Effect of laser therapy combined with biomaterials for treatment of periodontal bone defects

Objective: Evidence has shown that laser therapy can have a positive effect on the regeneration of periodontal tissues and improve the postoperative period through its antiinflammatory properties. The aim of the present review was to assess the effects of low-level and high-level laser in combination with different biomaterials on the regeneration of periodontal tissues in infrabony defects and furcation lesions. Materials and Methods: An electronic search of the PubMed database was performed, using ten specific descriptors. The search strategy gave 232 papers, 45 of which were initially selected based on the title, and following the reading of the abstracts, six of them were selected. After a complete reading of the texts, two papers were excluded for not fulfilling the inclusion criteria. Results: Thus, four papers were included in the present review, two of which employed low-level laser and two employed high-level laser in combination with enamel matrix derivative and bioactive glass. Non-significant results were found in the comparison of irradiated and non-irradiated groups using high-level laser, whereas statistically significant differences favoring the irradiated group were found with the use of low-level laser. Conclusions: Based on the data analyzed, low-level laser therapy has a positive effect on the regeneration of periodontal tissues, while high-level laser seems not to enhance the effect of enamel matrix derivative in the regeneration process.

Hypertensive brain stem encephalopathy in a patient with chronic renal failure.

Hypertensive brain stem encephalopathy is a rare disorder that can be seen in severe hypertensive encephalopathy. Patients with chronic renal failure are more prone to develop this disorder because a mild elevation of the blood pressure can already induce brain changes. It is important to diagnose this entity as soon as possible because the symptoms and brain stem lesions are reversible following treatment and because it is important to exclude brain stem ischemia in the diagnostic work-up. Brain MRI and particularly diffusion weighted images are crucial for this purpose.

[Adolescent mortality in an urban area of southeastern Brazil, 1984-1993]. / Mortalidade de adolescentes em área urbana da região Sudeste do Brasil, 1984-1993.

Mortality among adolescents resident in the municipal district of Botucatu, State of S. Paulo, Brazil, according to age group (10 to 14 and 15 to 19 years), sex, occupation and cause of death, during the period from 1984 to 1993, was analysed. The mortality data were obtained from death certificates and the population estimates were based upon census figures. There was great variation in the mortality rates of the years studied. The mortality was greater among the males of the older age group (15 to 19 years), including both students and workers. There was predominance of external causes of mortality which suggests the need for further studies its determining factors. The data indicate that health programs targeted at regarding adolescents, their families and community should be developed since these are avoidable causes of death.