ITI titanium plasma-sprayed screw implants in the treatment of edentulous mandibles: a follow-up study of 39 patients.

The outcomes of 153 ITI titanium plasma-sprayed screw implants were studied in 39 patients. Four implants were placed in the edentulous mandible between the mental foramina and used as support for a denture prosthesis. Thirteen implants in six patients had been lost during the follow-up time of 3 to 10 years (mean 5.6 years). The mean annual bone resorption was 0.25 mm (SD 0.29 mm; range 0 to 1.37 mm). Bone loss was smaller in patients with prosthetic loading applied within 7 postoperative days than in those with delayed prosthetic treatment. No evidence of bone loss was seen around 37 (26.4%) implants. The cumulative and overall success rates for titanium plasma-sprayed implants were 80.8% and 91.5%, respectively. The corresponding figures for the patients were 86.8% and 94.9%.

Clinical aspects of oral implantology.

During the past few decades the use of implants in dentistry has increased markedly. Endosteal titanium implants are now most commonly used for replacement of single teeth and partial and full dentition. The success rates reported for osseointegrated implants depend on the type of implant and the criteria of success. Results are better for the mandible than the maxilla. Patient selection, careful planning of surgical and prosthetic treatment, and atraumatic, aseptic surgical procedures are essential for successful results. This article reviews various implant methods used in our Department and gives examples of treatment in particular clinical situations.

Factors predisposing to oral yeast infections.

The discussion of factors predisposing to oral yeast infections is very important, and we can ask: what is primary and what is secondary? Without predisposing factors it is difficult to have oral yeast infection, and a yeast infection may also be the first sign of a developing basic illness. As long as the predisposing factors cannot be eliminated, recurrences of oral yeast infections are to be expected. We can say that local and systemic factors permit this micro-organism to cause disease and that it is extremely rare to find a case of oral candidosis in which one or more of these factors cannot be identified. There are many kinds of lists in the textbooks and some review articles in the literature, but more research is needed for better understanding of factors predisposing to oral yeast infections.

[Few aspects with regard to diagnosis and treatment of oral candidiasis]. / Noen synspunkter på diagnostikk og behandling av oral candidose.

The present article discusses the rationale for daily use of the combination of amphotericin B (4 lozenges) intraorally and chlorhexidine denture disinfection (15 min) extraorally vs separate use of polyene antimycotics or chlorhexidine in the treatment of infectious denture stomatitis, frequently considered as the most common form of oral candidiasis. The amphotericin B/chlorhexidine combination has been standard treatment of infectious denture stomatitis in Scandinavia for more than 15 years. It was found to be the best among several regimens tested in 100 patients after a series of subjective and objective parameters had been used to record treatment efficacy in controlled clinical and microbiological studies. The fact that there was a significant (5% level) higher reduction of yeasts cultured from the palatal mucosa with this drug regimen than with the other modalities tested, including chlorhexidine lozenges/chlorhexidine denture disinfection, suggested that no drug interaction of clinical importance took place in vivo with this combination. Therefore, care should be taken when extrapolating findings on drug interaction in vitro (12) to the in vivo situation, and guidelines for treatment of oral candidiasis should preferably be based on controlled clinical and microbiological trials with patients. In order to prevent relapse of oral candidiasis after treatment, local and general predisposing factors should be eliminated, in particular reestablishment of plaque on the fitting side of the denture should be prevented.

The visual analog scale in multiple-dose evaluations of analgesics.

A double-blind, randomized trial was carried out in patients suffering from pain after removal of an impacted lower wisdom tooth. The analgesic effects of a codeine preparation (Staralgin), a dextropropoxyphene preparation (Doleron novum), and paracetamol were compared in a multiple-dose study of 94 patients. The assessments of pain were made hourly on a visual analog scale, and the evaluation was carried out according to a method which takes into account both duration of effect and number of tablets taken. The most pronounced pain reduction and the highest proportion of pain-free patients were reached with the dextropropoxyphene preparation. The reported side effects were few and equally distributed among the treatment groups. The method of evaluation is discussed, and it was noted that the pain score at tablet intake might be of significant importance in comparison of analgesics.

Penetration of disposable needles.

Six types of disposable injection needles were tested clinically for the intensity of pain caused, and their penetration capacity measured. The force nedded differed greatly with different needle types (120-250 mN). The design of the needle point was observed to have the greatest effect on the pentration capacity and the intensity of pain. To penetrate the tissue well, the needle point should have secondary bevels at the tip of the bevelled surface. The majority of the needles fulfilled this requirement.

Activity of arginine aminopeptidases and phosphatases in inflamed palatal mucosa in denture stomatitis: a histochemical and biochemical study.

Aminopeptidase and phosphatase activity of denture stomatitis mucosa was studied histochemically and biochemically. Stomatitis clearly increased the activity of these enzymes. An enzyme resembling the chloride-activated aminopeptidase B, usually involved in inflammatory processes, was recognized in the inflamed tissue in higher concentrations than in the control tissue.