Impacts of oligodontia on oral health-related quality of life reported by affected children and their parents.

BACKGROUND: Oligodontia (agenesis of six or more permanent teeth) affects functional, emotional, and social aspects of an individual's life. Few published studies have evaluated oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in children with oligodontia and very limited have compared the child and parental perceptions. METHODS: Thirty-five 8- to 18-year-old patients with oligodontia (10 M, 25 F; mean age: 12.4 ± 2.9 years; mean number of permanent teeth missing due to agenesis: 8.9 ± 3.2) recruited from The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, and Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto, and their parents completed the short format of Child Perception Questionnaire (CPQ11-14) and the Parent Child Perception Questionnaire, respectively. RESULTS: Children reported significantly worse overall CPQ score than their parents. Correlations between children's and parents' overall CPQ score, oral symptoms and functional limitations, and social well-being were not statistically significant. However, as children's emotional well-being score increased, parents' score also increased. There was no association between child CPQ score and age, gender, number, and location of permanent tooth agenesis in this sample. There was a significant correlation between overall CPQ score and Site-Specific Tooth Absences. CONCLUSION: Children's overall CPQ score and domain scores were significantly worse than their parents indicating that children with oligodontia had poorer OHRQoL compared to what was perceived by their parents.

In vitro comparative study of conventional radiography and Root ZX apex locator in determining root canal working length.

Success in endodontic treatment depends on various factors. One of the most important is appropriate preparation of the root canal system, in addition to keeping the periapical region intact as much as possible. This is achieved by determining the penetration depth of the instruments into the canal or the "working" length. Several methods are introduced for working-length determination. The most popular techniques are radiography and electronic apex locators. One type of apex locator is the Root ZX. The purpose of this study was to compare the accuracy of the Root ZX in vitro with conventional radiography.

The effects of bracket removal on enamel.

BACKGROUND: Enamel cracks, which may develop during debonding orthodontic brackets, may jeopardise the integrity of the enamel and detract from the appearance of the teeth. AIM: To compare the adhesive remnant scores (ARI), the number, lengths and directions of enamel cracks before bonding and after debonding metal orthodontic brackets with three different methods. METHODS: Metal brackets were bonded with a self-curing orthodontic adhesive to the buccal surfaces of 75 recently extracted upper and lower premolars. The teeth were randomly divided into three groups, and the brackets removed either with a side-cutter, a single-blade bracket remover or a two-blade bracket remover. The number, directions and lengths of the enamel cracks before bonding and after debonding were compared. The number of 'pronounced' cracks (i.e. cracks that could be identified with the naked eye) and the ARI scores in each group were also compared. RESULTS: After debonding, the number of enamel cracks and pronounced cracks, and the lengths of the enamel cracks increased in all groups (p < 0.001). There were no statistically significant differences between the groups. The ARI scores and the direction of propagation of the enamel cracks were not influenced by the debonding method used (p = 0.73). CONCLUSIONS: Concerns about the enamel damage caused by the three methods of debonding justify caution. Despite widespread use of these methods, it would be sensible to search for methods that result in less enamel damage.