A boy with oral hair : case report

In personal communication we have never seen or heard of hair being detected in the oral cavity. Even Julia Pastrana, the famous ?Bearded Lady? of the 1800?s, had no record of oral hair, although her entire body was covered with hair. Extensive records of her oral condition, including plaster models of her teeth have been preserved in the Odontological Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons in London city. She suffered from excessive gingival hyperplasia, but apparently no hair existed within the mouth. Some rodents have oral hair as a normal occurrence, but the condition is apparently limited in the animal kingdom. A case of hair occurring naturally in the mouth has been reported only twice previously. A third case of this rare anomaly is reported here. In this case, multiple hairs were found at the gingival sulcus in the labial, buccal, lingual and palatal tooth surfaces in an 11-year-old boy

Correlation of serum and salivary CA15-3 levels in patients with breast cancer

Objectives: The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between serum and saliva levels of cancer antigen (CA) 15-3 and to compare them between women with and without breast cancer. Study design: A case-control study was carried out on 61 women aged 28-69 years, including women with and without breast cancer (26 as part of the case study and 35 as part of the control group) conducted at the Emam Khomeini Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. CA15-3 levels were assayed in serum and unstimulated whole saliva by EIA. Unpaired t-test, one-way ANOVA and Pearson correlation were used as statistical analysis. Results: The salivary and serological levels of CA15-3 in the cancer patients were significantly higher (P <0.01) than the salivary and serum levels of healthy controls. They were also higher in stage 2 than in stage 1 in cancer patients. However, the saliva flow rate was significantly lower in the cancer patients (P <0.01). There was a significant positive correlation between serum and saliva CA15-3 concentration (r = 0.614) and also between serum concentration and saliva output of CA15-3 (r = 0.541). Conclusion: The results of the study suggest that salivary CA15-3 may have potential use in the initial detection of breast cancer in women

Evaluation of Xerostomia and salivary flow rate in Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

Background: One of the most common causes of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto´s Thyroiditis (HT). Early detection of dry mouth is critical in preserving and promoting systemic and oral health. In this study we have assessed, for the first time, salivary function and xerostomia in HT patients who have not been involved with Sjögren´s syndrome. Material and Methods: HT was diagnosed in 40 patients based on clinical findings and positive anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies (anti-TPO). Controls, matched by sex, age and body mass index (BMI), and with no history of thyroid disease, were selected. A questionnaire was used for diagnosis of xerostomia. Saliva samples were taken between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., and at least 2 hours after the last intake of food or drink. The flow rate was calculated in milliliters per minute. Results: Xerostomia was significantly higher in patients with HT. Unstimulated salivary flow rate was significantly lower in the HT group. Stimulated salivary flow rate was lower in HT group, but the difference was not significant. Conclusions: The patients with HT experienced xerostomia, and their salivary flow rate was diminished. Spitting the saliva then assessing salivary flow rate based on milliliter per minute is non-invasive, fast, and simple for chair-side diagnosis of dry mouth. Autoimmune diseases can be accompanied by salivary gland dysfunction. This may be due to the effect of cytokines in the autoimmune process or because of thyroid hormone dysfunction

Med Oral Patol Oral Cir Bucal

Abstract Background: One of the most common causes of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto´s Thyroiditis (HT). Early detection of dry mouth is critical in preserving and promoting systemic and oral health. In this study we have assessed, for the first time, salivary function and xerostomia in HT patients who have not been involved with Sjögren´s syndrome. Material and Methods: HT was diagnosed in 40 patients based on clinical findings and positive anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies (anti-TPO). Controls, matched by sex, age and body mass index (BMI), and with no history of thyroid disease, were selected. A questionnaire was used for diagnosis of xerostomia. Saliva samples were taken between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., and at least 2 hours after the last intake of food or drink. The flow rate was calculated in milliliters per minute. Results: Xerostomia was significantly higher in patients with HT. Unstimulated salivary flow rate was significantly lower in the HT group. Stimulated salivary flow rate was lower in HT group, but the difference was not significant. Conclusions: The patients with HT experienced xerostomia, and their salivary flow rate was diminished. Spitting the saliva then assessing salivary flow rate based on milliliter per minute is non-invasive, fast, and simple for chair-side diagnosis of dry mouth. Autoimmune diseases can be accompanied by salivary gland dysfunction. This may be due to the effect of cytokines in the autoimmune process or because of thyroid hormone dysfunctions

Unstimulated whole saliva 25-hydroxycholecalciferol in patients with xerostomia in menopausal women

Abstract Background and aim The aim of this study was to compare unstimulated whole saliva 25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25(OH)D) in menopausal women with and without oral dryness (OD) feeling, and evaluate the relationship between saliva 25(OH)D and severity of OD feeling. Methods A case-control study was carried out on 70 selected menopausal women aged 41-77 years with or without OD feeling (35 as case and 35 as control) conducted at the Clinic of Oral Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Unstimulated saliva samples were obtained by expectoration. Xerostomia inventory (XI) score was used as an index of OD feeling severity. The saliva 25(OH)D concentration was measured by ELISA. Statistical analysis of Student&apos;s t test and Spearman correlation was used. Results The mean saliva 25(OH)D level was significantly higher in the case group (897.1 ± 128.9 pg/ml), compared with control (156.7 ± 43.4 pg/ml; P \ 0.05). XI score correlated significantly with saliva 25(OH)D concentration (r = 0.457, P \ 0.001). Conclusions It seems that the level of salivary 25(OH)D concentration may be higher in menopausal women with OD feeling than in the control group, and there is a positive correlation between OD feeling severity and unstimulated whole saliva 25(OH)D

Treatment of oral lichen planus with photodynamic therapy mediated methylene blue : A case report

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a common chronic disease of uncertain origin. Many patients with OLP are refractory to all available therapies. The photodynamic therapy (PDT) was used as a possible alternative method in the treatment of lichen planus. Two patients with five oral lichen planus lesions were treated using topical PDT mediated by methylene blue (MB-PDT). The patients were followed up on sessions 3, 7, 15 days and 1 to 9 months after PDT. Clinical improvement was achieved in four lesions. Two lesions showed complete remission, and another two lesions had about 50% clinically improvement 3-9 months after a single session of PDT. No response detected in one lesion. MB-PDT blue seems to be an effective alternative treatment for control of OLP. In our opinion, this preliminary result warrant further studies in order to show the efficacy of MB-PDT in control of OLP for a longer period of time

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor in Serum and Saliva of Oral Lichen Planus and Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma Patients

Background: Oral lichen planus (OLP) is considered as a potentially malignant disorder and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) may play a key role in cancer development. The aim of this study was to compare serum and saliva VEGF among patients with OLP, oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and a healthy control group. Methods: A cross sectional study was performed on 27 patients with OLP, 27 patients with OSCC and 27 healthy volunteers. The serum and saliva VEGF were assayed by ELISA method. Statistical analysis of ANOVA was used. Results: The mean saliva flow rate and serum VEGF in OLP and OSCC patients were significantly lower compared to healthy control group (p<0.05), but there was no significant difference between OLP and OSCC patients. There was no significant difference in mean salivary VEGF among groups. Conclusion: It seems that saliva VEGF may not be a good biomarker for OLP and OSCC

Central Ossifying Fibroma, Periapical Cemento-Osseous Dysplasia and Complex Odontoma Cccurring in the Same Jaw

Central ossifying fibroma is a rare, benign fibro-osseous lesion that arises from the periodontal ligament. Periapical cemento-osseous dysplasia is another variant of fibro-osseous lesion which occurs in the anterior region of the mandible of females. Odontoma is a benign odontogenic tumor that contains enamel, dentine cement and pulp tissue. A 46-year-old woman was referred to the Department of Oral Medicine, School of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, with two nonpainful swellings on both sides of the mandible, which had been slowly growing over a period of one year. Our differential diagnosis was florid cemento-osseous dysplasia, focal cemento-osseous dysplasia for the right side, complex odontoma for the left side and periapical cement-osseous dysplasia for the anterior side. The historical feature revealed ossifying fibroma, complex odontoma and periapical cemento-osseous dysplasia. The occurrence of these three lesions in the same jaw has been rarely reported in the literature. The relationship between the occurrence of these three lesions is not obvious it could be coincidental. It seems that more case reports are needed to establish the relationship between them

Non-syndromic bilateral dentigerous cysts associated with permanent second premolars

The dentigerous cyst is one of the most common developmental odontogenic cysts in the jaw. Occurrence of the bilateral dentigerous cyst is uncommon, and frequently associated with syndromes like basal cell nevus syndrome or cleidocranial dysplasia. There are few reports on the presence of bilateral dentigerous cyst in nonsyndromic patients, and most of these are associated with first and third molars. The reported case in this paper is bilateral dentigerous cysts associated with mandibular permanent second premolars, in the absence of any signs of syndrome. To our knowledge bilateral dentigerous cysts in these locations have not been previously reported