ABSTRACT
Purpose: The study was planned to develop and validate a novel middle childhood oral health impact scale (MCOHIS) for 6- to 9-year-old children in India. Methodology: A cross-sectional study design was employed to develop and validate MCOHIS in the sequential phases. A panel of ten pediatric dentists evaluated a pool of 36 items corresponding to the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) of children. MCOHIS with 20 items under five domains was formulated and content validation was done. Cohen's kappa statistics was employed to measure the concordance between the child's self-report and the caregiver's proxy report. Concurrent validation was done among 130 participants from 13 districts of Tamil Nadu state, India. Discriminant validity was checked among another sample of 60 participants. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability of MCOHIS were assessed using Cronbach's alpha and Kappa statistics respectively. Results: MCOHIS had adequate content validation with Scale Level Content Validity Index / Average score of 0.94 for relevance. There was a statistically significant inter-rater reliability observed between the child's self-report and caregivers' proxy report in all items with a moderate to substantial agreement. Concurrent validation showed a statistically significant positive correlation with a Rho value of 0.712. There was a statistically significant difference noted in overall discriminant validity (P < 0.001). Acceptable internal consistency reliability was observed with Cronbach's alpha value of 0.75. Test-retest reliability showed a high stability coefficient of 0.98. Conclusions: MCOHIS was found to be a valid and reliable age-specific tool for assessing the OHRQoL of Indian children aged 6–9 years.
ABSTRACT
Objective: The objective of the study is to determine the association between nonsyndromic oral clefts (OC) in children and ABO, Rh blood groups, lip, and dermatoglyphic patterns of their unaffected parents. Methods: This case–control study was conducted at a tertiary cleft center in Chennai, India, among 240 individuals comprising 80 units (40 cases and controls, respectively). Each unit (triad) was constituted by a child (0–12 years of age) either born with nonsyndromic OC (cases) or with no diagnosed congenital anomaly (control) and their unaffected parents (mother and father). ABO and Rh blood groups, specific lip print, fingerprint pattern, and palmar asymmetry were recorded for each individual. Strength of association of related factors was assessed by multivariable logistic regression reported as adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence interval. Results: A1-positive blood group was found to be considerably higher among case mothers (14.39 [1.57–32.27]). A higher odds of OCs were observed among case mothers with whorl lip pattern (1.51 [1.16–3.17]) and radial loop pattern in fingers (1.44 [1.09–2.31]) relative to controls. In addition, palmar asymmetry was distinctively higher among case parents compared to controls (P < 0.01). Conclusion: Findings indicate that A1-positive blood group, higher frequency of whorl lip, and radial loop finger patterns in mothers and higher ulnar loop pattern in fathers and palmar asymmetry in both parents increases odds of occurrence of OC among their offspring. These identifiable traits offer potential scope for better service planning among resource-constrained disadvantaged communities in India.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of mouthwash containing essential oils and curcumin (MEC) as an adjunct to nonsurgical periodontal therapy on the disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) among RA patients with chronic periodontitis (CP). Materials and Methods: A triple-blinded controlled trial was conducted among 45 female RA patients with CP randomized into three treatment groups as follows: Group A: scaling and root planing (SRP) with 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash as an adjunct (n = 15), Group B: SRP with MEC as an adjunct (n = 15), and Group C: SRP alone (n = 15). RA disease activity was assessed using erythrocyte sedimentation rate, serum C-reactive protein, serum anti-citrullinated protein antibody, and serum rheumatoid factor. Periodontal disease activity was assessed using plaque index, clinical attachment level (CAL), and pocket depth (PD). All parameters were recorded at baseline and 6 weeks thereafter. Data were assessed using one-way ANOVA and paired t-test. Results: A significant reduction in periodontal and RA disease activity parameters was observed from baseline to 6 weeks following intervention (P < 0.05). The highest percentage of mean reduction in plaque index and RA parameters from baseline to 6 weeks was observed in Group B followed by Groups A and C. The highest percentage of mean reduction in PD and CAL was observed in Group A followed by Groups B and C (P < 0.001). Conclusion: This study reveals that MEC as an adjunct to SRP is effective in reducing the disease activity of RA and CP, thereby warranting the use of the same.