnostic potentials of saliva in diabetes

COVID-19 PANDEMIC – A REVIEW WITH A DENTAL PERSPECTIVE

Novel betacoronavirus is a recent threat to the global health. It has been identified as the cause of the outbreak of respiratory illness that originated in the city of Wuhan, China and has spread rapidly to several other countries within a short span of time. Transmission occurs through respiratory droplets or contaminated surfaces from an infected person, saliva of infected persons has also shown shedding of live virus. Clinical manifestations of COVID-19 can range from mild to severe and can even progress to ARDS and septic shock leading to death. All health care professionals including dental surgeons are at a high risk of acquiring the infection. Dental clinics and hospitals carry a high risk of cross-infection. Aggressive preventive and personal protective measures help in preventing exposure to the infection. Dental professionals should adopt various specific preventive methods and treatment strategies to prevent the spread of the infection in a dental setup

Estimation of salivary cortisol level in post-menopausal women with psychosomatic disorders

Background: Stress is an undesirable or health threatening response of the body, which is brought on by deleterious external influences (stressors). Objective measurement of psychosocial stress helps in assessment of pivotal role of stress in precipitation of multitude of health problems and a solution to the same. Salivary biomarkers are suggested to provide a reliable and non-invasive method for the estimation of these general health problems. Salivary cortisol is such biomarker used as tool in the examination of human physiological stress response. Post-menopausal women show an increase in stress levels and hence suffer with multiple health related problems. Hence the present study aimed to estimate salivary cortisol levels in post-menopausal women with clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders of the head and neck region, so as to establish salivary cortisol as a biochemical indicator of stress. Methods: Thorough intra-oral and extra-oral examination was performed to check for the presence of psychosomatic disorder of head and neck. Unstimulated saliva was collected from 100 post-menopausal women with and 100 without clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders through \u2018Spit Technique\u2019. Salivary cortisol was estimated using ELISA method. Results: The results were statistically significant as they showed that the salivary cortisol was in higher levels in post- menopausal women with clinically diagnosed psychosomatic disorder/disorders. Conclusion: The geriatric patients feel that they have very little skills or resources to deal with the high levels of stress that they are experiencing and hence suffer from lack of self-worth. The results of this study recommend that stress evaluation should be done on a regular basis for all post- menopausal women. For individuals who do not reveal their psychological distress, salivary analysis of cortisol may be used as an aid to diagnose their situation in conjunction with clinical diagnosis

Goldenhar Syndrome: Review of Literature and A Case Report

Goldenhar syndrome is a rare congenital anomaly involving the first and second branchial arches. It has been reported with the incidence between 1:3500 and 1:5600, with a male: female ratio of 3:2. The exact etiology is unknown. Most of the cases have been sporadic. This paper presents a rare case of Goldenhar syndrome in a 6 year old boy reported to us for the fabrication of removable ear prosthesis for esthetic purpose

A Rare Clinical Presentation of an Osteochondroma of Coronoid Process of Mandible

Osteochondroma (osteocartilaginous exostosis) is one of the most common benign tumors of bone but is rare in the craniofacial region. Only a few cases of osteochondroma of the coronoid process have been reported in the literature, since the time of its discovery (osteochondroma of a coronoid process) by Jacob in 1899. We present a case of osteochondroma of the left coronoid process in a 16-year-old female patient. Contrary to the literature, our patient had no limited mouth opening despite a close approximation of left hyperplastic coronoid process with zygomatic arch, making it a unique case among similar cases. Plain radiography can be used for this hyperplastic condition but due to its inherent distortion and being only two-dimensional (2D) it has a limited diagnostic advantage. Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) was employed for necessary diagnostic information. We managed our patient with an intraoral coronoidectomy