The influence of the SARS-CoV-2 lockdown on patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases on their adherence to immunomodulatory medication: a cross sectional study over 3 months in Germany.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the influence of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the adherence of patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) to their immunomodulatory medication during the three-month lockdown in Germany. METHODS: From 16th March until 15th June 2020, IRD patients from private practices and rheumatology departments were asked to answer a questionnaire addressing their behaviour with respect to their immunomodulating therapy. Eight private practices and nine rheumatology departments that included rheumatology primary care centres and university hospitals participated. A total of 4252 questionnaires were collected and evaluated. RESULTS: The majority of patients (54%) were diagnosed with RA, followed by psoriatic arthritis (14%), ankylosing spondylitis (10%), connective tissue diseases (12%) and vasculitides (6%). Most of the patients (84%) reported to continue their immunomodulatory therapy. Termination of therapy was reported by only 3% of the patients. The results were independent from the type of IRD, the respective immunomodulatory therapy and by whom the patients were treated (private practices vs rheumatology departments). Younger patients (<60 years) reported just as often as older patients to discontinue their therapy. CONCLUSION: The data show that most of the patients continued their therapy in spite of the pandemic. A significant change in behaviour with regard to their immunomodulatory therapy was not observed during the three months of observation. The results support the idea that the immediate release of recommendations of the German Society of Rheumatology were well received, supporting the well-established physician-patient relationship in times of a crisis.

[A cross sectional study on patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases in terms of their compliance to their immunsuppressive medication during COVID-19 pandemic]. / Einstellung von Patienten mit entzündlich-rheumatischen Erkrankungen zur immunsuppressiven Therapie im Rahmen der COVID-19 Pandemie ­ eine Situationsanalyse.

The current COVID-19 pandemic inherits an unprecedented challenge for the treating rheumatologists. On the one hand, antirheumatic drugs can increase the risk of infection and potentially deteriorate the course of an infection. On the other hand, an active inflammatory rheumatic disease can also increase the risk for an infection. In the recommendations of the German Society for Rheumatology (www.dgrh.de), it is recommended that our patients continue the antirheumatic therapy to maintain remission or low state of activity despite the pandemic. In this study, patients with inflammatory rheumatic disease were asked in the first weeks of the pandemic on their opinion of their immunomodulating therapy. The result shows that over 90% of the patients followed the recommendation of the rheumatologist to continue the antirheumatic therapy, and only a small percentage of the patients terminated the therapy on their own. This result was independent of the individual anti-rheumatic therapy. Taken together, the results of this study illustrate not only the trustful patient-physician partnership in a threatening situation but also the high impact of state-of-the art recommendations by the respective scientific society.

Diagnosis of periodontal diseases using different classification algorithms: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the proposed study was to develop an identification unit for classifying periodontal diseases using support vector machine (SVM), decision tree (DT), and artificial neural networks (ANNs). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 150 patients was divided into two groups such as training (100) and testing (50). The codes created for risk factors, periodontal data, and radiographically bone loss were formed as a matrix structure and regarded as inputs for the classification unit. A total of six periodontal conditions was the outputs of the classification unit. The accuracy of the suggested methods was compared according to their resolution and working time. RESULTS: DT and SVM were best to classify the periodontal diseases with a high accuracy according to the clinical research based on 150 patients. The performances of SVM and DT were found 98% with total computational time of 19.91 and 7.00 s, respectively. ANN had the worst correlation between input and output variable, and its performance was calculated as 46%. CONCLUSIONS: SVM and DT appeared to be sufficiently complex to reflect all the factors associated with the periodontal status, simple enough to be understandable and practical as a decision-making aid for prediction of periodontal disease.

The multidisciplinary management of a fused maxillary central incisor with a talon cusp.

BACKGROUND: A fused maxillary incisor required complex multidisciplinary treatment to preserve health and restore aesthetics. This report presents a rare case of a dental fusion between the maxillary right central incisor and a supernumerary tooth of a 9-year-old male patient with the chief complaint of the presence of a large anterior tooth. METHODS: Radiographic investigation and computerized tomography indicated there was no connection between pulp chambers. After dividing the crown with a diamond bur, the supernumerary tooth was removed and the diastema between the maxillary central incisors was closed by orthodontic treatment. The tooth was then restored with composite resin. RESULTS: The maxillary right central incisor was still healthy after a follow-up examination period of 24 months. CONCLUSIONS: A multidisciplinary approach with the cooperation of different practitioners can contribute to the success of a treatment plan.