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Introduction. The most common nondental orofacial pain conditions are temporomandibular disorders (TMDs). TMD basic examination and clinical management are included in a curriculum of each dentistry programme taught in Poland, but it is not clear how the dentists cope with diagnosis and possible treatment in their routine dental practices. The objective of the present study was to assess a level of self-perceived knowledge of TMD amongst dentists in Poland. Materials and methods. The participants, of whom all studied and graduated from a Polish university, were randomly selected from dental offices in Krakow (Poland). The selected dentists were administered an anonymous questionnaire, which contained questions measuring self-assessment of knowledge of TMD diagnosis and therapy and assessing knowledge of ethology and TMD symptoms. Results. Only 6.5% of the participants identified their TMD knowledge as very good, 32.3% assessed it as good, 39.3% thought it was sufficient, 20.4% as insufficient, and 1.49% considered it as poor. 9.4% of all participants have attempted to diagnose and treat TMD patients very often, 26.4% declared performing it often, 45.8% rarely, and 18.4% had never made such an attempt. There was a significant relationship between the dentists’ knowledge and their attempts at diagnosing and treating TMD patients (p<0.05). Conclusion. The level of TMD knowledge amongst the Polish dentists is still insufficient. Raising its level would considerably help the dentists to refer their patients to right specialists for a diagnosis and TMD treatment and/or interdisciplinary management of TMD patients.

Background: Little is known about the effect of the type of splint material, heat-cured PMMA (HC) or chemical-cured PMMA (CC) on the wear of opposing tooth surfaces. Objective: The aim of this in vitro study was to evaluate two-body wear of dentin, enamel, glass-ceramic or one of four resin composites when opposing splint materials, namely ProBase HC and CC. Methods: The two-body wear of bovine dentine, bovine enamel, glass-ceramic IPS e.max CAD (EMAX) and four composites (Filtek Z250 [Z250], Clearfil AP-X [AP-X], Clearfil Majesty Posterior [CMP], Filtek Supreme XTE [FSE]) opposing three antagonists (HC and CC and stainless steel as control) were evaluated in the ACTA wear machine. In addition, all the surfaces were evaluated with scanning electron microscopy. Results: The highest average wear was observed in the case of dentin. The lowest average wear was found EMAX. In every case—except for EMAX—the wear rate was higher with HC than with CC (all differences being statistically significant). Conclusions: The level of wear of enamel, dentin and various resin composites was higher in contact with HC than in CC, the wear of dentin being the highest. In the case of a patient with no or little tooth wear or whose teeth are restored with composite material or glass-ceramic, the splint HC might be preferred because of its better durability. However, when the splint is in contact with opposing dentin preservation of the dentin, CC might be the best choice.

Lyme borreliosis (LB) is a zoonotic disease caused by Gram-negative bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. The majority of reported cases of LB originate in the northern hemisphere, mostly in the US and Europe. One of the typical manifestations of LB are musculoskeletal symptoms; they may appear in any of the three LB stages. The diagnosis is based on clinical manifestations and confirmed by serological tests. One course of antibiotic therapy is sufficient for LB to dissipate in most cases, although for some patients, the symptoms subside gradually even after completion of therapy. Patients who have been demonstrated to have specific antibodies but are symptomless should not be treated. In instances where the advised treatment proved to be unsuccessful, patients should be referred to rheumatologist for additional diagnostics. The goal of this review is to update physicians on current scientific knowledge on musculoskeletal manifestations of LB.

The aim was to determine the occurrence of temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) in patients with Lyme disease (LD), and to estimate the contribution of factors that may identify TMD among LD patients. In seventy-six (N = 76) adult patients with LD (mean age 57.6 &plusmn, 14.6 years) and 54 healthy non-Lyme volunteers with a mean age of 56.4 &plusmn, 13.5 years, possible function (i.e., non-pain) diagnoses were established using the Research Diagnostic Criteria of Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD). Pain diagnoses were established by means of the function-dependent dynamic and static tests. The two groups did not significantly differ in the frequency of disc displacements diagnoses and function-dependent pain diagnoses. LD showed a significantly higher frequency (p &lt, 0.001) of osteoarthrosis than the control group. For the prediction of pain diagnoses in LD patients, the single regression analyses pointed out an association with age, sleep bruxism (SB), and awake bruxism (AB). Two predictors (i.e., SB (p = 0.002) and AB (p = 0.017)) were statistically significant in the final multiple variable model. The frequency of TMD in patients with LD based on function-dependent tests was not significantly different from that in the control group. This investigation suggests that the contribution of bruxism to the differentiation between patients with Lyme and TMD is high.

Purpose The prevalence of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in the general Polish population has not yet been thoroughly investigated. The aim of this study was to determine how frequently Polish young adults demonstrated the signs and symptoms of TMD, and how often they were aware of these. Materials and Methods The study involved 260 volunteers of approximately 18 years of age (and with an F:M ratio of 2.8), who had completed the Research Diagnostic Criteria for Temporomandibular Disorders (RDC/TMD) questionnaire in its internationally accepted Polish version. The volunteers were students from three randomly selected high schools in Krakow, Poland. Following the clinical examinations, all participants received none or one or more of the RDC/TMD axis I diagnoses on one or both sides: muscle disorders (group I), disk displacements (group II), arthralgia, osteoarthritis, and osteoarthrosis (group III). Classification on RDC/TMD axis II involved pain-related impairment (Graded Chronic Pain Severity, from 0: no TMD pain in the prior 6 months, to IV: high disability—severely limiting), depression, and somatization levels (normal, moderate, severe). Results On the RDC/TMD axis I, 69 (26.5%) of the participants received one or more of the possible diagnoses. Awareness of TMD was present in 20 (7.7%) people from that group, in the form of self-complaints. The difference between females and males was statistically significant (p = 0.0013). On the RDC/TMD axis II assessment, a diagnosis of pain, depression, or somatization was given in 38 (14.6%) cases from that group. Conclusion Muscle disorders were most frequently diagnosed in the group of Polish young adults, and the prevalence of the disease did not differ across similar groups of young people.

ObjectiveNowadays direct and indirect resin composites are frequently applied to build up the occlusion when extensive tooth wear took place. To achieve long-lasting restorations it is essential to obtain knowledge about their interactions due to occlusal contacts. Therefore, the two- and three-body wear between frequently used direct and indirect resin composites was investigated.Materials and methodsThe two- and three-body wear of three direct resin composites and three indirect resin composites, with Clearfil AP-X, Filtek Z250, and Filtek Supreme XT as antagonists, were measured, using the ACTA wear device. The wear rates were determined and the surfaces were evaluated with SEM.ResultsThe most remarkable outcome was that the two-body wear rate of the different composites opposing the Z250 wheel were significantly higher. Furthermore, it was shown that the three-body wear rate was independent on the antagonist and in general higher than the two-body wear rate.ConclusionsTo reduce abrasion of the opposing resin composite surface the resin composite fillers should consist of a softer glass, e.g. barium glass or in case of a harder filler the size should be reduced to nano-size.