Background: With the increasing rate of oral diseases, the global necessity of effective and economical products for its prevention and treatment has intensified. Aim: This study was to compare the effectiveness of two oral hygiene aids: Chewing stick and manual toothbrush, for plaque removal and gingival health after one month of a randomized clinical trial. Materials and Methods: Dental students (age 18-22 years) of a public sector dental hospital were recruited. Sample size was determined using the American Dental Association guidelines. Participants were randomized into two interventional groups and provided with either chewing sticks or toothbrushes. Pre- and post-intervention examinations were executed by two blind and calibrated examiners using plaque and gingival dental indices. Statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, paired t-test, and two sample independent t-tests. Results: Fifty subjects were recruited with mean age 20 ± 0.66 years (80% were females and 20% were males). Except for the mean plaque scores of toothbrush users (which increased at post-intervention examination), all other scores showed reduction. In contrast to the final mean gingival scores, a significant difference (P = < 0.0001) in the final mean plaque score was observed for the two respective interventional groups. Conclusion: Chewing stick has revealed parallel and at times greater mechanical and chemical cleansing of oral tissues as compared to a toothbrush.

Effect of nanoparticles (NPs) loaded methylene blue (MB) mediated photodynamic therapy (PDT) on caries-affected dentin (CAD) against S.mutans, smear layer (SL) elimination, and shear bond strength (SBS) of single bottle 7th generation adhesive. Sixty human molars with carious lesions were selected. Samples were randomly allocated into four groups, based on the disinfection regime (n = 11) Group 1-(CHX), Group 2-(MB-PDT), Group 3-(MB-CNPs-PDT), and Group 4-(MB-TiO₂NPs-PDT). Following disinfection S.mutans' survival rate was assessed using the pour plate method. Five specimens from each disinfection group were subjected to SL removal assessment using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Bonding of 7th generation adhesive and composite restoration was performed on ten samples from each group. Artificial aging of the bonded samples was performed followed by SBS and failure mode analysis using a universal testing machine and stereomicroscope respectively. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey post hoc test were used to analyze the data. Group 3 (MB-CNPs-PDT) treated CAD surface unveiled the lowest survival rate (0.12 ± 0.02 CFU/mL) of tested bacteria, maximum SL removal (1.21 ± 0.35), and highest bond strength (13.42 ± 1.05). However, Group 1 (CHX) treated specimens displayed the highest survival rate (0.53 ± 0.11 CFU/mL) with the lowest SL removal (2.24 ± 0.30) and SBS (8.88 ± 0.73 MPa). MB-CNPs-PDT appears to be a suitable alternative to CHX for CAD disinfection as it displayed better antibacterial efficacy, SL removal, and SBS with 7th generation single bottle adhesive.

Background: Treating periodontitis through non-surgical periodontal therapy (NSPT) may improve glycemic control in type-2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients. However, the evidence to maintain this improvement beyond four months is insufficient. Hence, this trial was conducted to assess clinical efficacy of NSPT on glycemic control in T2DM patients. Methods: This three-arm randomized controlled trial recruited 150 known T2DM participants (35–65 years), suffering from moderate to severe periodontitis, having HbA1c level ≥ 6.5% at baseline. Participants were followed up at 3 and 6 months. Intervention for test group-1 included scaling and root planing (SRP) with metronidazole (MET) and oral hygiene instructions (OHI). Test group-2 was intervened with SRP + OHI and control group with OHI only. Stata v. 14 was used to observe inter and intragroup mean changes in glycemic [glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), fasting blood glucose (FBG)] and periodontal variables [bleeding on probing (BOP), periodontal pocket depth (PPD), clinical attachment loss (CAL)] using ANOVA and RMANOVA. Proportion of change in outcome variable (HbA1c) was assessed between treatment groups using chi-square test. Change was considered significant at p-value ≤ 0.05. Results: A significant reduction was observed in BOP, PPD, CAL, HbA1c and FBG over time [p < 0.05]. Significant reductions were observed in same variables in both test groups in comparison to control arm [p < 0.05]. No change between the two test groups was observed [p > 0.05]. Conclusion: Scaling and root planing improves glycemic control of T2DM patients independently of the use of MET. Therefore, SRP after every 6 months may be suggested and included as a part of overall diabetes management for patients suffering from T2DM. Clinical trial registration NCT 03,343,366 [Date of Registration: 17/11/2017]

BACKGROUND: Dental practitioners can be prone to stress because of the long working hours, high patient expectations, and work environment. OBJECTIVE: To investigate dimensions of occupational stress among dental practitioners leading to burnout and to model its causality with job satisfaction. METHODS: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted for five months. A sample of 302 practicing dental practitioners was selected using the consecutive sample technique. This sample included dental practitioners working in clinical and non-clinical departments of public and private sector universities as well as those doing private general practice. A self-administered structured questionnaire based on the Work Stress Questionnaire was sent using Survey Monkey. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Spearman correlation was applied between stress scores and job satisfaction. A Chi-square test was applied to look into the association between stress levels and different categories. Univariate and multivariate analysis was performed. RESULT: The prevalence of overall occupational stress was high among dental practitioners (83.4%). Occupational stress was greatest in females (55.8%), dental practitioners in the private sector (55.7%), and general dental practitioners (GDPs) (47%). The overall prevalence of job satisfaction among dental professionals was 30%. Occupational stress was significantly associated with burnout and job dissatisfaction in dentistry. Stress levels and working hours were statistically and positively associated, whereas the association between stress levels and job satisfaction was inversely and significantly associated. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of occupational stress among dental practitioners was high and the level of job satisfaction was moderate. The model between these variables was well-fitted.