Counselling and self-management therapies for temporomandibular disorders: a systematic review.

The aim of this review was to investigate the effectiveness of counselling and other self-management-based therapies on muscle and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain relief and increasing the functional abilities of patients with temporomandibular disorders (TMD). A systematic literature review was conducted by three independent reviewers and included articles published up to 2012. PubMed and Cochrane Library electronic databases were used in addition to hand-searching to assess clinical outcomes for counselling and self-management approaches for TMD treatment. The review yielded 581 records that were narrowed down to 7. All included studies were classified as blind-randomized controlled clinical trials. The selected articles analysed revealed that counselling was able to improve tenderness upon masticatory muscle palpation and maximum mouth opening with and without pain in patients with TMD, with similar results to those of interocclusal appliances approaches. Thus, counselling- and self-management-based therapies could be considered a conservative low-cost and beneficial treatment alternative for treating TMD to potentially improve psychological domains and remove harmful behaviours for the control of the signs and symptoms of TMD.

Mandibular implant-supported removable partial denture with distal extension: a systematic review.

The aim of this article is to investigate patient satisfaction, survival rate of implants, and prosthetic complications or maintenance for rehabilitation with removable partial dentures associated with implants in mandibular Kennedy class I and II cases. A systematic literature review was conducted by three independent reviewers including articles published from January 1981 through September 2011. Medline and Cochrane Library electronic databases were used in addition to hand searching to assess clinical outcomes for mandibular implant-supported removable partial denture with distal extension. This review yielded 1751 records that were narrowed down to 5. The studies revealed implant survival rates ranging from 95% to 100% with one failure reported of 98 implants. The removable partial dentures associated with implant in mandibular free-end arches showed some complications and need of repair for relining, pitting of the healing abutment, replacement of resilient component of the attachment, damage in framework, screw loosening and damage in acrylic denture base. Patient satisfaction was evaluated through a five-point questionnaire, and results ranged between 4.12 and 5.0, considering 1 as the least favourable situation. The literature review showed increase in patient satisfaction and high survival rates of implants associated with mandibular removable partial dentures with distal extensions. However, some complications and need of prosthetic repair were reported. Although this treatment approach could represent a low-cost and beneficial rehabilitation for free-end mandibular ridges, the lack of controlled and randomised well-designed clinical trials suggests further studies with more representative samples to validate the outcomes of this treatment modality.

The Second Chance Club: repeat adolescent pregnancy prevention with a school-based intervention.

The Second Chance Club, a high school-based intervention for pregnant and parenting adolescents, was evaluated to determine the repeat birth rate among participants. A retrospective case-controlled cohort study was conducted (participants, n = 50; control subjects, n = 255) over 3 years after enrollment in the intervention. Repeat births occurred in 3/50 (6%) of participants and 95/255 (37%) of controls (p <.05).

The association of life events to gestational age at delivery among low-income, urban, African American women.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship of life events stress to gestational age at delivery for a cohort of low income, African-American women. STUDY DESIGN: Four hundred seventy-two African-American women from three public prenatal clinics were interviewed about life events, emotional support, and health habits. Pregnancy and birth data were collected from a clinical data base. The contribution of life events stress and other study variables to length of pregnancy was determined using linear regression models for primiparous and multiparous women. RESULTS: Frequency of life events was not related to gestational age at delivery, directly or indirectly. An unexpected finding was that women who experienced a death of a mother or sister delivered on average 4.6 weeks earlier than other women in the study. Complications of pregnancy also explained lower gestational age for both primiparas and multiparas. CONCLUSION: Among low-income women, the acute stressor of losing a mother or sister during pregnancy was significantly related to shorter pregnancy, although total number of events was not.

Measurement of coherence area in parametric downconversion luminescence.

The coherence area is measured in a simple Young's experiment using parametric downconversion light produced in a nonlinear crystal (LiIO(3)) pumped by a continuous argon-ion laser. The normalized mutual intensity or degree of coherence is obtained from the intensity distribution interference patterns and compared with a standard theory in which the light source behaves as a surface with infinitesimal uncorrelated emitters.

Quasi-elastic light scattering of carnauba wax in the liquid phase: dynamics 2.

Quasi-elastic light scattering of carnauba wax in the liquid phase is obtained in a heterodyne setup, and dynamic processes are analyzed through electrophoresis. Nonspherical polar clusters are found, containing a net electrical charge. An applied square-wave electric field induces drift and rotation of these clusters.These effects are dependent on strength and frequency of the applied electric field. At 373 K and in the low frequency limit the local electric field strength is approximately 70 times the strength of the applied one. This enhancement is believed to be caused by collective orientation of the clusters. The electrophoretic mobility is 1.1 X 10(-12) m2/V sec in the high frequency limit and 7.4 X 10(-11) m2/V sec in the low frequency limit. The electric dipole moment is 6.3 X 10(-16) N(-1/2) m(-1/2) where N is the cluster density/cubic meter and the net charge is about one or two elementary charges.