Estimation of Age by Evaluating the Occlusal Tooth Wear in Molars: A Study on Dakshina Kannada Population.

PURPOSE: Assessment of teeth to estimate age in the living as well as the dead is well documented in the literature. Though applied in conjunction with other parameters in Gustafson's technique, attrition of teeth solely is an underexplored indicator for age estimation mainly in India. Most of the studies using attrition of teeth have been conducted in bioarchaeology, and in populations where studies are being conducted in forensic contexts, the results are debatable. Thus, the present study aimed to evaluate the accuracy of age estimation using the Average Stage of Attrition (ASA) method by Li and Ji in adults of the Dakshina Kannada region. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional study assessed the degree of attrition in both maxillary and mandibular first and second molars of 136 adults of Dakshina Kannada origin (age range: 20-70 years) according to the 10 stages given by Li and Ji to derive population-specific linear regression equations. RESULTS: Univariate analysis of prediction of age with attrition showed a significant association of attrition score with age, stratified by sex, arch as well as in total (p-value <0.001) with a standard error of estimate of 9.231 years. The estimated age was within ±5 years of the actual age in 44.2% of the females and 50.0% of the males. A comparative review of 23 studies done to estimate age from attrition score clinically is documented in the manuscript. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that evaluation of tooth wear by the Average Stage of Attrition (ASA) method can be used as a non-invasive means to aid in the determination of age in adults of Dakshina Kannada origin. Although the error increases with age, this method provides a measurable means of seriation into older and younger categories.

A correlation of immunohistochemical expression of TP53 and CDKN1A in oral epithelial dysplasia and oral squamous cell carcinoma.

PURPOSE: Oral epithelial dysplasia (OED) occurs on exposure of epithelial cells to carcinogens and genetic alteration. Once the reversible cell damage is surpassed, cells either undergo apoptosis or transform into malignancy, chiefly oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Progressive accumulation of genetic errors (including mutations in TP53 and CDKN1A) is associated with the initiation and progression of potentially malignant oral lesions toward frank malignancy. The present study attempted to correlate the immunohistochemical expression of CDKN1A and TP53 with increasing severity of OED along with increased aggressiveness of OSCC as reflected in the clinicopathologic variables. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Tissue sections from forty biopsy-proven cases of OED and OSCC were stained with anti-TP53 and anti-CDKN1A mouse monoclonal antibodies. One hundred cells in each case were counted under high power magnification. RESULTS: Poorly differentiated OSCC showed the highest TP53 expression (mean = 70.285), with least expression seen in mild dysplasia (mean = 22.125) (P < 0.001). Higher TP53 count was seen in cases with margin involvement, without recurrence and lymph node involvement and in cases which died of disease. CDKN1A expression was seen only in five cases and that too focally in the cytoplasm, thereby warranting removal of analysis of CDKN1A positivity from the study. CONCLUSION: The expression of TP53 in OED highlights its role in initial carcinogenesis. Although the role of CDKN1A in the cell cycle has been documented, its relationship to various clinical and pathological variables of OSCC and its different treatment modalities could not be adequately assessed.

Demirjian's method in the estimation of age: A study on human third molars.

AIM: The primary aim of the following study is to estimate the chronological age based on the stages of third molar development following the eight stages (A to H) method of Demirjian et al. (along with two modifications-Orhan) and secondary aim is to compare third molar development with sex and age. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The sample consisted of 115 orthopantomograms from South Indian subjects with known chronological age and gender. Multiple regression analysis was performed with chronological age as the dependable variable and third molar root development as independent variable. All the statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS 11.0 package (IBM ® Corporation). RESULTS: Statistically no significant differences were found in third molar development between males and females. Depending on the available number of wisdom teeth in an individual, R (2) varied for males from 0.21 to 0.48 and for females from 0.16 to 0.38. New equations were derived for estimating the chronological age. CONCLUSION: The chronological age of a South Indian individual between 14 and 22 years may be estimated based on the regression formulae. However, additional studies with a larger study population must be conducted to meet the need for population-based information on third molar development.

Lingual cyst lined by respiratory epithelium: a case report and review of literature.

The present report describes a case of a lingual cyst lined by a respiratory epithelium occurring in a 1-year-old girl. The article also reviews the cases published in the literature under the heading of lingual cysts and segregates all the cases having predominant respiratory epithelium as the cystic lining. Reclassification, with more descriptive histologic terminology to name the lingual cysts, has been proposed.