Social factors as career obstacles for female oral and maxillofacial surgeons in three Middle Eastern countries.

Despite the feminization of dentistry in many areas of the world, female representation in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) is poor. The purpose of this study was to identify factors perceived by female oral and maxillofacial surgeons in Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia as being obstacles to their career progression and to compare them to factors identified by their male colleagues. This was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study. A Google Forms questionnaire was designed to collect data on socio-demographics and perceived career obstacles in OMFS. This was distributed to oral and maxillofacial surgeons in Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. Statistically significant differences between the genders were evident in terms of marital status (P=0.001), spouse's education (P=0.005), and spouse's occupation (P<0.001). When compared to male surgeons, female surgeons more often considered that their spouse's occupation hindered their career progression (P<0.001). Female surgeons, but not male surgeons, perceived sexism and social factors such as marriage, children, and the attitudes of society to be major career obstacles (P<0.005). In conclusion, female maxillofacial surgeons in some Middle Eastern countries were found to have different socio-demographic characteristics compared to their male colleagues and they considered sexism, marriage, children, and the attitudes of society to be major career obstacles.

Relationship between dental impacts on daily living, satisfaction with the dentition and personality profiles among a Palestinian population.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between dental impacts on patients' daily living, satisfaction with the dentition and personality profiles. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-two patients (22 males and 30 females; mean age 22.7 +/- 5.5 years) were recruited for this study. A "dental impact on daily living" (DIDL) questionnaire was used to assess patients' satisfaction with their dentition and impacts on daily living. The NEO five factor inventory (NEO-FFI) was used to assess personality profiles. RESULTS: The dentition had measurable impacts on daily living as well as satisfaction with appearance, pain levels, oral comfort, general performance, and eating capability (p < 0.001). Older patients were more totally satisfied (p = 0.014), more satisfied with appearance (p = 0.034), and less satisfied with general performance (p = 0.024). Older patients had higher Conscientiousness scores (p = 0.001) and lower Openness scores (0.018). Females were more satisfied with eating (p < 0.001). Significant correlations were established between neuroticism and total DIDL scores (p = 0.006). Extraversion had significant correlations with total satisfaction (p < 0.001) as well as satisfaction with appearance (p = 0.047) and oral comfort (p = 0.008). Significant correlations were also established between openness and satisfaction with general performance (p < 0.001), between Agreeableness and satisfaction with eating (p = 0.001), and between Conscientiousness and total satisfaction (p = 0.001), satisfaction with pain (p = 0.004), and satisfaction with oral comfort (p = 0.043). CONCLUSIONS: The status of the oral cavity might impact on patients' daily living and satisfaction with the dentition. Patients' satisfaction with their dentition has definitive impacts on daily living and dental perceptions. Personality profiles (neuroticism; extraversion; openness; agreeableness and conscientiousness) may influence dental perceptions; play a significant role in shaping satisfaction with dentition, and help with prediction of dental impacts on daily living. Patient satisfaction and psychological profiles should be considered when formulating a treatment plan in order to achieve patient acceptance of the offered treatment.

Narghile smoking and its adverse health consequences: a literature review.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a world health problem with approximately 50% of patients having a 5-year survival rate. A change in the demographics of the disease is now being recognised, particularly in Europe, where it is increasingly being seen in young males. While a variety of risk factors are important in OSCC, it is tobacco that plays a central part in the pathogenesis of the disease. Narghile is an old form of tobacco use but in the past decade, there has been a resurgence in this form of smoking. The practice is particularly common in young males and females from the Middle East but with the advent of immigration and globalisation, its use is becoming more widespread. It is now not uncommon to see narghile smoking in western countries such as the UK and USA. Studies describing the oral effects of narghile are unfortunately scarce. While adverse effects such as periodontal bone loss and dry socket have been described, its association with OSCC cannot be excluded. Variation in the type of narghile, the type of tobacco and the presence of co-factors such as cigarette smoking may all influence clinical outcome. In the present study, the practice of narghile smoking is reviewed in terms of its effect on health, particularly oral health. The association of narghile smoking and adverse effects on the orofacial region will be outlined, namely, periodontal disease, potentially malignant lesions and oral cancer.

Willingness of dentists in Jordan to treat HIV-infected patients.

UNLABELLED: Reluctance of dentists to treat human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive patients represents a major concern. Many efforts have been extended towards the documentation of the extent of this reluctance and speculation of factors that influence it. OBJECTIVES: Assess the willingness of dentists in Jordan to treat HIV-infected patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two hundred and forty-two general dental practices were surveyed for their willingness to provide treatment of toothache and routine dental care of an HIV-infected individual. RESULTS: Only 15% of the dental practices were willing to provide such care. Willingness to provide treatment did not seem to be influenced by financial factors or the local prevalence of HIV disease. CONCLUSION: Present data suggest that HIV-infected individuals will have difficulty in obtaining dental health care in Jordan.

Oral candidosis in patients with removable dentures.

The prevalence of Candida species with and without denture-related stomatitis were evaluated in 167 Jordanian patients. The study revealed that 47 (28%) of the patients with denture-related stomatitis were colonized with Candida species (clinical group). Candida albicans was responsible for most cases of denture-related stomatitis (72%), and it was the only species capable of secreting aspartic proteinases. The study also indicated that candidal colonization was not influenced by predisposing haematological deficiencies, as both the clinical and control patient groups showed comparable haematological parameters and the differences were not significant (P > 0.05). All Candida species isolates were 100% susceptible to amphotericin B, while these isolates were less susceptible (25-75%) to fluconazole.

An evaluation of self-cured and visible light-cured denture base materials when used as a denture base repair material.

The aim of this study was to compare some of the physical properties of a heat-cured, a self-cured and a visible light-cured acrylic resin, and to evaluate the suitability of visible light-cured resin as a repair material for dentures made of heat-cured acrylic resin. Transverse strength, surface hardness and impact strength were determined for the three materials and the efficiencies of light-cured and self-cured resins, when used as a repair material, were evaluated by testing the transverse strength of repaired heat-cured specimens 1 hour, 1 week and 1 month after repair. The results showed that the rigidity of specimens repaired with light-cured resin improved with longer water storage. However, their transverse strength reached a maximum after one day and was reduced after 1 month. The rigidity and transverse strength of specimens repaired with self-cured resin were not influenced significantly by water storage and the transverse strength was significantly higher than the light-cured repaired specimens.