Opioid Analgesic Prescribing Practices of Dental Professionals in the United States

The prescription of opioid analgesics by dental professionals is widespread in the United States. Policy makers, government agencies, and professional organizations consider this phenomenon a growing public health concern. This study examined trends in the prescription of opioid analgesics for adults by dental professionals and associated factors in the United States. Data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (1996-2013) were analyzed. Descriptive statistics were calculated separately for each year. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to estimate the overall trend during the period with and without adjusting for dental procedures and personal characteristics. Survey weights were incorporated to handle the sampling design. The prescription of opioid analgesics following dental care increased over time. After adjusting for sociodemographic factors, source of payment, and type of dental procedure, the odds ratio (OR) of prescribing opioid analgesics following a dental visit per each decade difference was 1.28 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.19–1.38). Surgical, root canal, and implant procedures had the highest rates of opioid prescriptions and the greatest increases in rates over the study period. After adjusting for personal characteristics and type of dental procedure, the OR of receiving a prescription for opioids comparing blacks, Asians, and Hispanics to whites was 1.29 (95% CI, 1.17–1.41), 0.57 (95% CI, 0.47–0.70), and 0.84 (95% CI, 0.75–0.95), respectively. Opioid analgesic prescriptions following dental visits increased over time after adjusting for personal characteristics and type of dental procedure. The odds of receiving a prescription for opioids were higher for certain racial/ethnic minority groups. Knowledge Transfer Statement: This study highlights dental professionals prescribing practices of opioid analgesics by following dental treatments in the United States. With this knowledge, appropriate guidelines, protocols, and policies can be developed and implemented to address any inappropriate prescribing practices of opioid analgesics. In addition, this information could lead to an improvement in the prescribing practices of dental professionals and to evidence-based therapeutic decision making

Trends and Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Antibiotic Prescribing Practices of Dentists in The United States

Objective The aim of this study was to examine trends and racial/ethnic disparities in antibiotic prescribing practices of dentists in the United States. Methods The US Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data for 1996‐2013 was analyzed. Information on patient sociodemographic characteristics, dental visits, receipt of dental procedures, and type of antibiotics prescribed following visits was obtained. Descriptive statistics were calculated separately for each year. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to identify associations during the period with and without adjustment for dental procedures and sociodemographic characteristics. Survey weights were incorporated to handle the sampling design. Results Nationally, the number of antibiotic prescribed at dental visits was estimated to be higher by 842,749 (0.4 percent) at year 2013 compared to the prescription level at 2003 were the population sociodemographic distribution kept at 2013 level. On average, the odds of prescribing antibiotics following dental care increased with each decade of study (OR: 1.10; 95% CI: [1.04, 1.17]) after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and receipt of dental procedures. Compared to Whites, Blacks had 21 percent (95% CI: 11%, 31%) higher odds of receiving a prescription for antibiotics from a dentist after adjusting for dental procedure and other sociodemographic characteristics. Conclusions The prescription of antibiotics following dental visits increased over time after adjustment for sociodemographic characteristics and dental procedure. The probability of being prescribed antibiotics by dentists was higher for Blacks compared to Whites

Localized spectral asymptotics for boundary value problems and correlation effects in the free Fermi gas in general domains

We rigorously derive explicit formulae for the pair correlation function of the ground state of the free Fermi gas in the thermodynamic limit for general geometries of the macroscopic regions occupied by the particles and arbitrary dimension. As a consequence we also establish the asymptotic validity of the local density approximation for the corresponding exchange energy. At constant density these formulae are universal and do not depend on the geometry of the underlying macroscopic domain. In order to identify the correlation effects in the thermodynamic limit, we prove a local Weyl law for the spectral asymptotics of the Laplacian for certain quantum observables which are themselves dependent on a small parameter under very general boundary conditions

Experimental energy levels and partition function of the 12^{12}C2_2 molecule

The carbon dimer, the $^{12}$C$_2$ molecule, is ubiquitous in astronomical environments. Experimental-quality rovibronic energy levels are reported for $^{12}$C$_2$, based on rovibronic transitions measured for and among its singlet, triplet, and quintet electronic states, reported in 42 publications. The determination utilizes the Measured Active Rotational-Vibrational Energy Levels (MARVEL) technique. The 23,343 transitions measured experimentally and validated within this study determine 5,699 rovibronic energy levels, 1,325, 4,309, and 65 levels for the singlet, triplet, and quintet states investigated, respectively. The MARVEL analysis provides rovibronic energies for six singlet, six triplet, and two quintet electronic states. For example, the lowest measurable energy level of the \astate\ state, corresponding to the $J=2$ total angular momentum quantum number and the $F_1$ spin-multiplet component, is 603.817(5) \cm. This well-determined energy difference should facilitate observations of singlet--triplet intercombination lines which are thought to occur in the interstellar medium and comets. The large number of highly accurate and clearly labeled transitions that can be derived by combining MARVEL energy levels with computed temperature-dependent intensities should help a number of astrophysical observations as well as corresponding laboratory measurements. The experimental rovibronic energy levels, augmented, where needed, with {\it ab initio} variational ones based on empirically adjusted and spin-orbit coupled potential energy curves obtained using the \Duo\ code, are used to obtain a highly accurate partition function, and related thermodynamic data, for $^{12}$C$_2$ up to 4,000 K.Comment: ApJ Supplements (in press), 48 page

Hooke's law correlation in two-electron systems

We study the properties of the Hooke's law correlation energy (\Ec), defined as the correlation energy when two electrons interact {\em via} a harmonic potential in a $D$-dimensional space. More precisely, we investigate the $^1S$ ground state properties of two model systems: the Moshinsky atom (in which the electrons move in a quadratic potential) and the spherium model (in which they move on the surface of a sphere). A comparison with their Coulombic counterparts is made, which highlights the main differences of the \Ec in both the weakly and strongly correlated limits. Moreover, we show that the Schr\"odinger equation of the spherium model is exactly solvable for two values of the dimension ($D = 1 \text{and} 3$), and that the exact wave function is based on Mathieu functions.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Post-Wick theorems for symbolic manipulation of second-quantized expressions in atomic many-body perturbation theory

Manipulating expressions in many-body perturbation theory becomes unwieldily with increasing order of the perturbation theory. Here I derive a set of theorems for efficient simplification of such expressions. The derived rules are specifically designed for implementing with symbolic algebra tools. As an illustration, we count the numbers of Brueckner-Goldstone diagrams in the first several orders of many-body perturbation theory for matrix elements between two states of a mono-valent system.Comment: J. Phys. B. (in press); Mathematica packages available from http://wolfweb.unr.edu/homepage/andrei/WWW-tap/mathematica.htm

Density-functionals not based on the electron gas: Local-density approximation for a Luttinger liquid

By shifting the reference system for the local-density approximation (LDA) from the electron gas to other model systems one obtains a new class of density functionals, which by design account for the correlations present in the chosen reference system. This strategy is illustrated by constructing an explicit LDA for the one-dimensional Hubbard model. While the traditional {\it ab initio} LDA is based on a Fermi liquid (the electron gas), this one is based on a Luttinger liquid. First applications to inhomogeneous Hubbard models, including one containing a localized impurity, are reported.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures (final version, contains additional applications and discussion; accepted by Phys. Rev. Lett.

Black-holes, topological strings and large N phase transitions

The counting of microstates of BPS black-holes on local Calabi-Yau of the form ${\mathcal O}(p-2)\oplus{\mathcal O}(-p) \longrightarrow S^2$ is explored by computing the partition function of q-deformed Yang-Mills theory on $S^2$. We obtain, at finite $N$, the instanton expansion of the gauge theory. It can be written exactly as the partition function for U(N) Chern-Simons gauge theory on a Lens space, summed over all non-trivial vacua, plus a tower of non-perturbative instanton contributions. In the large $N$ limit we find a peculiar phase structure in the model. At weak string coupling the theory reduces to the trivial sector and the topological string partition function on the resolved conifold is reproduced in this regime. At a certain critical point, instantons are enhanced and the theory undergoes a phase transition into a strong coupling regime. The transition from the strong coupling phase to the weak coupling phase is of third order.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures; Invited talk given at QG05, Cala Gonone (Italy), September 200