Whitening toothpaste containing activated charcoal, blue covarine, hydrogen peroxide or microbeads: which one is the most effective?

Abstract The efficacy of whitening toothpastes is questionable and controversial. Clinicians, patients and researchers have expressed concern with whitening toothpastes due to the risk of wearing the dental structure and the potential for disappointment if the advertised cosmetic results are not achieved. Objective: This study compared the whitening performance of toothpastes with different whitening technologies after initial and continued use. Material and Methods: Ninety bovine incisors were stained using a concentrated solution of black tea. They were randomly distributed into 6 groups, according to the toothpaste whitening technology: activated charcoal (B&W), blue covarine (WAD), hydrogen peroxide (LWA), microbeads (Oral B 3D White Perfection - 3DW) and optimized abrasives (XW4D). They were compared to a traditional toothpaste without a whitening agent (TA - control). Specimens underwent a brushing machine with controlled pressure, time and temperature. A calibrated examiner measured the color using a VITA-Classical scale before the first brushing cycle (T0), after the first brushing cycle (TI), and after a brushing cycle that simulates continuous use (TCU). Whitening performance was evaluated by the difference of shades (ΔSGU) between T0-TI and T0-TCU timepoints, using the Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn's non-parametric test. The Wilcoxon test was used to evaluate the cumulative effect (α=0.05). Results: Statistically significant differences were observed between toothpastes in both TI and TCU (p<0.05). The time of use also had a significant effect (p<0.05). Conclusion: Only WAD and 3DW showed whitening performance after the first use (TI). The greatest whitening performance after continuous use was obtained by WAD, followed by LWA and 3DW. The use of conventional toothpaste (TA) promotes no tooth whitening. Clinical relevance: Microbead abrasives (3DW) and blue covarine (WAD) were the active technology tested that presented the best global tooth whitening performance.

Escala de desesperanza de Beck: evaluación de la consistencia interna y la estructura factorial para una población de puérperas adolescentes del Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal. Enero a mayo 2010 / Beck’s hopelessness scale: assessment of internal consistency and factor structure in a population of postpartum adolescents at Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal. January to May 2010

Objetivo: Realizar la medición de la consistencia interna y el análisis factorial de la escala de desesperanza de Beck(EDB) al ser aplicada en puérperas adolescentes. Métodos: Se realizó un estudio observacional, analítico, de corte transversal. Se aplicó una encuesta a las adolescentes entre 13 y 18 años de edad, que cumplieran con los criterios deinclusión, que acudieran al Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal (INMP) para la atención del parto entre los meses deenero a mayo de 2010. La consistencia interna se evaluó através del coeficiente alfa de Cronbach y la estructura factorial através de la extracción de componentes principales y rotación varimax. Resultados: Se obtuvo un coeficiente alfa de Cronbach = 0,70. La estructura factorial presenta seis dimensiones, que no se correlacionan con los hallazgos en otrosestudios y que presentan dificultades para su identificación. Tras eliminar pertinentemente seis elementos se obtuvo un coeficiente Alfa de Cronbach de 0,73 y un modelo de cuatro factores identificados como motivación, proyección, control percibido e ilusión, que explican el 55% de la varianza. Conclusión: Se concluye que la EDB modificada (14 elementos) presenta una consistencia interna y estructura factorial adecuada.

Objetive: To measure the internal consistency and formulate the factorial analysis of Beck's Hopelessness Scale inpostpartum adolescents. Method: An observational, analytic, transversal study was conducted. Between January and May 2010, we applied a survey in every postpartum adolescent attended at Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal. The internal consistency was evaluated by Cronbach's alpha coefficient and the factorial structure by the main components extractionand varimax rotation. Results: Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.70. The factorial structure showed 6 components, which doesn't correlates with other studies' findings. After eliminating 6 elements from Beck's Hopelessness Scale, we got a Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.733 and a factorial structure with 4 components, identified as Motivation, Projection, Perceived Control and Illusion, explaining 55% of variance. Conclusion: We concluded that the modified Beck's Hopelessness Scale has an adequate internal consistency and factorial structure.

Conceptual and Experimental Directions for Analyzing Superstition in the Behavioral Analysis of Culture / Direcciones Conceptuales y Experimentales para el Análisis de la Superstición en el Análisis Conductual de la Cultura

Este trabajo examina las nociones de ilusiones y creencias, discutiendo algunas ventajas que ofrece estudiar tales fenómenos basándose en los conceptos de conducta supersticiosa, superstición y reglas supersticiosas. El trabajo pone de relieve la posibilidad de investigar estas nociones en diferentes niveles de análisis, no sólo a nivel individual, centrándose en el nivel cultural; por otra parte, se presenta el Materialismo Cultural como una propuesta antropológica basada en principios adaptativos, la cual se adecua para tratar estos fenómenos en este nivel, además, discute el Análisis Experimental de las prácticas culturales y señala cómo estos análisis pueden ayudar a entender cómo la gente, en grupo, se comporta como si tuvieran control de su ambiente (cuando, a veces, de hecho, no lo tienen). Este trabajo ofrece una propuesta integradora que facilita el diálogo entre analistas de la conducta y psicólogos sociales y ofrece algunas rutas para un análisis cultural de las ilusiones y las creencias.

This paper examines the notions of illusions and beliefs, discussing some advantages offered by the study of these phenomena based on the concepts of superstitious behavior, superstition and superstitious rules. Among these advantages, the study highlights the possibility of researching these relationships in different levels of analysis, not only at the individual level, focusing on cultural level, this paper presents Cultural Materialism as an anthropological proposal for the consideration of these phenomena on the cultural level and based on adaptive principles, besides it discusses the experimental analysis of cultural practices and points out how they can help to understand how people in groups behave such as they are being effective in the control of the surrounding environment (when, sometimes, in fact, they are not). The paper offers an integrative proposal which makes easier behavior analysts' dialogue with social psychologists and offers some routes from cultural analysis of illusions and beliefs.

Elaboração e avaliação de um instrumento para identificar memórias referentes à Unidade de Terapia Intensiva / Development and evaluation of an instrument to identify memories on the Intensive Care Unit

OBJETIVO: Descrever o desenvolvimento de um instrumento para identificar as recordações de pacientes internados em Unidade de Terapia Intensiva (UTI) e verificar a validade de conteúdo e a aplicabilidade do instrumento. MÉTODO: Estudo de desenvolvimento metodológico, fundamentado na teoria de elaboração de escalas psicológicas de Pasquali (1998). Para elaboração do instrumento, foram percorridas três etapas, a construção dos itens, a análise da validade de conteúdo e aparência por um painel de experts e, por fim, a realização de um estudo-piloto para verificar a aplicabilidade do instrumento na população-alvo. RESULTADOS: Houve pouca discordância entre os experts na análise das questões de acordo com os domínios do construto. Os itens foram avaliados positivamente, recebendo uma pontuação acima de 80 por cento, valor este que obedece ao critério de validação do instrumento. Dessa forma, os itens foram considerados consistentes em relação aos domínios e ao construto, possibilitando identificar recordações das experiências vividas pelos pacientes durante sua permanência em UTI. CONCLUSÕES: Os itens propostos mostraram-se compreensíveis, claros e com uma adequada estrutura de apresentação. O instrumento apresenta validade de conteúdo atestada por um painel de experts, demonstrando possuir características teóricas para identificar memórias de pacientes internados em UTI a curto e longo prazo.

OBJECTIVE: Describe the development of an instrument to identify records of their stay at the intensive care unit, and verify content validation and the applicability of the instrument. METHOD: It is a methodological study, based in Pasquali's (1998) psychological scale elaboration theory. To elaborate the instrument, three stages were followed: the built of items; appearance and content validation analysis performed by a panel of experts; together with implementation of a pilot study to validation instrument applicability in the targeted population. RESULTS: There was little unconformity among the experts when analyzing the questions according to the domain of the constructor. The items were positively evaluated having a punctuation value above 80 percent, which abides the instrument validation criteria. Thus, the items were considered consistent in relation to the domain and constructor allowing identification of recollection of memories lived by the patients during their stay at the ICU. CONCLUSIONS: The proposed items demonstrated to be comprehensive, clear, and having an adequate presentation structure. The instrument shows validation to the content certified by a panel of experts, thus demonstrating to have theoretical characteristics to identify short and long term recollections of ICU patients.

Un síntoma cuasi parapsicológico: palinopsia

La parapsicología se refiere al estudio de ciertos tipos de fenómenos paranormales. Paranormal conciernea una experiencia que no parece ser explicable en términos del conocimiento científico o de nuestra comprensión de hechos cotidianos. La realidad científica del fenómeno parapsicológico y la validez científica de sus investigaciones, a menudo son áreas de frecuente disputa y crítica. Hasta ahora la psicología formal la caracteriza como una pseudociencia. La palinopsia es un raro síntoma caracterizado por el fenómeno ilusorio de perseveración y/o recurrencia de imágenes visuales luego de haber sido removido el estímulo excitatorio. Es una distorsión del procesamiento de imágenes en el sistema visual causado por lesiones unilaterales o bilaterales de variado origen que afectan las áreas posteriores de los hemisferios cerebrales, toxicidad o efectos colaterales de drogas terapéuticas, una extensa lista de condiciones misceláneas y aún en sujetos normales. A despecho de su rareza, existe abundante literatura al respecto posiblemente por su carácter intrigante o por su naturaleza pseudo-parapsicológica. Los autores presentan los casos de 6 pacientes, dos de los cuales estaban recibiendo tamoxifeno, una droga hasta el presente no reconocida como causa de este fenómeno

Parapsychology is the scientific study of certain types of paranormal phenomena. The “paranormal” (beside or beyond the normal) refers to unusual experiences that do not seem to be explainable in terms of our everyday understanding or known scientific principles. The scientificreality of parapsychological phenomena and the validity of scientific parapsychological research is amatter of frequent dispute and criticism. The field is regarded by some critics as a pseudoscience. Palinopsia is a rare symptom characterized by the illusory phenomenon of perseverance or recurrence of visual images after removal of the exciting stimulus. It is a distortion of the processing in the visual system caused by unilateral o bilateral lesions of various kinds, such as toxicity or side effects of drugs, as well as an array of miscellaneous conditions, that affect posterior areas of the cerebral hemispheres in normal subjects. Despite its rarity, there is abundance of literature on the subject, possibly because of the intriguing, quasiparapsychologic nature of the symptom. Six patients were identified with the diagnosis of palinopsia o poliopsia of whom two were taking the drug tamoxifen not previously described in the literature