The influence of oral health status on speech intelligibility, articulation and quality of life of older community-dwelling people

Objective: To investigate the impact of the oral health status on speech intelligibility, articulation and quality of life of older community-dwelling people. Background To our knowledge, there have been no studies on this topic in patients aged 75 years or older. Material and methods: Thirty outpatients of a university dental clinic (median [IQR] age of 77.00 [75-82] years) participated. The OHIP-14, a dental examination, a speech intelligibility study and an articulation examination were conducted. Results: Distortions of rhotacisms and sigmatisms were most common, followed by distortions of labiodentals and apicoalveolars. Seven participants (23%) required dental treatment. Distortions of rhotacisms were lowest in participants with loss of teeth in the posterior part of the maxilla and equal in participants with edentulous maxilla and loss of teeth in the anterior part of the maxilla (P = 0.014). Labiodental distortions were lowest in participants with loss of teeth in the posterior part of the maxilla, but were higher in participants with loss of teeth in the anterior part of the maxilla and highest in participants with an edentulous maxilla (P = 0.035). People with normal mouth opening had lower percentage of labiodental distortions than people with a reduced mouth opening (P = 0.05). The proportion of participants with inadequate denture hygiene and distortions of bilabials was 71.4% compared to 10.5% for participants with adequate denture hygiene (P = 0.005). Conclusion: Dentists must consider the impact of a denture on speech, but also should be aware of other oral health factors that influence the speech and quality of life of elders

Acceptance of orthodontic miniscrews as temporary anchorage devices

Khalid H Zawawi Department of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Objective: To study the patient’s acceptance, expectation, and experience of pain with ­orthodontic temporary miniscrews. Methods: Questionnaires were distributed to 165 potential temporary orthodontic miniscrew recipients or their parents. Using the numeric rating scale, patients who received miniscrews as part of their orthodontic treatment were also asked to rate the pain or discomfort experience after miniscrew placement.Results: A total of 165 subjects completed the first set of questions. There was a significant relationship between level of education and prior knowledge about orthodontic miniscrews (P=0.029). Even though only 12.7% had heard about miniscrews, 82.4% agreed to have miniscrews placed to facilitate orthodontic tooth movement. Eighty-three subjects who needed miniscrews as part of their orthodontic treatment completed two more sets of questions after 6 and 24 hours of miniscrew insertion. After 6 hours of miniscrew insertion, there was a significant difference in pain perception between men (mean =2.6±2.2) and women (mean =2.1±1.5; P=0.03). After 24 hours, there was no difference between men (0.2±0.4) and women (0.2±0.5; P>0.05). Postplacement, 32.5% did not require any pain medication, while 59.1% required a single dose and only 8.4% required two doses. A total of 76 patients (91.6%) said that they would recommend this procedure.Conclusion: Patients do accept miniscrew as a treatment option in orthodontics. Postoperative pain is significantly low. The acceptance of miniscrews was not related to patient’s previous knowledge of the device, and patients preferred miniscrews to extractions. Keywords: orthodontic treatment, miniscrew, temporary anchorage device, patient acceptanc

Patients’ acceptance of corticotomy-assisted orthodontics

Khalid H Zawawi Department of Orthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Objective: To study patients’ acceptance of corticotomy-assisted orthodontics as a treatment option.Methods: Adult patients seeking orthodontic treatment were asked to complete two sets of questionnaires; the first set included questions about age, sex, and level of education and general questions about orthodontic treatment; and the second set was related to the corticotomy-assisted orthodontics. Before answering the corticotomy questions, a brief description of the clinical procedure was explained and photographs of an actual procedure were shown.Results: A total of 150 subjects were approached and 129 (86%) agreed to answer the questionnaires (72 male and 57 female patients). Of these, only 3.1% did hear about corticotomy and 7.8% selected corticotomy instead of extraction. Fear from the surgery (53.2%) was the most frequent reason for not selecting corticotomy followed by fear from pain (36.9%). The acceptance of corticotomy between males and females was similar. No relationship was found between the level of education and prior knowledge of the procedure, P=0.857. Prior knowledge about corticotomy was not a factor in selecting it as a treatment option (P=0.556) to reduce the treatment time (P=0.427).Conclusion: The acceptance of corticotomy-assisted orthodontics as a treatment option was low. Fear from the surgery was the main reason for not selecting it. The acceptance of corticotomy-assisted orthodontics was not related to patient’s level of education or sex. Keywords: orthodontic treatment, corticotomy-assisted orthodontics, patient acceptance, cross sectional survey, alveolar decorticatio

The relationship between periapical lesions and the serum levels of glycosylated hemoglobin and C-reactive protein in type 2 diabetic patients.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between the presence of periapical lesions (PL) and levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and C-reactive protein (CRP) in patients with type 2 diabetes.  Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Ibn Sina National College for Medical Studies, Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, between September 2013 and February 2015. Medical and dental history and Sociodemographic data were obtained from participants. Dental and periodontal examinations were conducted and blood samples were obtained to determine levels of HbA1c and CRP. The presence of PL was recorded from panoramic and periapical radiographs. Descriptive statistics and multivariable linear and logistic regression models were used for data analyses.  Results: One hundred patients were included; mean age was 48.9 ± 8.5 years. Of these patients, 14% had no PL, whereas 25% had one or 2 lesions, 32% had 3 or 4 lesions, and 29% had ≥5 PL. The mean HbA1c was 9.8% (± 2.5) mg/L and CRP was 6.9 mg/L (± 6.3). The presence of PL was significantly associated with a higher level of HbA1c independent of age, gender, probing depth, and plaque index (p=0.023). Individuals with PL were also more likely to have a high CRP level (greater than 3 mg/L) independent of the previous covariates (odds ratio: 1.19; 95% confidence interval: 1.01-1.41).  Conclusion: Periapical lesions are associated with a poorer glycemic control and a higher CRP level in type 2 diabetic patients

Correlation of psychomotor skills and didactic performance among dental students in Saudi Arabia

Ahmed R Afify,1 Khalid H Zawawi,1 Hisham I Othman,2 Ayman A Al-Dharrab31Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, 2Department of Basic Oral and Clinical Sciences, 3Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Rehabilitation, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi ArabiaObjectives: The objective of this study is to investigate the correlation between the psychomotor skills and the academic performance of dental students.Methods: Didactic and preclinical scores were collected for students who graduated from the Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, in 2011. Three courses (Dental Anatomy, Removable Prosthodontic Denture, and Orthodontics) were selected. Correlations comparing didactic and practical scores were done for the total samples, then for the males and females separately.Results: There was no significant correlation between the practical and didactic scores for the three courses for the total sample. There was a significant correlation between all three subjects in the didactic scores. For females, the results showed that there was only a significant correlation between the practical and didactic scores for Dental Anatomy. For males, no correlation was observed between the practical and didactic scores for all subjects.Conclusion: In the present sample, didactic performance did not correlate well with the students' psychomotor performance.Keywords: psychomotor performance, didactic performance, dental students, correlation study, dental education, practical performanc

Effect of lip position and gingival display on smile and esthetics as perceived by college students with different educational backgrounds

Khalid H Zawawi,1 Ghadah A Malki,2 Mohammad S Al-Zahrani,3 Yaser M Alkhiary4 1Department of Preventive Dental Science, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, 2Consultant Pediatric Dentist, North Jeddah Dental Specialty Center, 3Department of Oral Basic and Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Dentistry, 4Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Rehabilitation, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of education on the perception of female college students on the effect of lip position and gingival display upon smiling and esthetics. Methods: A photograph of a smiling subject was altered to show varying degrees of gingival display. Female students, who were studying in different colleges, assessed a total of five images, using a numerical rating scale. Results: A total of 440 college students from eight educational faculties (dentistry, dental assistants, medicine, medical technology, nursing, science, arts, and pharmacology) participated in this study. There was no difference found between students&#39; ratings of the altered images (P<0.05). The perception of a gummy smile was found to be similar among the participants. There was agreement between all participants that 2 mm of gingival display was the most attractive smile, while a 4 mm covering of the teeth by the upper lip was the least attractive. Conclusion: Educational influence did not have an effect of the perception of a gummy smile. Keywords: smile, gingival display, gummy smile, smile esthetic, perception, educational backgroun

Reliability of didactic grades to predict practical skills in an undergraduate dental college in Saudi Arabia

Khalid H Zawawi,1 Ahmed R Afify,1 Mohammed K Yousef,2 Hisham I Othman,3 Ayman A Al-Dharrab4 1Department of Orthodontics, 2Department of Operative Dentistry, 3Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences, 4Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Objectives: This longitudinal study was aimed to investigate the association between didactic grades and practical skills for dental students and whether didactic grades can reliability predict the dental students&rsquo; practical performance. Materials and methods: Didactic and practical grades for graduates from the Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, between the years 2009 and 2011 were collected. Four courses were selected: Dental Anatomy, Operative Dentistry, Prosthodontics, and Orthodontics. Pearson product-moment correlation analyses between didactic and practical scores were conducted. Results: There was only a significant correlation between didactic and practical scores for the Dental Anatomy course (P&lt;0.001). There was also a significant correlation between all four subjects in the didactic scores (P&lt;0.001). Only the scores of male students showed a significant correlation in the Operative Dentistry course (P&lt;0.001). There were no correlations between Orthodontic grades. Moreover, a poor degree of reliability was found between didactic and practical scores for all subjects. Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, the relationship between didactic grades and practical performance is course specific. Didactic grades do not reliably predict the students&#39; practical skills. Measuring practical performances should be independent from didactic grading. Keywords: correlation study, dental education, dental students, practical performanc