Silver Diamine Fluoride Protocol for Reducing Preventable Dental Hospitalisations in Victorian Children

IntroductionThis study was designed to assess whether a dental caries management protocol combining a single application of 38% silver diamine fluoride (SDF) with comprehensive oral health education will successfully divert high-risk children from dental treatment under dental general anaesthesia (DGA), arrest active caries in primary teeth, and improve parent-reported child oral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL).MethodsChildren aged 2 to 10 years, who attended two public dental agencies in Victoria, Australia, and were unable to tolerate restorative treatments in the clinic setting, elected to participate in either a 38% SDF intervention protocol or, alternatively, referral for DGA. Follow-up examinations were completed at 6 months to assess caries progression, decayed missing filled tooth index, PUFA index (pulpal involvement, ulceration, fistula, abscess), DGA referral rates, and OHRQoL (Early Childhood Oral Health Impact Scale [ECOHIS]).ResultsOf the total sample, 89.5% of children (n = 102) [mean (SD) age, 4.1 (1.0) years] with 401 active carious lesions elected to participate in the 38% SDF protocol; 10.5% (n = 12) of parents opted for referral for treatment under DGA. The proportion of active caries subsequently arrested at follow-up (number of arrested lesions/number of lesions treated) was 0.78 (95% CI, 0.69 to 0.87). There was an 88% reduction in referrals for DGA in eligible children over the 6-month period. The 38% SDF intervention group showed a significant improvement in ECOHIS scores at follow-up (P < .001).DiscussionAdoption of the 38% SDF intervention protocol resulted in a significant reduction in the rate of preventable dental hospitalisations. Most parents opted against referral for DGA. Parent-reported OHRQoL for children improved significantly.     

Crouzon's syndrome: A review of literature and case report

Crouzon's syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder with complete penetrance and variable expressivity. Described by a French neurosurgeon in 1912, it is a rare genetic disorder. Crouzon's syndrome is caused by mutation in the fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 (FGFR2) gene. Normally, the sutures in the human skull fuse after the complete growth of the brain, but if any of these sutures close early then it may interfere with the growth of the brain. The disease is characterized by premature synostosis of coronal and sagittal sutures which begins in the first year of life. Case report of a 7 year old boy is presented with characteristic features of Crouzon's syndrome with mental retardation. The clinical, radiographic features along with the complete oral rehabilitation done under general anesthesia and preventive procedures done are described.     

Inferring the effect of genomic variation in the new era of genomics

Accurate and detailed understanding of the effects of variants in the coding and noncoding regions of the genome is the next big challenge in the new genomic era of personalized medicine, especially to tackle newer findings of genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity of diseases. This is necessary to resolve the gene‐variant–disease relationship, the pathogenic variant spectrum of genes, pathogenic variants with variable clinical consequences, and multiloci diseases. In turn, this will facilitate patient recruitment for relevant clinical trials. In this review, we describe the trends in research at the intersection of basic and clinical genomics aiming to (a) overcome molecular diagnostic challenges and increase the clinical utility of next‐generation sequencing (NGS) platforms, (b) elucidate variants associated with disease, (c) determine overall genomic complexity including epistasis, complex inheritance patterns such as “synergistic heterozygosity,” digenic/multigenic inheritance, modifier effect, and rare variant load. We describe the newly emerging field of integrated functional genomics, in vivo or in vitro large‐scale functional approaches, statistical bioinformatics algorithms that support NGS genomics data to interpret variants for timely clinical diagnostics and disease management. Thus, facilitating the discovery of new therapeutic or biomarker options, and their roles in the future of personalized medicine.     

Current Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Pediatric Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia: Success,Failure and Future Perspectives—A Single-Center Experience, 2008 to 2016

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is the only curative option for a subset of patients with high-risk or relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Given evolving practices, it is important to continually evaluate outcomes for pediatric ALL following HSCT. Outcomes after HSCT are influenced by the type of donor used as this determines the degree and method of T cell depletion used and, consequently, specific transplant-related morbidities. We retrospectively analyzed HSCT data from our center for transplants performed between January 2008 and May 2016, comparing outcomes among different donor types. One hundred and twenty-four pediatric patients underwent HSCT from a matched sibling donor (MSD; n?=?48), an unrelated matched donor (UMD; n?=?56), or a haploidentical donor (n?=?20). We observed a similar 3-year event-free survival (EFS) for MSD recipients (of .64) and for UMD recipients (.62), but a significantly lower EFS for recipients of haploidentical transplants (.35; P?=?.01). Relapse was the main cause of HSCT failure and was significantly higher in the haploidentical donor group (.47 versus .19 for MSD and .24 for UMD; P?=?.02). Treatment-related mortality was evenly distributed among the donor groups (.17, .16, and .15 for the MSD, UMD, and haploidentical groups, respectively). Rates of infection-related mortality were lower than previously reported. Relapse is the main obstacle for successful HSCT in the contemporary era, and this effect is most evident in recipients of haploidentical donor grafts. Newer methods to improve graft-versus-leukemia effect are being evaluated and will need to be incorporated into the management of high-risk patients.     

Evaluation of Efficacy of Microwave Irradiation in Disinfecting Dental Gypsum Casts: An Ex Vivo Study

The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of microwave irradiation in disinfecting gypsum casts and also to compare its efficacy with validated method of chemical disinfection. The present study is an ex vivo study conducted on a sample of five irreversible hydrocolloid impressions in vitro and on ten patients gypsum casts in vivo following standard impression techniques to check the efficacy of microwave oven irradiation and compare its efficacy with standard chemical method of disinfection. Results were analysed using Mann–Whitney test and Wilcoxon signed rank test. Untreated gypsum casts showed cfu/ml counts with a median log value of 6, while microwave-irradiated ones had median cfu/ml counts of 0. Casts poured from chemically disinfected impressions demonstrated cfu/ml counts with a median log value of 5. Microwave irradiation was found to be effective in disinfecting gypsum casts when compared to chemical disinfectant in disinfecting dental impressions.     

Treatment Strategies for Missing Maxillary Central Incisor—An Orthodontist's Perspective

The loss of maxillary central incisors at an early age has psychological, esthetic, and functional implications. Multiple treatment options are available for replacing missing central incisors. The management demands a multidisciplinary approach involving the orthodontist, prosthodontist, and periodontist. Treatment planning requires consideration of a variety of clinical and nonclinical factors. This clinical report attempts to demonstrate different strategies for the management of unilaterally and bilaterally missing central incisors.     

High-resolution and accelerated multi-parametric mapping with automated characterization of vessel disease using intravascular MRI

Background

Atherosclerosis is prevalent in cardiovascular disease, but present imaging modalities have limited capabilities for characterizing lesion stage, progression and response to intervention. This study tests whether intravascular magnetic resonance imaging (IVMRI) measures of relaxation times (T₁, T₂) and proton density (PD) in a clinical 3 Tesla scanner could characterize vessel disease, and evaluates a practical strategy for accelerated quantification.

Methods

IVMRI was performed in fresh human artery segments and swine vessels in vivo, using fast multi-parametric sequences, 1–2 mm diameter loopless antennae and 200–300 μm resolution. T₁, T₂ and PD data were used to train a machine learning classifier (support vector machine, SVM) to automatically classify normal vessel, and early or advanced disease, using histology for validation. Disease identification using the SVM was tested with receiver operating characteristic curves. To expedite acquisition of T₁, T₂ and PD data for vessel characterization, the linear algebraic method (‘SLAM’) was modified to accommodate the antenna’s highly-nonuniform sensitivity, and used to provide average T₁, T₂ and PD measurements from compartments of normal and pathological tissue segmented from high-resolution images at acceleration factors of R ≤ 18-fold. The results were validated using compartment-average measures derived from the high-resolution scans.

Results

The SVM accurately classified ~80% of samples into the three disease classes. The ‘area-under-the-curve’ was 0.96 for detecting disease in 248 samples, with T₁ providing the best discrimination. SLAM T₁, T₂ and PD measures for R ≤ 10 were indistinguishable from the true means of segmented tissue compartments.

Conclusion

High-resolution IVMRI measures of T₁, T₂ and PD with a trained SVM can automatically classify normal, early and advanced atherosclerosis with high sensitivity and specificity. Replacing relaxometric MRI with SLAM yields good estimates of T₁, T₂ and PD an order-of-magnitude faster to facilitate IVMRI-based characterization of vessel disease.

     

Studies on cell-mediated immunity in women using different fertility regulating methods

Cell-mediated immunity (CMI) was assessed in women using fertility regulating methods for 1-5 months, 6-11 months or 12-18 months. The CMI as assessed by phytohaemagglutin in (PHA)-induced lymphocyte transformation of treated groups were compared with that of normal subjects who were not using any contraceptive methods and women on conventional methods of contraception. The data obtained indicates that there is no significant alteration of CMI in women fitted with IUCD or women on estrogen progestogen combination. However, a significant suppression of CMI is observed in women in progestogen pills for 12-18 months. The short term therapy did not affect the CMI. In a prospective study it was found that the CMI in women before and after the use of combination therapy for 1-5 and 6-11 months revealed no change. Estradiol and progesterone at concentration on 1 microgram/ml in culture medium suppressed PHA-induced lymphocyte transformation.