Categorical analysis of factors affecting needs and demands for removable dentures among Alexandria Dental Research Center clientele.

An accurate assessment of dental needs is important to public health planners. With this information, it is possible to assess future treatment needs and demands for services including those for removable dentures. The present work aimed to estimate the magnitude and types of needs, and demands for partial or complete removable dentures, to study some factors that may affect the identified needs and demands for removable dentures, in addition to studying the factors that may affect satisfaction with the dentures. The present study was conducted in "Alexandria Dental Research Center". Data were collected by means of interview questionnaire, followed by dental examination of all patients attending the center for the sake of removable dental restorations for a period of 6 months. A further follow up over a period of three months was undertaken to the 330 cases recorded. About one third of the cases demanded partial and/or complete dentures and were above 60 years old. The first purpose for construction of new dentures was mastication, followed by cosmetics. Only one quarter of cases decided to have delayed immediate dentures. Diabetics and those having chronic diseases showed more demand for complete dentures. The most discriminating variable between the demand for different dentures was the missing in the lower anterior teeth followed by missing in the upper both anterior and posterior and then missing in the upper anterior teeth. Satisfaction score increased with advance of age, among males, among those for complete dentures, and those who had had previous dentures. Stepwise logistic regression revealed that the best predictor for overall satisfaction was the history of having previous dentures. Results of the present study, suggest that early screening and treatment of diabetic patients, gathering detailed information by means of a questionnaire before new dentures fabrication may be an important tool for the dentist in predicting and consequently enhancing patient satisfaction with the dentures. Health education should stress on the value of restoring missing teeth and all available options around this.

Epidemiology of non A non B hepatitis in Jeddah, KSA with special reference to aminotransferases as a prognostic criterion.

Viral hepatitis is still a major public health problem all over the world. The introduction of recent methods for diagnosis, improved hygienic and health standards, screening of blood donors together with the availability of vaccines helped greatly in reduction of viral hepatitis in some countries. However, NANB hepatitis is still widespread and constitutes a medical challenge. Since long time, epidemiologic speculation of the presence of more than one virus causing the disease was put forward. In 1956 the first report on a patient with more than two epidoses of acute hepatitis was published. Recently reliable methods for diagnosis of hepatitis A, hepatitis B and delta hepatitis became available. The presence of acute hepatitis in absence of specific serological markers of HAV, HBV and HDV is considered as NANB hepatitis. The diagnosis of the latter disease remains a matter of exclusion in spite of the tremendous efforts to formulate specific tests for diagnosis. Even the experience with immunofluorescence techniques were not successful. At least two routes of transmission are recognized; blood transfusion (endemic) and fecal-oral (epidemic). The course of the disease is usually benign but a good percent proceed to chronicity. Some described severe necrotizing NANB hepatitis complicated by pancytopenia. Very little has been known about NANB hepatitis in Saudi Arabia.

Effect of the administration of vitamin B6 at two levels of intake on xanthurenic acid excretion among oral contraceptive pill users.

PIP: Researchers compared data on 30 25-35 year old women who took the combined oral contraceptive (OC) Ovlar (0.05 mg ethinyl estradiol and 0.5 mg dinorgestrel) for 2-5 years with data on 10 women who did not take OCs to determine the longterm effect of Ovlar on vitamin B6 metabolism and urinary Xanthurenic acid (XA). Cases received either 50 mg or 100 mg of vitamin B6 tablets every day for 4 weeks. Mean XA excretion/24 hours stood much higher among OC users than among the controls (12.51 vs. 2.33; p.01), e.g., XA excretion among OC users ranged from 3.45 to 34.95 mcg/24 hours. Among the OC users, mean urinary XA excretion/24 hours was significantly higher before 50 mg vitamin B6 administration than it was after its administration (13.5 mcg vs. 2.71 mcg; p.01). Administration of 100 mg vitamin B6 had the same effect (11.52 mcg vs. 2.26 mcg; p.01). XA excretion was basically the same for the 2 OC user groups (50 mg and 100 mg administration of vitamin B6). Both doses of vitamin B6 brought about comparable XA excretion levels as the control group. The researchers concluded that 50 mg of vitamin B6 taken daily for 4 weeks is sufficient to correct vitamin B6 deficiency and changed metabolism among OC users. Research has demonstrated that OCs alter vitamin B6 tryptophan metabolism in 2 ways. They increase hepatic tryptophan oxygenase activity resulting in a surplus of tryptophan further in the pathway to niacin. This effect explains the higher production of several metabolites. OCs also reduce the proclivity for kynureninase, the pyridoxal phosphate of vitamin B6 dependent enzyme of tryptophan metabolism perhaps increasing the need for plasma pyridoxal phosphate.^ieng