Asthma is a chronic, heterogeneous respiratory pathology characterized by reversible airway inflammation. Therapeutics focus on symptom reduction and control, aimed at preserving normal pulmonary function and inducing bronchodilatation. The objective of this review is to describe the adverse effects produced by anti-asthmatic drugs on dental health, according to the reported scientific evidence. A bibliographic review was carried out on databases, such as Web of science, Scopus, and ScienceDirect. Most anti-asthmatic medications are administered using inhalers or nebulizers, making it impossible to avoid contact of the drug with hard dental tissues and oral mucosa, and thus promoting a greater risk of oral alterations, mainly due to decreases in the salivary flow and pH. Such changes can cause diseases, such as dental caries, dental erosion, tooth loss, periodontal disease, bone resorption, as well as fungal infections, such as oral candidiasis.

In Ecuador, national data on dental caries are scarce and the detection of incipient enamel lesions has been omitted. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of caries in school children aged 6 and 12 years of both sexes, belonging to urban and rural areas of three provinces of the country, using the International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS II). The sample consisted of 665 children from public schools, examined according to ICDASII. Caries prevalence and caries index were established using ICDAS II 2-6/C-G and ICDAS II 4-6/E-G criteria for comparison with WHO indicators. The Mann–Whitney U statistical test was used for comparison of two groups, the effect size was measured with the correlation coefficient. and the Kruskal–Wallis H test (p < 0.05) for multiple comparisons. Caries prevalence exceeded 87% for primary and permanent dentition. There were no significant differences according to province (p ≤ 0.05). The caries index at 6 years was 6.57 and at 12 years 9.21. The SIC was high at 12 years in rural areas. The prevalence of caries in the population studied was high despite the preventive measures established by health agencies.

In Ecuador, national epidemiological surveys have not been updated; however, some regional studies in the northern areas of the country still report a high prevalence of dental caries. The aim of this study was to determine the experience, severity, and need for treatment of dental caries in school children aged 6 to 12 years in urban and rural settings in three provinces of southern Ecuador. This cross-sectional, relational study examined 1938 schoolchildren in the provinces of Azuay, Cañar, and Morona Santiago. The survey instruments were based mainly on the WHO manual Methods of Oral Health Surveys (dmft) for primary and permanent dentition (DMFT), as well as the prevalence, severity, and Significant Caries Index (SCI). The parametric Student’s t-test was used to compare two groups, and the Spearman’s Rho and Tau-c Kendall correlation coefficients were used to associate the categorical variables. Results: The prevalence of caries in the primary dentition was 78% and 89.2% in the permanent dentition. The dmft (M = 4.12, SD = 2.86) and DMFT (M = 3.62: SD = 3.07) placed the general group in a moderate caries index. The need for treatment was 90.68% in the primary dentition, while it was 87.99% in the permanent dentition. Caries severity in both dentitions was high (M = 7.74; SD = 3.42). Conclusions. Alarming indicators of caries experience and the need for treatment were observed in the population studied.

The pathologies produced by fungi in the oral cavity in recent decades have become a health problem, with factors such as an imbalance of the local microbiota being the cause for their propagation. Conventional antifungal treatments, instead of being beneficial, have generated alterations that have led to antifungal resistance. The aim of this study was to investigate and describe phytotherapy resources as a possible solution to oral antifungal resistance. A bibliographic search was carried out on platforms such as PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, and Google scholar. A total of 248 scientific articles were obtained, of which 108 met the inclusion criteria. Microorganisms of fungal origin currently show resistance to the different antifungals of conventional use, which is undoubtedly altering the oral health of human beings, but there are new therapeutic possibilities such as the active principles of various natural species.

En la actualidad las investigaciones entorno a la calidad de vida desde la salud, son de vital importancia a nivel mundial, puesto que la identificación de los factores que desencadenan ciertas patologías prevalentes sirven para actuar y mejorar las condiciones de vida; en específico en este trabajo nos referiremos al grupo infantil y la parasitosis pediátrica, la misma que genera índices de anemia, peso bajo, entre otros. El propósito fue identificar la prevalencia de parásitos intestinales en escolares de 6 a 12 años en poblaciones rurales, de la ciudad de Paute, Ecuador. Se realizó una investigación de tipo cuantitativa, descriptiva y transversal, se trabajó con 608 niños pertenecientes a zonas rurales de Paute, el análisis coprológico fue mediante el método convencional, se reportó número de parásitos por campo. Esta investigación fue desarrollada bajo el permiso de un Comité de Bioética. Se analizaron 608 muestras coproparasitarias, obteniéndose una significancia estadística con respecto al sexo, los varones presentaron una prevalencia de parasitismo (14,63%) sobre las mujeres (8,88%), el parásito con mayor prevalencia es la Entamoeba histolytica. La prevalencia de parasitosis infantil en el sector rural de Paute, Ecuador es de 23,52%, siendo mayor en varones, el parásito más frecuente es la E. histolytica.

In recent decades, the increase in fluoride exposure has raised the numbers of dental fluorosis in fluoridated and non-fluoridated communities In Ecuador, but the last national epidemiological study on DF was conducted more than a decade ago. The objective of this cross-sectional descriptive study was to determine the prevalence, distribution and severity of dental fluorosis (DF) using the Dean index in 1606 schoolchildren aged 6 to 12 years from urban and rural environments in provinces that make up the Southern Region of Ecuador. Participants met the inclusion criteria which were age, locality, informed consent document and no legal impediment. The results are presented using percentage frequency measures and chi-square associations. The prevalence of dental fluorosis was 50.1% in the areas of Azuay, Cañar and Morona Santiago, with no significant differences (x² = 5.83, p = 0.054). The types of DF found most frequently were very mild and mild in all provinces; a moderate degree was more prevalent in Cañar (17%). There was no significant association (p > 0.05) between sex and the presence of dental fluorosis and, with respect to severity, the most frequent degree was moderate at the age of 12 years. The prevalence of dental fluorosis in the area evaluated is high, especially in the light and very light degrees, with a tendency toward moderate levels. It is necessary to carry out studies on the factors that are predisposing to the development of this pathology in the population studied. This research is an update regarding this pathology in Ecuador, so it is concluded that it is necessary to continue developing studies based on the findings obtained, thus contributing to the public health of the country.