Hypersensitivity to titanium dental implants: a review

Allergy to dental materials represents a growing problem and may go undiagnosed by health professionals. For patients suffering from allergies to metal alloys containing nickel, chrome and cobalt, metal dentures or crowns cannot be used. In such patients titanium implant is the material of choice. However the relationship between titanium dental implants and clinically relevant hypersensitivity has only been recently suggested. Literature reports sensitivity to titanium in about 5% of the general population. Titanium, used in orthopedic devices and oral implants, although considered an inert material can actually induce toxicity or allergic type I or type IV reactions. It can be responsible for successive unexplained cases of failure of dental implants in some patients. This review is an attempt to redirect the clinician's attention about the fact that titanium allergies do exist and precaution must be taken

Toward smoke-free homes: a community-based study on initiatives of rural Indian women

Since the home is the primary source of exposure of children to second-hand smoke [SHS], measures to restrict smoking at home should be introduced to protect children from its adverse health consequences. Objectives of the study were to assess the level of awareness of rural Indian women on the health impacts of SHS on children and to look into the strategies they used to reduce children's exposure to SHS at home. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 438 rural women using a survey questionnaire. Information on socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge on specific health effects of SHS on children, and attitude toward having a smoke-free home were collected. The perceived reasons that made it difficult to have smoke-free homes were also explored. A total of 75.8% of women agreed that SHS was a serious health risk for children. Knowledge on health impacts of SHS on children identified asthma as the most common problem. Smoking by husbands [89.7%] was the major source of exposure to SHS at home. While 67.6% of women reported having taken measures to limit SHS exposure in their homes, only 12.8% of them had tried to introduce a complete ban on smoking at home. On a five-point evaluation scale, 73.3% of the women indicated a failure of their initiatives to have smoke-free homes. Women's initiatives to introduce restrictions on smoking at home had very limited success and did not produce an appreciable change in smoking behavior at home. Lack of empowerment of women in rural India probably rendered the interventional measures ineffective