Non-surgical management of an oro-antral fistula in a patient with HIV infection

BACKGROUND: The risk of post-extraction complications is higher in patients who are immunosuppressed compared to other patients with normal immune function. In addition, invasive dental procedures are more likely to have serious complications in these patients. This case report demonstrates an effective non-surgical procedure to treat an oro-antral fistula in an HIV-infected man. METHODS: The oro-antral fistula was de-epithelialized under local anaesthesia and the patient wore a surgical splint continuously, removing it only for cleaning, for an eight week period. Chlorhexidine gel was regularly applied to the fitting surface of the splint and the oro-antral communication. The patient was reviewed on a regular basis. RESULTS: This procedure resulted in resolution of the patient's symptoms within two weeks. Complete healing of the oro-antral fistula was evident following eight weeks of wearing the surgical splint. CONCLUSIONS: This procedure provided an effective method of treating an oro-antral fistula in an immunocompromised patient without causing any detrimental effects to the patient's overall health. Adequate pre-surgical assessment of patients prior to extractions is important in all patients to help prevent the occurrence of such complications.     

Can children be affected by bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw? A systematic review

Knowledge of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) is mostly based on adult cases, however bisphosphonates are also currently recommended for different paediatric diseases resulting in osteoporosis. The aim of this study was to review the literature on the risk of developing BRONJ in children and adolescents. The PubMed, LILACS, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane databases were searched using the key words “bisphosphonates”, “osteonecrosis”, “jaw”, and “children”. Literature reviews, case reports, abstracts, theses, textbooks, and book chapters were excluded. Studies involving children and young adults (younger than 24 years of age) were included. A total of 56 publications were identified. After applying the eligibility criteria, only seven articles remained. Although no cases of osteonecrosis were identified, all studies had weaknesses such as a limited sample size or the absence of risk factors for the development of osteonecrosis. There is general consensus that this subject should be of concern and that further studies should be conducted before any definitive opinion is reached. It is believed that patients with secondary osteoporosis who use bisphosphonates continuously should be followed up during adulthood, since bone turnover decreases over the years.     

晚期药物相关性颌骨坏死的手术治疗

目的 总结晚期（2、3期）药物相关性颌骨坏死（MRONJ）的手术治疗效果。方法 纳入2013年7月—2021年5月就诊于北京大学口腔医学院·口腔医院口腔颌面外科且采用手术治疗的晚期MRONJ患者。回顾性分析患者的临床资料,包括患者的原发疾病、用药情况、病变情况、手术治疗和随访结果等。结果 本研究共纳入104例患者（123处病变）,男性42例,女性62例,平均年龄（64.6±9.1）岁。原发疾病为恶性肿瘤91例,非肿瘤性疾病13例。2期病变43处（35.0%）,3期病变80处（65.0%）。39处（31.7%）病变位于上颌骨,84处（68.3%）病变位于下颌骨。使用唑来膦酸89例（85.6%）,阿仑膦酸钠10例（9.6%）,帕米膦酸钠10例（9.6%）,抗血管生成药物62例（59.6%）。平均药物治疗时长（34.7±25.8）月,平均停药时长（10.1±10.7）月。全部患者均在全麻下完成手术。手术去净死骨后,2期病变以局部黏骨膜瓣关闭创口,3期病变根据具体情况分别采用重建钛板联合下颌下腺转位、血管化腓骨瓣修复、碘仿纱条填塞、带蒂颊脂垫瓣修复等关闭创口。术后随访3个月至6年,81.3%(...     

以带蒂颊脂垫为基础的双层软组织封闭技术修复药物相关颌骨坏死手术后上颌骨缺损的临床应用

目的 探讨以带蒂颊脂垫为基础的双层软组织封闭技术修复药物相关颌骨坏死(MRONJ)手术后上颌骨缺损的临床应用效果.方法 将采用以带蒂颊脂垫为基础的双层软组织封闭技术修复药物相关颌骨坏死手术后上颌骨缺损的10例MRONJ患者纳入研究.患者的手术方式为上颌骨部分切除(部分患者行蝶骨翼突下段切除),去除上颌窦内炎性软组织,保...     

Bisphosphonate and Nonbisphosphonate-Associated Osteonecrosis of the Jaw: A Review

BackgroundThe term “osteonecrosis of the jaw” (ONJ) is used almost synonymously with the term “bisphosphonate-associated ONJ.” However, necrosis of the jawbones leading to exposure of bone is associated with other factors.Types of Studies ReviewedThe authors conducted a literature search using PubMed to identify original research articles and case reports that described oral conditions and associated factors that result in sequestrum formation and bone exposure.ResultsAfter reviewing conditions that may lead to necrosis of the jawbones, the authors divided the causes of ONJ into the following conditions: systemic medication use; radiation; bacterial, viral and deep fungal infections; direct chemical toxicity; trauma; idiopathy; and other etiologies.Clinical ImplicationsClinicians should take a careful history when evaluating patients with ONJ because ONJ may result from one or more factors.     

Effectiveness of treatments for medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The effectiveness of management strategies used for the treatment of medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) remains poorly understood. The authors evaluated systematically the effectiveness of the various treatment modalities used for MRONJ.

Survey of Korean dentists on the awareness on bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaws

Aim: This survey evaluates the awareness of bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaws among Korean dentists. Methods: We prepared a questionnaire based on bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw guidelines, suggested by The American Association of Oral Maxillofacial Surgeons. Among 13 405 dentists, we randomly selected 264 (2%) practitioners. Results: A total of 56.5% of respondents had heard of bisphosphonates asmedication related to osteonecrosis, but only 31.4% routinely recorded bisphosphonate medication history. The cross‐sectional analysis demonstrated that most dentists were unaware of The American Association of Oral Maxillofacial Surgeons’ guidelines. Dentists with <5 years’ clinical experience were significantly more aware than those with >5 years’ experience. Experience with treating osteonecrosis of the jaw patients and recording medication histories were significantly greater in dental hospitals with >300 beds or university hospitals. Awareness of the severity of bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaws was greatest among oral surgeons. Conclusion: Dentists should thoroughly check patients’ medical histories, including bisphosphonate intake. With the exception of oral surgeons, most Korean dentists were not adequately aware of bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaws and its seriousness, making it a potential risk in Korean dentistry. Therefore, it is important to educate clinicians regarding the potential risk of bisphosphonate medication in dentistry through education programs.     

双磷酸盐相关性颌骨坏死的循证治疗:附3例报道

目的:探讨双磷酸盐相关性颌骨坏死的循证治疗。方法:针对3例双磷酸盐用药患者出现的拔牙创不愈、牙周肿痛、溢脓等症状,提出临床问题,检索收集并评价相关证据,帮助制订治疗方案。结果:共纳入相关文献39篇,结果显示①双磷酸盐相关性颌骨坏死的致病机制不明;诊断标准普遍参照美国口腔颌面外科医师协会的临床指南。②治疗方案为早期有骨坏死或暴露而无明显感染时,先行抗感染、镇痛等非手术治疗;感染症状复发时,行局部清创术;出现大段骨坏死或病理性骨折时,行大范围骨切除。③组织病理学诊断标准尚未建立;影像学检查有助于早期诊断和牙槽骨手术前评估。④停药并不能缓解症状和进程,但在清创和牙槽骨手术期间有利于伤口愈合,是否停药由医患双方协商确定。根据以上证据,对3例患者先行保守治疗,效果不佳后行局部清创术,随访6~12个月,疗效良好。结论:双磷酸盐相关性颌骨坏死是近年新出现的疾病。目前致病机制不明,诊断和治疗方法未统一。循证治疗可制定合理方案,有效提高治疗效果和生存质量。     

Effectiveness of laser-assisted treatments for medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw: a systematic review

The feasibility of laser-assisted treatments of medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) remains poorly understood, so we have therefore systematically evaluated their effectiveness. We made a comprehensive search of MEDLINE, Pubmed, and Embase to find randomised controlled trials, case-control studies, and prospective cohort studies that assessed them. We assessed the eligible studies in duplicate, and if possible conducted a meta-analysis. Ten studies with a low to high risk of bias met the inclusion criteria. We found that a comparison of pain scores before and after using visible and infrared GaAs laser in the low-level laser treatment based on the Numerical Pain Rating Scale (mean difference 4.28; 95% CI 3.62 to 4.93; p < 0.00001), showed that there were significant differences in the amount of pain. The effectiveness of other laser-assisted treatments on the reduction of pain – for example, Er:YAG laser surgical treatment, and laser-assisted treatment plus platelet-rich plasma, and the effect of other techniques on wound healing of laser-assisted treatments, are uncertain. We found that the results of the studies that were deemed to be high-to-low quality and to have high-to-low statistical power suggested that there may be considerable clinical improvement in MRONJ by using laser-assisted treatment; we cautiously consider that low-level laser treatment may manage pain and symptoms in these patients. More randomised studies of good quality and with a low risk of bias are needed to test whether laser-assisted treatment should be a routine part of management of patients with MRONJ.     

Bisphosphonate-induced osteonecrosis of the jaw in a rat model arises first after the bone has become exposed. No primary necrosis in unexposed bone

J Oral Pathol Med (2012) 41 : 494–499 Background: Bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw was first described to start with sterile osteocyte death, similar to osteonecrosis in other parts of the skeleton. The typical chronic osteomyelitis was thought to develop when the dead bone was exposed to the oral cavity. An alternative explanation would be that the chronic osteomyelitis is a result of a bisphosphonate‐related inability of infected bony lesions to heal. We tested the hypothesis that primary osteocyte death is not necessary for the development of jaw osteonecrosis. Material and methods: Forty rats were randomly allocated to four groups of 10. All animals underwent unilateral molar extraction and received the following drug treatments: Group I, controls with no drug treatment; Group II, 200 μg/kg per day alendronate; Groups III and IV, 200 μg/kg per day alendronate and 1 mg/kg of dexamethasone. All rats were euthanized after 14 days. Presence of osteonecrosis was determined by clinical and histological observations for groups I–III. For group IV, osteocyte viability at the contralateral uninjured site was examined using lactate dehydrogenase histochemistry (LDH). Results: All animals in the alendronate plus dexamethasone groups developed large ONJ‐like lesions. Lactate dehydrogenase staining showed viable osteocytes in the contralateral jaw with no tooth extraction. No signs of osteonecosis were seen in the other groups. Conclusion: Bisphosphonates and dexamethasone caused no osteocyte death in uninjured bone, but large ONJ‐like lesions after tooth extraction. Osteonecrosis of the jaw appears to arise first after the bone has been exposed. Possibly, bisphosphonates hamper the necessary resorption of bone that has become altered because of infection.