Perception of Personal Dental Appearance and Dental Aesthetic Index Score Among 18- to 20-year-old College Students in Rural South India.

PURPOSE: To assess the correlation between self-perceived dental appearance and dental malocclusion among 18- to 20-year-old college students in Virajpet, Karnataka. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A stratified random sample consisting of 280 18- to 20-year-old college students in Virajpet were recruited for the study. A pretested Oral Aesthetic Subjective Impact Scale (OASIS) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) were used to assess the subjects' perception of dental aesthetics. Malocclusion was clinically assessed using the Dental Aesthetic Index (DAI). The data were tabulated and analysed using SPSS version 16. The Spearman rankorder correlation coefficient was employed to determine the correlation between self-perceived dental appearance and dental malocclusion. RESULTS: Of the 280 students, 41.8% were females and 58.2% were males. The mean OASIS score was 23.93 (±3.72), the VAS score was 69.61 (±15.78) and DAI 24.80 (±6.29). CONCLUSION: There was a negative correlation between perception of personal dental appearance and the DAI scores in this group.

Ethnic variation of selected dental traits in Coorg.

PURPOSE: In a country like India, in addition to the great innate diversity, there are distinct migrant populations with unique dental traits. AIM: To assess the distribution and degree of expression of cusp of Carabelli of maxillary first permanent molars and shoveling trait of maxillary central incisors, between three ethnic groups of Coorg, namely Kodavas, Tibetans, and Malayalees. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional, indirect, anthropometric, study was carried out among 15- to 30-year-old subjects belonging to three different ethnic origins. A random sample consisting of 91 subjects were recruited for the study. The shovel trait of incisors and the Carabelli trait of molars were recorded according to the classification given by Hrdliƈka and Sousa et al., respectively. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The Kruskal-Wallis test was employed to determine the difference in three populations for shoveling and Carabelli traits. Mann-Whitney Test was used for pair-wise comparisons of three populations. RESULT: Of the total 91 subjects, 31 were Kodavas, 30 Malayalees and 30 Tibetans. There was a statistically significant difference in shoveling trait among the three ethnic groups. For Carabelli traits, there was no statistically significant difference among three ethnic groups. CONCLUSION: The present study findings showed that Tibetans have a higher degree of shoveling trait than the selected South Indian ethnic groups.

Perceptions of dental students in India about smoking cessation counseling.

Smoking kills 900,000 people every year in India. Many studies have shown that counseling from a health professional is an effective method of helping patients quit. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of dental students in Karnataka, India, towards smoking cessation counseling. A questionnaire study was conducted among a convenience sample of 329 dental students comprised of III year and IV year students and interns in three dental colleges in Karnataka, India. Of the 329 students who completed the questionnaire, twenty-two (7 percent) were current smokers, and fifteen (5 percent) were ex-smokers. Although 94 percent responded they were giving antismoking advice to their patients, only 47 percent said they had been taught antismoking advice suitable for patients. While a majority (95 percent) planned to advise patients about tobacco use in their professional careers, significantly fewer (66 percent) indicated that such counseling would help patients to quit. This study of dental students and interns found that a majority intended to provide smoking cessation counseling in their professional career and agreed it is part of their professional role.

Bronchial asthma and dental caries risk: results from a case control study.

AIM: The present study was conducted with the objective of assessing the dental caries status of asthmatic patients in the age group of 11-25 years and to examine the possible association of these conditions to various aspects of bronchial asthma and its management. METHODS AND MATERIALS: The present study was conducted on 80 asthmatic patients receiving treatment at the KMC Hospital, Mangalore, India. They were examined for their caries status, and the scores were compared with an age, sex, and socioeconomic status matched group of 80 non-asthmatic patients as controls. The mean age of asthmatics was 17.4 (+/-4.3) years and mean duration of asthma was 17.69 (+/-7.66) months. RESULTS: The results showed a significantly higher prevalence of caries among asthmatic patients as compared to the matched control group as well as a positive correlation between the duration of asthma and the caries indices. CONCLUSION: There is a need to create awareness among dental practitioners regarding the increased caries risk of asthmatic patients. CLINICIAL SIGNIFICANCE: Special preventive and educational measures will be required to prevent caries and other oral diseases in asthmatic patients.

Is bronchial asthma a risk factor for gingival diseases? A control study.

Asthma is a serious global health problem. People of all ages in countries throughout the world are affected by this chronic airway disorder, which can be severe and sometimes fatal. The prevalence of asthma is increasing everywhere, especially among children. Several oral health conditions are documented among asthmatic patients, such as an increased rate of caries development and reduced salivary flow; an increased prevalence of oral mucosal changes, like oropharyngeal candidiasis and gingivitis; and orofacial abnormalities. The study presented here was conducted to find a relationship between increased levels of plaque and gingivitis and bronchial asthma. Around 80 asthmatic patients were examined for their plaque and gingival status. Their scores were compared with a control group matched for age, sex and socioeconomic status. Results showed a significant increase in plaque and gingival scores among asthmatics as compared to the control group. Hence, there is a need to educate this group of patients about their increased risk of gingival disease and the importance of proper plaque control.

Bacterial contamination and decontamination of toothbrushes after use.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of bacterial contamination of toothbrushes after use and the efficacy of chlorhexidine and Listerine in decontaminating toothbrushes. The effectiveness of covering a toothbrush head with a plastic cap in preventing contamination was also evaluated. It was found that 70% of the used toothbrushes were heavily contaminated with different pathogenic microorganisms. Use of a cap leads to growth of opportunistic microorganisms like Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which may cause infection in the oral cavity. Overnight immersion of a toothbrush in chlorhexidine gluconate (0.2%) was found to be highly effective in preventing such microbial contamination.