Periodontal status and metabolic syndrome in middle-aged Japanese.

BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) increases the risk of various lifestyle-related diseases. Although some studies have reported a significant relationship between periodontal status and MetS, little information exists about the nature of the relationship between periodontal health status and MetS. METHODS: Comprehensive health examinations of 6,421 Japanese individuals (aged 34 to 77 years) were performed. Five components (obesity, high blood pressure, low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertriglyceridemia, and high plasma glucose) of MetS were evaluated, and individuals with ≥3 positive components were defined as having MetS. The periodontal parameters were periodontal probing depth (PD) and clinical attachment level (CAL), and each parameter was divided into three categories (none/mild: ≤3 mm; moderate: 4 to 5 mm; and severe: ≥6 mm). RESULTS: When PD and CAL were analyzed separately in multivariate models, both parameters were significantly associated with MetS. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis using a combination of PD and CAL as an independent variable, individuals with severe PD and severe CAL or with moderate PD and moderate CAL had significantly higher odds ratios for MetS, but severe CAL without severe PD was not significantly associated with MetS. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that periodontal status, particularly in individuals suspected to have untreated periodontal infection indicated by ≥4 mm PD, is significantly associated with MetS.

Relationship between receiving a workplace oral health examination including oral health instruction and oral health status in the Japanese adult population.

OBJECTIVES: Dental caries and periodontal disease are highly prevalent in the Japanese adult population. Oral examination is an effective method to find various oral health problems in their early stages. However, workplace oral examination is not common in Japan. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between receiving workplace oral health examination, including oral health instruction, and oral health status in the Japanese adult population. METHODS: This study was performed using data from 4,484 Japanese employees aged 35-74 yr. The proportion of teeth with a probing depth (PD) ≥4 mm and the number of decayed teeth were used for periodontal disease and dental caries parameters. The subjects were asked by questionnaire about past experiences with workplace oral health examination. RESULTS: The subjects who received a workplace oral health examination every year had better periodontal health status than those receiving an examination for the first time. The odds ratio for having ≥10% of teeth with PD ≥4 mm in the subjects who received workplace oral health examination every year was 0.63 (p<0.05) after adjustment for age, sex, smoking habits, tooth-brushing habits, routine visits to dental clinics, number of missing teeth, and oral hygiene status, in a multivariate, multinomial logistic regression analysis. On the other hand, no significant relationship was found between workplace oral health examination and number of decayed teeth. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that workplace oral health examination accompanied by oral health instruction may be effective for maintenance of periodontal health.

5-Aminolevulinic acid-mediated photodynamic therapy to superficial malignant skin tumors using Super Lizer.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) using topically applied 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) has become a generally accepted treatment modality for superficial malignant skin tumors. However, the costly excimer-dye laser, diode laser and light-emitting diode (LED) frequently used to administrate PDT are impractical to use in most dermatology clinics. This study evaluated the effectiveness of ALA-mediated PDT using a Super Lizer (Tokyo Iken, Tokyo, Japan) equipped with band-pass filters in 38 patients with superficial malignant skin tumors (33 cases of actinic keratosis and five cases of Bowen's disease). Twenty-one cases (18 cases of actinic keratosis and three cases of Bowen's disease) were successfully treated, and the other 17 cases (15 cases of actinic keratosis and two cases of Bowen's disease) showed partial remission after single or repeated administration of PDT. PDT repeated three times at weekly intervals was more effective against actinic keratosis than randomly repeated procedures. The Super Lizer is easy to handle and move, and is less expensive than other known machinery and is useful for PDT in dermatology, especially under the protocol of three times at weekly intervals for the treatment of actinic keratosis.

Case of cutaneous malignant melanoma surviving 16 years with late recurrence.

Late recurrence, defined as that occurring 10 or more years after diagnosis, is an unusual event in cutaneous malignant melanoma (MM). A 59-year-old woman presented with a black nodule measuring 10 mm x 9 mm on the sole of her right foot. She was diagnosed with MM and the tumor was totally excised with 5 cm of the normal surrounding skin. Eleven years after the operation, five in-transit metastases were found in her right limb. They were all excised and beta-interferon (IFN-beta) was injected into the skin around the postoperative scars. However, numerous new in-transit skin metastases have been emerging every year in her right limb. Fifty-four in-transit skin metastases have so far been found. Recently, there have been few in-transit metastases. All in-transit metastatic lesions were excised and local IFN-beta injections were conducted continuously. There is no evidence of metastases to the internal organs or lymph nodes. This report describes this case with a brief review of the published work concerning the rare late recurrences of MM.