Oral cancer (OC) is a deadly disease with a high mortality and complex etiology. Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the outstanding innovations in technology used in dental science. This paper intends to report on the application and performance of AI in diagnosis and predicting the occurrence of OC. In this study, we carried out data search through an electronic search in several renowned databases, which mainly included PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, Embase, Cochrane, Web of Science, and the Saudi Digital Library for articles that were published between January 2000 to March 2021. We included 16 articles that met the eligibility criteria and were critically analyzed using QUADAS-2. AI can precisely analyze an enormous dataset of images (fluorescent, hyperspectral, cytology, CT images, etc.) to diagnose OC. AI can accurately predict the occurrence of OC, as compared to conventional methods, by analyzing predisposing factors like age, gender, tobacco habits, and bio-markers. The precision and accuracy of AI in diagnosis as well as predicting the occurrence are higher than the current, existing clinical strategies, as well as conventional statistics like cox regression analysis and logistic regression.

The objective of this paper was to evaluate the studies that have reported on psychological issues among dental students in Saudi Arabia and to develop coping strategies to overcome these mental health-related issues. The present systematic review is in accordance with the guidelines for Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The search for the articles was carried out in the electronic databases by four independent researchers. The data search was performed in the electronic search engines like PubMed, Google Scholar, Web of Science, Scopus, Medline, Embase, Cochrane and Saudi Digital Library for scientific research articles published from January 2000 until December 2020. STROBE guidelines were adopted for qualitative analysis of six articles which met the eligibility criteria. The analysis of the literature revealed that most of the studies included were conducted in the past 8 years in different regions of Saudi Arabia. Findings of this systematic review clearly state that dental students in Saudi Arabia experience higher levels of depression, stress and anxiety and stress during their education period, with a higher stress for female students compared to male students. There is an urgent need to introduce interventional programs and preventive strategies to overcome the long-term effects.

Background: COVID-19 vaccines were made available to the public by the end of 2020. However, little is known about COVID-19 booster dose (CBD) vaccine perception among healthcare workers (HCW) worldwide. The present study aims to assess the perception of CBD vaccines among healthcare workers in India and Saudi Arabia (SA). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs in two countries, India and SA. Data were gathered through the use of a self-administered questionnaire. A convenience sampling technique was utilized to collect the data. Results: A total of 833 HCW responses were collected from the two countries, with 530 participants from India and 303 participants from SA responding to the questionnaire. Among them, 16% from India and 33% from SA were unwilling to take a CBD (p < 0.005). The primary reasons for not being willing were concerns about whether the vaccine would be effective (32%) and concerns about probable long-term side effects (31%). Concerns about not knowing enough about the vaccination (30%) and the possibility of long-term side effects (28%) were the primary concerns in SA. Regression analysis showed that males, urban residents, and post-graduates were more willing to take the CBD. Conclusion: There is a good perception of CBD and some hesitancy in receiving the booster dose among HCWs in both countries. The introduction of personalized education, risk communication, and deliberate policy could help to reduce the number of people who are unwilling to take a booster shot.

Background: Children’s quality of life, academic performance, and future achievement can all be negatively affected by poor dental health. The present study aimed to assess the need for dental health services and the factors influencing their utilization using the Andersen health care utilization model among school children. Methods: The current cross-sectional study was conducted among schoolchildren aged 13 to 15 in Bangalore, India (n = 1100). A questionnaire was developed using the concepts of the Andersen healthcare usage model. The parents of the children filled out the questionnaire. The factors were investigated using bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results: About 78.1% of the children did not utilize dental health services. Regarding the reasons for not visiting a dentist, 65.8% said they did not have a dental problem, and 22.2% said they could not afford it. Bivariate analysis showed that age, gender, education level, occupation of the family’s head of household, monthly family income, socioeconomic status, perceived oral health problems, accessibility of dental health facilities, and parental attitudes toward their children’s oral health were significantly associated with using dental health services (p<0.05). Multiple regression analysis showed dental health service utilization was directly related to age (OR = 2.206), education, family size (OR = 1.33), and brushing frequency twice a day (OR = 1.575) with no significant relationship between distance to reach the dental facility, the number of dental visits, and socioeconomic status. Conclusion: Dental health service utilization was low in the past year. The age, number of family members, parent’s education level, travel time to the dental facility, the child’s oral health behaviors, and positive parental attitude all play a role in a children’s utilization of dental health service.

BackgroundThe population of older people, as well as the number of dependent older people, is steadily increasing; those unable tolive independently at home are being cared for in a range ofsettings. Practical training for nurses and auxiliary care staff has frequently been recommended as a way of improving oralhealth care for functionally dependent elderly. The aim was improve oral hygiene in institutionalized elderly in Bangalorecity by educating their caregivers.MethodsThe study is a cluster randomized intervention trial with an elderly home as unit of randomization in which 7 out of 65 elderly homes were selected. Oral health knowledge of caregivers was assessed using a pre-tested pro forma and later oral-health education was provided to the caregivers ofthe study group. Oral hygiene status of elderly residents was assessed by levels of debris, plaque of dentate and denture plaque, and denture stomatitis of denture wearing residents,respectively. Oral-health education to the caregivers of control group was given at the end of six monthsResultsThere was significant improvement in oral-health knowledge of caregivers from the baseline and also a significant reduction of plaque score from baseline score of 3.17 ± 0.40 to 1.57 ± 0.35 post-intervention (p < .001), debris score2.87 ± 0.22 to 1.49 ± 0.34 (p < .001), denture plaque score 3.15 ± 0.47 to 1.21 ± 0.27 (p < .001), and denture stomatitis score 1.43 ± 0.68 to 0.29 ± 0.53 (p < .001).ConclusionsThe result of the present study showed that there was a significant improvement in the oral-health knowledge among the caregivers and oral-hygiene status of the elderly residents.

Background: Tobacco smoking is an integral part of prison life and an established part of the culture. Little attention has been paid to prevention of smoking in prison. Approximately 70-80% of prisoners have been identified as current smokers. Aim: To assess the effectiveness of smoking cessation intervention among male prisoners at Central Jail, Bangalore city. Materials and Methods: A randomized controlled trial was planned among male prisoners in Central Jail, Bangalore city. There were 1600 convicted prisoners. A self-administered questionnaire was given to the prisoners to assess their smoking behavior by which prevalence of tobacco smoking was found. Exactly 1352 tobacco users were studied. Among them, there were 1252 smokers. Based on inclusion criteria and informed consent given by the prisoners, a sample of 600 was chosen for the study by systematic random sampling. Among the 600 prisoners, 300 were randomly selected for the study group and 300 for the control group. Results: Prevalence of tobacco smoking among the prisoners was 92.60%. In the present study, after smoking cessation intervention, 17% showed no change in smoking, 21.66% reduced smoking, 16% stopped smoking, and 45.33% relapsed (P < 0.0001) at the end of 6-month follow-up in the study group. Conclusion: Tobacco use was high among the prisoners. Tobacco reduction is possible in the prison even if the living conditions are not favorable. Relatively high rate of relapse in our study indicates that some policies should be adopted to improve smokers' information on consequences of tobacco on health and motivational intervention should be added to prisoners.