Chitosan nanoparticle applications in dentistry: a sustainable biopolymer.

The epoch of Nano-biomaterials and their application in the field of medicine and dentistry has been long-lived. The application of nanotechnology is extensively used in diagnosis and treatment aspects of oral diseases. The nanomaterials and its structures are being widely involved in the production of medicines and drugs used for the treatment of oral diseases like periodontitis, oral carcinoma, etc. and helps in maintaining the longevity of oral health. Chitosan is a naturally occurring biopolymer derived from chitin which is seen commonly in arthropods. Chitosan nanoparticles are the latest in the trend of nanoparticles used in dentistry and are becoming the most wanted biopolymer for use toward therapeutic interventions. Literature search has also shown that chitosan nanoparticles have anti-tumor effects. This review highlights the various aspects of chitosan nanoparticles and their implications in dentistry.

Management regulations for odontogenic keratocyst: a case report and review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: Reconstruction of the entire dentition with odontogenic keratocyst is a very challenging quandary. Most cases of odontogenic keratocyst are often reported to be benign, resulting in severe occlusal discrepancies with the maxillary and mandibular dentition. Dental radiographs occasionally reveal an uncommon, locally aggressive developing cyst termed as odontogenic keratocyst, which is typically located in the posterior jaw. When this cyst occurs in the anterior region, it is often misdiagnosed with other periapical lesions due to its lack of response to pulp vitality tests. CASE PRESENTATION: This clinical case scenario demarcates the endodontic management of a patient diagnosed with odontogenic keratocyst. A 37-year-old Indian male patient reported to the department with throbbing pain in the lower left posterior tooth requiring endodontic therapy. This patient also presented with odontogenic keratocyst in the anterior region of the jaw, for which he had undergone surgical rehabilitation. This case report highlights the clinical protocol for the endodontic therapy in patient diagnosed with ododntogenic keratocyst. Masticatory impairment was not visible after the follow-up period and the treatment outcome was successful. CONCLUSION: This case report details the presentation, characteristic radiographic findings, and endodontic management of a patient with an extremely rare condition of odontogenic keratocyst. The management involves multidisciplinary approach for the rehabilitation.

Knowledge of handling medical emergencies among general dental practitioners pan India: a cross-sectional survery.

BACKGROUND: Medical emergency situations in dental clinics have been contemplated to be an issue in most of the countries by reason of dentist's lack of knowledge and preparedness to attend emergency situations in dental offices. The aim of this paper is to observe the knowledge, attitude, and perceived confidence of the general dental practitioners regarding emergency medical care and its practical application. Questionnaire on knowledge assessment was circulated among 500 dentists using printed questionnaire formats and various social media platforms. The questionnaire included details on treating hypertensive patients, cardiopulmonary resuscitation training, accessibility of medical emergency equipments in the dental clinics, prevalence of medical emergency cases in the dental office and the self-assessed competence to handle medical emergency situations in the dental clinics. Data was surveyed and scrutinized using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 17 (SPSS Inc., Chicago IL). Descriptive statistics was tabulated and Chi square tests was applied. FINDINGS: 500 general dental practitioners pan India were involved in the study (294 were females and 207 were males). They were grouped into different age groups (20-30 yrs, 30-40 yrs, 40-50 yrs, 50 and above) and experience (0-5 yrs, 5-10 yrs and more than 10 years). 279 participants did not attend any medical emergency training whereas, 222 participants from all groups attended training program. It was observed that with increased experience in the field, the knowledge, awareness and confidence to treat medical emergency situation in the dental clinics was better. Dentists should update themselves from time-to-time with the latest technologies in the field and need to attend training programs to handle any medical emergency situations in the dental offices. Medical emergencies in a dental clinic can be encountered at any point of time and the clinician should have apt knowledge in handling such situations. Majority of the dentists feel subdued in managing medical situations in dental offices. Training and workshops for handling medical situations in the dental offices should be mandated at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. This will help the dentist to shape one's confidence in managing such situations without apprehension. Availability of proper infrastructure and equipments is recommended in every dental clinics so as to ease the handling of the situation. CONCLUSION: This paper enlightens the need of basic life support training on regular basis among the dentists to improve the competence among them and to improve the confidence in handling such situations.

Pan-dent-emic: safety considerations for dental surgery in the era of COVID-19.

The global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic spread has seized the entire world and has created extensive health concerns in the general population. Despite various efforts to prevent the pandemic spread, the flare-up of this disease is still soaring due to the community spread in every area. The droplet spread from the afflicted is of the highest concern because of its rapid spread to uninfected individuals. Dental treatments have to be planned and carried out with extreme caution and dental personnel should take extreme care and follow meticulous guidelines when treating an individual with SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) infection. This article highlights the clinical picture of COVID-19 (coronavirus diseases 2019) and presents a summary of precautionary and prophylactic measures in preventing the cross-infection and the nosocomial spread of the infection in a dental setting.