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Introduction: Diabetes and its acute complications have become a significant health hazard worldwide, particularly in the Indian subcontinent. To date, there is no data on the awareness of dental professionals regarding the management of diabetic patients. Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of dental professionals in India regarding the clinical manifestations and management of diabetic patients. Materials and Method: The study was cross-sectional, comprising of 100 dental professionals, including dental graduates, post graduates, faculty members of dental colleges and private practitioners from the Delhi NCR region. Data was obtained by a self completion questionnaire which was pretested by conducting a pilot study, comprising of a fourteen item questionnaire aimed at assessing the knowledge, attitude and practice of dental fraternity regarding the manifestations and management of diabetic patients. In the questionnaire, nine questions aimed at assessing the knowledge, two questions assessed the attitude and three were for practice assessment. Results: The results showed a clear cut knowledge deficit amongst dental fraternity regarding the manifestations and management of diabetics in dental practice. Conclusion: The present study showed low level of awareness of dental fraternity regarding diabetes. Therefore, designing strong curriculum resources for oral health care providers, in order to enhance their awareness towards diabetes is the need of the hour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Age estimation is an important aspect of forensic odontology. Calculation of pulp volume using CBCT and its correlation with age could be an effective, non destructive method. The aim of this pilot study was to verify and calibrate the proposed method of calculating pulp and tooth volume using CBCT. Materials and Method: The study was conducted on six extracted monoradicular teeth which were scanned by Cone Beam CT (CS9300-C 3D.Carestream Health, Inc. Rochester, NY) after endodontic preparation. The tooth (TV2) and pulp volumes (PV 2) were then calculated using imaging software (Xelis Dental software (INFINITT Inc., Seoul, South Korea). Then actual tooth (TV1) and pulp volumes (PV1) were calculated based on the Archimedes principle. The pulp and tooth volume ratios R1 and R2 were also calculated. The estimated and actual values were compared and percentage error was calculated. Results: The percentage error was also calculated to evaluate the accuracy which was found to be 8.84%, 2.6% and 12.7% for TV1 and TV2, PV1 and PV2 and R1 and R2 respectively. Conclusion: These were in accordance with the results by Yang et al.7 who obtained a percentage error of ±7.8% while the estimated error was quite less than that reported by Star et al8 who reported the maximum percentage error to be 21% and 16% for pulp and tooth volumes respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Oral submucous fibrosis and leukoplakia are highly prevalent in India Lipids are the chief cell membrane components which are essential for various biological functions like cell growth and division of normal as well as malignant tissues. Lipids can be helpful for studying the variation in the cholesterol levels for diagnosing and treating the diseases. Aim: The present study evaluated the plasma lipid profiles in patients with Oral submucous fibrosis and leukoplakia and controls. Methodology: 21 patients were selected for the study out of which 7 had OSMF 7 had oral leukoplakia and 7 were included in control group. Patients with cardiovascular diseases, uncontrolled diabetes, acute hepatitis, thyroid dysfunction, and any drug history were excluded from the study. 5ml blood sample was taken and the serum was tested for triglycride levels(TG), total cholesterol (TC), LDL, HDL, LDL VLDL level were analyzed using triglycerides were analyzed by auto-analyzer used for the analysis of the results is a fully automated biochemistry analyzer. Results: In this study TC, HDL, LDL level analysis showed lower levels in oral leukoplakia and OSMF patients than that of the controls. Conclusion: The alterations in the plasma lipid profile patterns were considerable and recommend a still in-depth study with larger sample size in this aspect for early diagnosis and management of oral leukoplakia to prevent malignant transformation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To evaluate the presence of microorganisms on mobiles phones in dental clinics, as a possible nidus for infection and to suggest the use of disposable sleeves to reduce the level of microorganisms in the dental clinics. Materials and Method: An observational study was conducted, on two groups, study group (group I) and control group (group II), having 25 mobile phones. Before entering the dental clinics, the mobiles phones were cleaned with an alcohol based disinfectant under aseptic conditions. Then, the mobile phones in group I were covered with an autoclaved disposable sleeve having a chemical indicator and group II were left uncovered. After five hours, swabs were obtained from the surfaces of mobile phones of both group I and group II. The swabs were cultured and incubated on blood agar for twenty four hours and evaluated for their microbial load. Results: The sample taken from the sleeve showed growth of microorganisms whereas, there was no growth on mobile surface of group I. On the contrary, the mobile surface of group II showed significant microbial load. Conclusion: Mobile phones can act as a fomite in dental setup and the use of disposable sleeves can effectively curtail any cross contamination of microorganisms, thereby, serving as a protective barrier. Therefore, these sleeves act as yet another protective barrier in dental clinics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]