This study aimed to evaluate the possibility of any correlation between disc displacement and parameters used for evaluation of skull positioning in relation to the cervical spine: craniocervical angle, suboccipital space between C0-C1, cervical curvature and position of the hyoid bone in individuals with and without symptoms of temporomandibular dysfunction. The patients were evaluated following the guidelines set forth by RDC/TMD. Evaluation was performed by magnetic resonance imaging for establishment of disc positioning in the temporomandibular joints (TMJs) of 30 volunteer patients without temporomandibular dysfunction symptoms and 30 patients with symptoms. Evaluation of skull positioning in relation to the cervical spine was performed on lateral cephalograms achieved with the individual in natural head position. Data were submitted to statistical analysis by Fisher's exact test at 5% significance level. To measure the degree of reproducibility/agreements between surveys, the kappa (K) statistics was used. Significant differences were observed between C0-C1 measurement for both symptomatic (p=0.04) and asymptomatic (p=0.02). No statistical differences were observed regarding craniocervical angle, C1-C2 and hyoid bone position in relation to the TMJs with and without disc displacement. Although statistically significant difference was found in the C0-C1 space, no association between these and internal temporomandibular joint disorder can be considered. Based on the results observed in this study, no direct relationship could be determined between the presence of disc displacement and the variables assessed.

Do Nascimento EH, et al. Imaging Sci Dent. 2016 Jun;46(2):69-75. http://dx.doi.org/10.5624/isd.2016.46.2.69

The aim of this study was to establish which materials afford better simulation of soft tissues in Oral Radiology studies. The sample was composed of four materials in eleven different thicknesses to simulate the soft tissues of the face. The mean values of the relative amounts of radiographic contrast of the materials were determined and compared to a gold standard value, which was obtained from 20 patients who were referred to have periapical radiographs taken of the left mandibular molars. Data were subjected to statistical analysis with Dunnett's test (p<0.05). The mean value of the relative amounts of contrast encountered in the patients was 0.47, with a range between 0.36 and 0.64 for all 44 material/thickness combinations. The majority of the tested materials showed values close to those of the patients’ tissues, without statistically significant differences among them. The values of only three materials/ thickness combinations differed statistically from those of the patients’ tissues. Based on the results of the present study, it may be concluded that except for utility wax (4 mm and 8 mm) and water (4 mm), all materials tested at different thickness could be used as soft tissue substitute materials in Oral Radiology studies.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinicopathological features of oral lesions in children and adolescents diagnosed in an Oral Pathology Laboratory. Between 2000 and 2010, all oral lesions diagnosed in patients younger than 18 years old, from the Oral Pathology Laboratory, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil, were selected for the study. The clinical data were obtained from the patient charts filed in the Laboratory. All cases were microscopically reviewed and the diagnosis classified into 10 categories. From the 2395 lesions, 315 (13.1%) occurred in this age group. The lesions were more common in the female gender (59%) during the second decade of life (69%). The inflammatory/reactive lesions were the most common (64.4%), followed by the epithelial and soft tissue neoplasms (8.6%). The mucocele (33.3%) was the most common lesion, with the lip mucosa representing the most affected site (48%). In 61.5% there was concordance between clinical hypothesis of diagnosis and histopathological diagnosis. Inflammatory/reactive lesions were the most common biopsied lesions and the lip the most frequent site. Similar studies are important, reinforced by the low correlation between clinical diagnosis and histopathological diagnosis. Key words:Adolescents, children, differential diagnosis, oral diseases, prevalence.