ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Adherence to dietary advice and proper oral hygiene practices during orthodontic treatment are critical to maintaining good oral health and achieving successful treatment results. Thus, understanding patients' habits and practices before, during, and after orthodontic treatment is needed to ensure better oral health-related behavior among these patients. PURPOSE: To investigate sugar-related dietary habits, visits to dental hygienists and dentists, and oral hygiene practices among patients during orthodontic treatment and after treatment compared to patients before treatment. METHODS: A cross-sectional self-administered survey collected data from 375 patients (aged 10 years and older) from the Orthodontic Department at King Abdulaziz University Dental Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Patients were grouped according to their history of receiving orthodontic treatment into: patients before orthodontic treatment, patients during treatment, and patients after treatment. The survey assessed sugar-related dietary habits, frequency of visits to hygienists and dentists, and oral hygiene practices. RESULTS: Patients during orthodontic treatment and those after treatment were less likely to eat sticky food compared to patients before treatment (OR=0.4, 95% CI=0.2-0.9 and OR=0.5, 95% CI=0.3-0.9, respectively). No significant differences were found in the odds of dental visits among the groups. Compared to patients before orthodontic treatment, patients during treatment and patients after treatment had higher odds of tooth brushing twice or more per day (OR=4.8, 95% CI=1.7-14.3, and OR=4.0, 95% CI=1.2-13.6, respectively) and were more likely to brush for an adequate time (OR=2.6, 95% CI=1.6-4.4 and OR=1.9, 95% CI=1.0-3.5, respectively). Moreover, the likelihood of flossing once daily was higher in patients during treatment and in patients after treatment relative to those before treatment. However, only patients during orthodontic treatment used interdental brushes more than patients before treatment. CONCLUSION: Patients' oral health-related behavior seems to improve during and after orthodontic treatment. The findings of this study suggest that orthodontists can play a role in improving oral hygiene practices among their patients. More reinforcement of dietary instructions and periodic dental and hygiene visits is needed during orthodontic follow-up appointments.
ABSTRACT
This article summarises the rheumatoid diseases that particularly affect the temporomandibular joint (TMJ): psoriatic arthropathy, ankylosing spondylitis, and rheumatoid arthritis. Management is by a joint approach between rheumatologists and maxillofacial surgeons with a specific interest in diseases of the TMJ who give early surgical advice. Steroid injections, whilst useful in the short term, are not useful for long term or repeated treatment, and may lead to collapse of the joint and development of a deformed anterior open bite. These disorders should be managed primarily using standard conservative regimens, and failure to respond should lead to diagnostic or therapeutic arthroscopy and appropriate surgical treatment. When ankylosis develops or the joint collapses, a replacement joint should be considered and patients should be referred to an appropriately trained surgeon.
