ABSTRACT
The latest highly contagious disease Covid - 19 has created a havoc all over the world pausing everyone’s normal life and has become a major public health concern. This novel corona virus with human to human transmission has put the world to halt and has become a major concern for all healthcare professionals. Patients infected with COVID - 19 present with dry cough, sore throat, fever and more severe cases exhibit shortness of breath. Loss of smell and loss of taste are other symptoms observed in infected patients. The routes of transmission of Sars - CoV - 2 are direct contact and airborne transmission. Infection by direct contact occurs through close contact of surfaces that are contaminated and subsequent touching of nose, mouth or eyes. Dental practitioners are at a higher risk because of its potential transmission via saliva, water droplets, and aerosols generated during most of the dental clinical procedures. Because of its highly contagious nature, it possesses serious life-threatening problems for both patient and the dentist. Many patients with dental pain and infections approach dental professionals at this time of crisis. Hence, dental professionals must be ready to provide emergency dental services by taking precautionary and safety measures. This COVID - 19 pandemic has posed economic and social difficulties for all including dental professionals. Therefore, instead of restricting dental procedures, it is better to think of tackling the risk of infection by following all the safety procedures and by orienting the dental treatment by taking a more preventive, conservative and less invasive approach. Infection control and management becomes very important in treating patients in the coming months. Hence, use of personal protective equipment, hand hygiene, use of mouth rinses during the procedure, rubber dam isolation, and disinfection of the dental clinic help in reducing the risk of infection to a great extent. This article gives a view of symptoms, routes of transmission, and safety measures to be considered, to overcome the fear of dental practice during this time of high risk and in the coming future.
ABSTRACT
Restoration of congenital and acquired defects is an art and science in the field of maxillofacial prosthetics. Partial defect of the ear can leave tissue which may be adequate for supporting the prosthesis. Silicone prosthesis gives a simplified, cost-effective, and acceptable means of restoring the lost parts of the body to those who are reluctant to surgical reconstruction and other expensive treatment modalities. The aim of this article is to present and discuss a clinical case of acquired auricular defect managed by silicone prostheses by anatomical anchorage technique, which is easy to use and acceptable in appearance to the patient
ABSTRACT
Context : The presence of Candida albicans on the fitting surface of the denture is a major causative factor in denture stomatits. A treatment method is by combining tissue conditioner and antifungal agents. Aims : The main objective of this study is to test the efficacy of magnesium oxide combined with two tissue conditioners (Viscogel and GC Soft), in inhibiting the growth of Candida albicans. Settings and Design : Microbiological study was done in the Department of Microbiology, K S Hegde Medical Academy, Nitte University, Mangalore. Materials and Methods : A total of 154 plates were prepared using Muller Hilton with Glucose and Methylene Blue dye medium and inoculated with 24-hr old standard Candida culture. Plates were divided into control and combination. Test discs with different concentrations of MgO were equidistantly placed in MgO Control, while sterile discs embedded with respective tissue conditioner were equidistantly placed in Viscogel and GC Soft controls. For combination groups, the tissue conditioners were mixed and the discs with MgO (1%, 3%, 5%, and 7%) were embedded in the mix. After 24 h of incubation, inhibition diameters were noted. Statistical Analysis Used : The data was analysed using Mann Whitney U Test, ANOVA, Tukey HSD test. Results : The inhibition effect of magnesium oxide 1% combined with tissue conditioners (VGC and GCC) is not significant in both the groups. The inhibition effect of MgO 5% and 7% combined with tissue conditioners (VGC and GCC) is very highly significant ( P < 0.001). Conclusions : Magnesium oxide in combination with tissue conditioners are effective against Candida albicans; GC soft with magnesium oxide showed a better result than Viscogel with magnesium oxide; Increasing the concentration of magnesium oxide increases the zone of inhibition of Candida albicans.