Chemiluminescence of neutrophils from patients with Beh?et's disease and its correlation with an increased proportion of uncommon serotypes of Streptococcus sanguis in the oral flora

Zymosan-induced chemiluminescence was investigated in whole blood and in neutrophils: in both, the peak count was frequently elevated in Beh?et's disease, and was significantly higher than in healthy controls; similarly the peak time was shorter. There were more uncommon serotypes of Streptococcus sanguis in the oral flora of patients with Beh?et's disease. Common serotypes were present in the flora of healthy controls, but not in patients with the disease. The percentage of Strep. sanguis in the oral flora was significantly correlated with the level of chemiluminescence response. Thus infection with uncommon serotypes of Strep. sanguis may play a role in the aetiology of Beh?et's disease.     

Caries incidence in children with acyanotic congenital heart diseases before and after the heart operation

An acyanotic cardiac disease (ASD) was diagnosed in a 9-year-old girl with a very high caries incidence and premature tooth eruption. After the heart operation her caries incidence declined considerably. An epidemiological survey was then conducted to find out if these observations could be generalized. dmf-t, dmfs, DMF-T and DMFS values for each year were counted retrospectively for a group of acyanotic heart diseased children operated on at the age of 5-7 years (mean 6) and another group operated on at the age of 10-13 years (mean 12), from the documents relating to annual examinations conducted by the public health dental services. The results were compared to those of healthy children matched for age and sex living in the same area. Heart disease resulted in DMF-T values above the control level in the group operated on at age 6 years, whereas the values were lower than the controls in the group operated on at age 12 years, the difference being significant after the operation in the latter case. It is concluded that acyanotic congenital heart disease may lead to a higher caries prevalence and sometimes rampant caries. When the caries prevalence of the population is high, however, (DMF-T higher than 4.5 at 12 years), the effect of heart disease remains hidden.     

Serum antibody response to antigens of oral gram-negative bacteria by cats with plasma cell gingivitis-pharyngitis

The etiology of a form of periodontal disease in domestic cats known as plasma cell gingivitis-pharyngitis is not understood. Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Bacteroides species have been strongly implicated as the cause of periodontitis in humans and other mammalian species, and most affected patients manifest serum antibodies reactive with the infecting bacteria. We and others have isolated Bacteroides species from the oral flora of cats. Using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and immunoblot procedures, we measured serum antibodies in affected and control cats reactive with human isolates of A. actinomycetemcomitans, B. gingivalis, and B. intermedius, and purified lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from these and other species, and Bacteroides of cat origin. Affected cats had serum antibody titers reactive with these Gram-negative anaerobic bacteria that were significantly elevated relative to those of normal control cats. The quantitatively major antigens recognized by cat serum antibodies are proteins; this contrasts sharply with serum antibodies from humans with juvenile periodontitis, where LPS is the quantitatively major antigen fraction. Our data support the idea that plasma cell gingivitis-pharyngitis in cats may have a bacterial etiology, and that Gram-negative anaerobes similar to those that cause periodontitis in humans and other mammals may be involved.     

Scaling and root planing effectiveness: the effect of root surface access and operator experience

This study investigated two variables associated with scaling and planning (S&RP): operator experience level and root surface access. One hundred and fourteen periodontally involved, single-rooted teeth designated for extraction were randomly distributed among four operators of various experience levels for either an open or closed session of S&RP. Immediately after treatment, the teeth were extracted, washed, and scored for residual calculus in a blind manner. Results showed that there was no difference in S&RP effectiveness for experience level or type of procedure in shallow (1-3 mm) pockets. However, in moderate (4-6 mm) and deep (greater than 6 mm) periodontal pockets, S&RP combined with an open flap procedure was more effective than S&RP alone for both experience levels. Also, the more experienced operators produced a significantly greater number of calculus-free root surfaces than the less experienced operators in periodontal pockets with moderate and deep probing depths. Clinical application of these results suggests that surgical access is associated with thorough surface debridement in periodontal pockets with moderate-to-advanced probing depths. However, more experienced operators could be expected to render more effective soft surface debridement.     

Angiolipoma of the tongue: report of a case

Angiolipoma is a rare variety of lipoma in the maxillofacial region. Only eight cases have been documented so far. A case in which an angiolipoma occurred within the tongue of a 49-year-old man is described here. The difference from earlier cases occurring in the tongue is noted. Close follow-up has, as yet, revealed no recurrence.     

Surface electromyography, force and single motor-unit data for inhibitory reflex responses in human masseter at two levels of excitatory drive

The inhibitory reflex response evoked by mildly noxious lip stimulation was tested in up to 100 trials at two different levels of pre-stimulus excitation. To regulate that excitation, the subject voluntarily controlled the firing rate of one motor neurone at 10 Hz, and then at 15 Hz while the reflex was tested. When the frequency of the motor-unit action potential (MUAP) in the controlled unit increased or decreased, the frequency of other active units' MUAPs also changed in parallel: that is, the frequency of one MUAP was an index of whole muscle excitation. The inhibitory response in the surface electromyogram (EMG) was quantitated by rectifying and averaging the signal, and by measuring its depth and area. The best correlation between the responses evoked in single units and the response in the whole muscle EMG at the two levels of excitation was obtained when the area of inhibition in the surface record was normalized to the pre-stimulus EMG level. The inhibitory response to lip stimulation in the masseter EMG decreased when the level of pre-stimulus excitation in the muscle was increased. This was confirmed using the reflex response in the averaged force data. The findings suggest that controlling one motor unit's firing rate is a useful method for controlling the whole-muscle excitation in quantitative reflex studies.     

Effect of an acute maternal fluoride dose on fetal plasma fluoride levels and enamel fluoride uptake in guinea pigs

We conducted this study to measure maternal plasma, fetal plasma, and fetal enamel fluoride concentrations for four hours following an oral F dose to near-term pregnant guinea pigs. We placed female guinea pigs on de-ionized (Group I) or 3-ppm-F (Group II) drinking water prior to breeding and during gestation. On the 57th day of gestation, we administered a maternal dose of NaF solution (0.6 mg F/kg) by stomach tube. We collected samples of maternal plasma, fetal plasma, and fetal enamel at baseline, at 15 and 30 min, and at one, two, and four h after administration of the dose. We assayed samples for F using a modification of the micro-diffusion and ion-specific electrode method. Group I mean baseline F values were: maternal plasma, 0.016; fetal plasma, 0.002; and fetal enamel, 7.0 ppm. Group II mean values were: 0.055, 0.004, and 19.0 ppm. After the maternal fluoride dose, the mean maternal plasma [F] rose sharply for 30 to 60 min and declined to about 50% of peak values by four h. Fetal plasma [F] changed less in absolute values, but similarly to maternal changes relative to baseline. Fetal enamel mean [F] rose more in Group II than in Group I. Baseline F status had an important effect on F uptake in fetal enamel following an acute maternal fluoride dose.     

Oral findings in patients with autosomal dominant hypophosphatemic bone disease and X-linked hypophosphatemia: further evidence that they are different diseases

Oral examinations were performed on 5 patients with hypophosphatemic bone disease (HBD) (2 males and 3 females), 14 patients with X-linked hypophosphatemia (XLH), and 4 affected XLH relatives (6 males and 12 females). The control subjects were the unaffected siblings and parents of the patients and unrelated healthy, gender- and age-matched subjects. Serum phosphorus values were the same by disease type and gender in patients with HBD and XLH. They shared certain dental abnormalities, in particular pulpal necrosis and large pulp spaces. However, only patients with XLH had Class III malocclusions and mild enamel defects, and males with XLH had more severe occlusal and enamel defects than females with XLH. Different dental phenotypes are further evidence that XLH and HBD are different diseases. The dental abnormalities were not prevented by treatment, instituted early in life, which raised serum phosphorus to the near normal range.     

Expression of epithelial and nervous-system-related antigens on pleomorphic adenoma of the salivary glands--an analysis of 20 cases

The expression of cytokeratin (40-52 kD), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), vimentin, neuron-specific enolase (NSE), S-100 protein, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) were investigated in 20 cases of pleomorphic adenoma of the salivary glands and 10 cases of normal salivary glands, in order to analyze and correlate the antigens' expressions with the probably histogenetic mechanisms of the various histopathological differentiations in pleomorphic adenoma of the salivary glands and their probably original cells in normal salivary glands. Immunohistochemistry has provided some evidence for the relationship of the tumor cells to normal salivary glands: In the normal glands, the acinic cells exhibited cytokeratin, CEA and focal, predominantly nuclear S-100 protein staining. In both normal glands and pleomorphic adenomas, the duct-lining cells were immunoreactive for cytokeratin, CEA and had both cytoplasmic and nuclear S-100 positivity; The myoepithelial cells of the normal glands as well as the periduct cells, epithelial nests/cords, squamous metaplasia and the stellate/spindle/cartilaginous cells in the myxomatous-chondroid areas of the pleomorphic adenoma contain immunoreactive vimentin, NSE, S-100 proteins and GFAP, and lesser amounts cytokeratin (40-52 kD)/CEA. The varicosities of the terminal axon may lie directly on the basal membrane, or penetrate the basal membrane and lie in direct contact with the effector cells (duct-acinar-myoepithelial cells) of the salivary glands. The peripheral neurons and axons of the autonomic nervous system were identified by vimentin, NSE, S-100 proteins and GFAP. The combination of epithelial cytokeratin and nervous system-related vimentin, NSE, S-100 and GFAP immunostaining in myoepithelium of the normal glands and in all component elements (particularly the periduct cells) of pleomorphic adenoma reflects pleomorphic adenoma of the salivary glands is an epithelial tumor, the probably original cells or the probably histogenetic mechanisms of the various histopathological differentiations is correlated not only with "duct-acinar-myoepithelial cells" but also with the neuroectoderm in the normal salivary glands."