Beneficial Therapeutic Effects of Sildenafil on Bone Healing in Animals Treated with Bisphosphonate.

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of sildenafil on mandibular fracture healing in animals treated with zoledronic acid by using histologic, histomorphometric, immunohistochemical, and radiodensitometric methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 36 Sprague-Dawley rats (3 months old) were used. All animals were treated intraperitoneally with 0.1 mg/kg zoledronate three times per week, for a total of 8 weeks. Postoperatively, the animals were divided into two groups: zoledronate group (Z), which had no treatment applied (n = 18), and zoledronate + sildenafil (ZS), which were treated daily with 10 mg/kg sildenafil (n = 18). Each group was divided into two subgroups and the animals were sacrificed at the end of week 1 (Z1 and ZS1, n = 9) and week 4 (Z4 and ZS4, n = 9) after the operation. Histologic, histomorphometric, immunohistochemical analysis, and radiodensitometry were performed on the test subjects. RESULTS: Sildenafil-treated groups showed a significant increase in fracture healing scores. This result was supported by the densitometric, histologic, histomorphometric, and immunohistochemical findings. CONCLUSIONS: Sildenafil may have positive effects on accelerating and improving fracture healing, and it may be used as a supporting factor in bone healing in patients treated with bisphosphonate (BP) to prevent negative effects of BP's.

Analyses of 1100 supernumerary teeth in a nonsyndromic Turkish population: A retrospective multicenter study.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to analyze the clinical and radiological features of supernumerary teeth (ST), record the related complications, and discuss different forms of treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 111,293 patients were examined over a 3-year period. The patients' ages and genders, in addition to the number, morphology, location, position, shape, developmental stage, and eruption status of ST and associated complications, were recorded. RESULTS: Among the 111,293 patients, there were 851 (0.76%) patients with 1100 ST. Of these patients, 478 (56.2%) were males, and 373 (43.8%) were females, with a mean age of 22.71. Most of the 1100 ST were located in the maxilla, 437 (39.72%) were a conical shape, with 82.81% of these including a fully developed tooth. A mesiodens was the most common type of supernumerary tooth (n=284, 33.37%), followed by distomolars (n=204, 23.97%) and parapremolars (n=146, 17.16%). Among the 1100 ST, 422 (38.36%) were associated with complications. CONCLUSIONS: No previous studies in the literature have examined in detail so many cases with ST. The demographic profile of the patients with ST presented herein provides useful additional epidemiological information.

Complex and compound odontomas: Analysis of 69 cases and a rare case of erupted compound odontoma.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to analyze clinic and radiologic features of the 69 odontoma cases and present a rare case of erupted compound odontoma in the oral cavity. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The 69 cases were analyzed with regard to the following parameters: age, gender, location, associated unerupted teeth, missing teeth, radiological and histopathological features and treatment protocols. RESULTS: Of the 69 cases, 49 were compound odontoma and 20 were complex odontoma. There was a female predilection for both compound and complex odontomas. Compound odontoma occurred more often in the anterior region of the jaws; complex lesions occurred more often at the posterior mandible. The most common clinical manifestations were the retention of permanent teeth. CONCLUSION: Compound odontomas rarely erupt into the mouth. The presented case is the 13 th case of erupted compound odontoma reported in the literature. The treatment of choice is surgical removal of the odontoma. In the case of odontomas associated to impacted teeth, the teeth should be preserved in wait of spontaneous eruption, or alternatively fenestration followed by orthodontic traction is indicated. Regular follow-up period is crucial to evaluate the prognosis of these teeth.