Evaluation of Oral Health-related Quality of Life in Patient with Removable Prosthesis: A Cross-sectional Study.

AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between oral health and quality of life in removable prosthesis users. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An investigative cross-sectional study was designed, and 200 participants were considered based on calculations from the studies in the past. The Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP)-14 survey comprises two parts in the study. Questions related to sociodemographic factors that documented age, gender, and type of removable prosthesis were included in the initial part of survey. Questions related to impact of oral health on quality of life make up the latter part of the survey. The answers ranged from "Definitely no" to "Definitely yes" for every item on a scale having 5 points. The likely range of scores is from 14 to 70. Data were analyzed by using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software program, version 20.0 for Windows. A value of P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: A survey evaluating the relationship between oral health and quality of life was adequately completed by 200 participants. Of these, 18 (22%) were women and 154 (78%) were men. The parameters such as gender, age, and the relationship between oral health and quality of life did not show significant difference either within groups or between the groups. The enrolled participants were wearing different dental prostheses such as complete dentures (CDs) in both upper (U) jaw and lower (L) jaw (19%), U jaw (3%), L jaw (4%) and removable prostheses in both jaws (30%), U jaw (24%) and L jaw (20%). No statistically significant differences were seen between them. The scores for oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) were associated positively with removable prosthesis score (r = 0.122) and were statistically significant. CONCLUSION: This study concluded that the use of removable prosthesis may positively impact OHRQoL. The period of usage of removable dentures was the highly significant parameter affecting patient gratification, whereas the practice of using removable prostheses was the highly significant parameter affecting the relationship between oral health and quality of life.

Caries Risk Assessment of 12-13-year-old Government and Private School Going Children of Mysore City Using Cariogram: A Comparative Study.

AIM: The aim of this study is to assess the caries risk assessment of 12-13-year-old government and private school going children of Mysore city using Cariogram. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional examination was carried out on a total of 104 government and private schoolchildren aged 12-13 years. Ten factors from the Cariogram software(D Bratthall, Computer software, Malmo, Sweden) were included from study participant's records to complete the Cariogram. The percentage of "chances of avoiding new lesions" (caries risk) among government and private school study participants were obtained from Cariogram, and the participants were classified into five risk groups. Statistical analysis was performed using the software program Statistical Package of Social Science (version 17.0, SPSS Inc., Chicago IL, USA). RESULTS: Findings revealed that there is slight difference in caries risk among government and private schoolchildren, where 48% caries risk development and 52% chance to avoid dental caries were showed in government schoolchildren, and 51% caries risk development and 49% chance to avoid dental caries were showed in private schoolchildren, according to Cariogram. Decayed, missing, and filled teeth component, mutans streptococci, and Lactobacillus counts were slightly higher in private schoolchildren compared with government schoolchildren. CONCLUSION: The private schoolchildren had less favorable values than government schoolchildren for most of the caries-related factors. Cariogram can be the most modest and reliable tool for caries prediction, thus aiding in identifying different risk groups in a community so that appropriate preventive strategies can be provided to overcome new carious lesion formation.

Effectiveness of Different Bristle Designs of Toothbrushes and Periodontal Status among Fixed Orthodontic Patients: A Double-blind Crossover Design.

AIM: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of different bristle designs of toothbrushes and the periodontal status among patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This randomized controlled trial (RCT) consisted of 45 adolescents (comprising 20 males and 25 females) undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment. The study participants were randomly allocated to three groups, each group being assigned a locally available toothbrush with a particular design of toothbrush bristle. In the first test phase, group I study participants were allocated to toothbrush with flat bristles, group II study subjects were allocated to toothbrush with zigzag bristles, and group III study participants were allocated to toothbrush with crisscross bristles. The study participants were recalled after 4 weeks to check the effectiveness of the allocated toothbrushes. A washout period of 1 week was maintained to ensure that there was no carryover effect of the different bristle designs. In the second test phase, each patient used the opposite toothbrush bristle design (group I: toothbrush with zigzag bristles, group II: toothbrush with crisscross bristles, and group III: toothbrush with flat bristles). Plaque scores were measured using Turesky-Gilmore-Glickman modification of Quigley-Hein plaque index (PI). RESULTS: In both phase 1 and 2 of this RCT, toothbrush with crisscross bristles exhibited maximum plaque reduction among the three different bristle design toothbrushes following 30 days (p = 0.312 ± 0.102 and 0.280 ± 0.110, respectively), which was statistically significant. CONCLUSION: It was concluded that all the three designs of toothbrushes were effective in removing plaque in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances. But among the three different toothbrushes, toothbrush with crisscross bristles showed the highest mean plaque reduction. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Plaque accumulation around the orthodontic brackets and gingival margins is quite common among the fixed orthodontic patients, who encounter difficulty in maintaining good oral hygiene. Specially designed toothbrushes are very essential for effective plaque removal among the patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment.

Sense of Coherence and Oral Health Status among 16 to 17-year-old Preuniversity Students of Virajpet Taluk: A Cross-sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: Sense of coherence (SOC) is an important psychological factor that enables people to cope with stressors and successfully maintain and improve health. Oral health affects general health and impacts quality of life. The aim of the present study is to assess the association between SOC and oral health status among 16 to 17-year-old preuniversity students in Virajpet, Karnataka, India. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 361 subjects were included in the study by stratified cluster random sampling method. Sense of coherence was measured using the Kannada-translated 13-item scale proposed by Antonovsky. Oral health status was measured using oral hygiene index - simplified (OHI-S), Silness and Loe Plaque index, Community Periodontal Index (CPI) and Loss of Attachment (LA) as well as decayed-missing-filled teeth (DMFT) index. Chi-square test and analysis of variance were used to evaluate the association between SOC and oral health. RESULTS: There was no statistically significant association of plaque index and caries experience with SOC, whereas the SOC scores were found to be significantly associated with loss of attachment and OHI-S among the subjects. The distribution of the mean number of sextants with loss of attachment was more among males. CONCLUSION: Sense of coherence has a role to play in the maintenance of oral health. There is a need to closely examine the psychodynamic factors that affect oral health. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: There is good evidence that SOC is a resource capable of promoting health, strengthening resilience, and developing a subjectively positive state of health.