Short and Long Term Impact on Oral Health Related Quality of Life After Maxillofacial Trauma.

BACKGROUND: Maxillofacial fracture cases require detailed diagnosis, planning and timely restoration of the proper function and aesthetics of the traumatized tissues, as well as appropriate physical, psychological and social rehabilitation to achieve the best possible treatment outcome. Oral health related quality of life allows oral healthcare professionals to evaluate the efficacy of treatment protocols from patients' perspectives and allows clinician to address and measure the clinically meaningful changes. METHODS: The study was carried out in 86 patients with fracture of any one facial bone from September 2020 to March 2022 in Department of Dental Surgery, Nepalgunj Medical College Teaching Hospital, Kohalpur, Nepal. The quality of life was assessed by using Nepali version of Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) questionnaire, modified to address maxillofacial injury/treatment. RESULTS: A total of 86 patients (male: Female ratio=40:3) were included in the study with mean age of 30.69±11.88 years. Patient with fracture of mandible and midface showed complete recovery on OHIP-14 Scale after 6 months whereas, in patient with panfacial fracture some residual effect in quality of life (0.13±0.50) was seen in two domains psychological discomfort (0.06±0.25) and social disability (0.06±0.25) even after 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: Impact of maxillofacial fracture on quality of life is long lasting and huge on patients. Referral to a psychiatrist or psychologist might be beneficial in addition to open reduction and internal fixation of maxillofacial fractures as early as possible to achieve better quality of life in maxillofacial fracture cases.

Atrial Fibrillation among Patients Admitted to the Department of Internal Medicine in a Tertiary Care Centre: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: Atrial fibrillation is one of the commonest arrhythmias with an overall prevalence estimated to be 0.4-1% in the general population. The objective of this study was to find out the prevalence of atrial fibrillation among patients admitted to the Department of Internal Medicine in a tertiary care centre. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among patients admitted to the Department of Internal Medicine of a tertiary care centre from 01 March 2021 to 01 March 2022. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Committee (Reference number: IRC-478/2021). Convenience sampling method was used. Data were collected from the hospital records using a semi-structured study proforma including demography, clinical presentation, laboratory investigations, electrocardiogram, 2-dimension echocardiography, and CHA2DS2VASc score. Point estimate and 95% Confidence Interval were calculated. RESULTS: Among 27,980 patients, atrial fibrillation was found in 185 (0.66%) (0.58-0.77, 95% Confidence Interval). Among them 66 (35.67%) were in the age group of 61-70 years and 97 (52.43%) were females. Dyspnea was present in 149 (80.54%), palpitation in 137 (74.05%) and pedal edema in 117 (63.27%). Valvular atrial fibrillation was seen in 101 (54.59%) and non-valvular atrial fibrillation was seen in 84 (45.41%) patients. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of atrial fibrillation was found to be similar when compared to other studies conducted in similar settings.