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The didactic movies uploaded on YouTube are a very popular learning resource used in the academic environment, because it stimulates the students' engagement and motivation. We conducted an opinion survey among 170 students (average age 20.93 ? 2.751) at the Faculty of Dental Medicine, "Grigore T. Popa" University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Romania, about their interest in using educational movies as didactic tools, and the features they prefer in such materials. We used an anonymously questionnaire with 15 items to investigate the students' opinion about certain features of the didactic movies, which can be included or avoided in order to stimulate the learning and are highly responsible for the educational videos' cognitive value. For the statistical processing of collected data we used the Two-Step Clustering procedure, for qualitative data. The procedure identified 5 distinct clusters, with sizes between 30 (17.6%) and 43 (25.3%) from the total number of cases. The clusters quality wasn't the best, but still we were able to identify among the investigated features the most important predictors, which are: the presence of background music in the movies; the presence of images used to fill the breaks; the movie's total length shorter than 6 minutes; the using of explicative notes for charts and drawings displayed directly on the drawing and the movie's design as a PowerPoint presentation, with images, diagrams and animated schemes. The scientific literature provides many information about the features recommended to be used in didactic movies but, as far as we know, a classification regarding the relevance of these features was not discussed yet. That is why our study brings useful information in this area, helping the content developers to improve the quality and the popularity of the didactic materials.

The current trend is the introduction of antimicrobial agents for the purpose of inhibiting or avoiding (adherence) adhesion and (increasing) the multiplication of their microorganisms on the surface of the impression materials. This study aims to determine the properties of antibacterial and antifungal elastic impression materials in full agreement with (bacterial flora) microflora specific for every patient ( with identification of existing species ). In the same time there are considered modern methods of sterilization and insertion of antiseptics, trajectories with profound impact in the field of biocompatibility. The obtained microorganisms were transplanted on differentiated and selective (differentiated) culture medium in order to obtain pure cultures.Each microbial strain obtained was tested to identify several characteristics. The examinations carried out by means of the electron microscopy very accurately detect the microbial load in the structure of the impression materials, sounding an alarm signal on its use in particular clinical situations. Alginates present in their structure polysaccharide structures that represent an excellent substrate of microorganisms.

The aim of this study was represented by the definition and testing of a new formulation strategy and the functionality of composite materials, while ensuring the optimization of the relevant properties for the dental restoration processes through the use of precise techniques of characterization, the modification and functionality of the components in view of obtaining results that are characterized by an optimum biomechanical and bioactive relation, in full agreement with the particularities of the dental structure that requires restoration. In view of obtaining new resistant composite structures we made a number of 10 samples including extracted teeth with various losses of dental substance and the structural modifications included 3 types of composites, whose structure was improved by the introduction of inorganic fillings based on hydroxyapatite and silver nanoparticles. All these structures were reinforced with two types of fibers, Reforpost fiber glass kit (Angelus) and Fiber post Schulzer Pre-silanized; With regard to the use of composite structures improved by HA addition, we notice a slight lacunary structure on the SEM images due to the properties of HA, an aspect present at much smaller dimensions in the silver � HA mix. The size of the grains associated with their continuous uniformity and adherence for the fibrillar structure stands out at the samples with hydroxyapatite, the first place as uniformity and adherence going to the composite of the nanofiller technology category.

The application of certain digital processing techniques offers the possibility of extra accuracy in the interpretation of paraclinical examinations of this type, with profound implications in the diagnosis as well as in the hierarchy of the treatment plan. The purpose of this study is to identify the type of imaging processing for the identification of pathological elements from orthopantomographies and articular tomographies. A number of 20 orthopantomographies and 15 temporo-mandibular joint tomography have undergone through various image enhancement techniques. Various methods of image enhancement (enhancement) have been used for those procedures whereby it becomes more useful in the following aspects: specific details are highlighted; noise is eliminated; the image becomes more visually attractive. The workings were done in Corel PhotoPaint 7.0, using the automatic procedures available.The choice of a particular type of image enhancement technique has been selected for each type of pathology found in orthopantomographies or articular tomography, providing the best accuracy for an optimal imaging interpretation that underpins a precision diagnosis.Of the most useful imaging processing in the optimization of the orthopantomographic image accuracy the point-to-point transformations are to be noted. The image processing proposed in this article focused primarily on improving the radiological image attributes to highlight specific anatomical structures, and secondly, the contour detection, where it was necessary for the diagnostic purposes as well.

Plasma NT-proBNP levels are elevated in heart disease, especially in the presence of ascites-edema syndrome and left ventricular overload. Previous studies have reported cardiovascular dysfunction correlated with the severity of liver damage. This prospective study enrolled 65 subjects with the diagnosis of liver cirrhosis, 82 with chronic hepatitis and 65 healthy subjects in the control group. In chronic hepatitis, NT-proBNP has been shown to be an early marker of diastolic dysfunction and left ventricular remodeling, while in liver cirrhosis it also correlated with portopulmonary hypertension.

The various thyroid axis dysfunctions have cardiovascular consequences both in hyperthyroidism and in hypothyroidism. This cross-sectional study included hyperthyroid and hypothyroid female patients in whom uric acid and NT-proBNP were determined in relation to changes in clinical findings and some echocardiographic parameters. The results of our study suggest that NT-proBNP is a better predictor than uric acid, correlating with left ventricular diastolic dysfunction and systolic blood pressure variations.

People on maintenance haemodialysis (MHD) are at risk of developing malnutrition, which is defined as the consequence of insufficient food intake or a suboptimal quality diet. The kidney and the liver play a central role in protein metabolism. The major aim of the study was to evaluate, for the first time in Romania, the impact of intensive dietary counseling and personalised diets on serum albumin (SA) and others nutritional parameters, but also the relationship between albumin level, inflammation and nutritional status in a cohort of haemodialysis patients which associate or not chronic liver disease (CLD). We prospectively analysed the inflammatory status and malnutrition in 162 HD patients, mean age 56�13 years, from a single dialysis centre. At baseline we evaluated: a. calorie-protein intake using patient�s diet history with the help of 72 hrs recall method;b. nutritional status by anthropometric measures- post dialysis body weight (BW), body mass index (BMI), TSF (tricipital skinfold), MAC (mid-arm circumference), MAMC (mid-arm muscle circumference);c. modified subjective global assessment score (mSGA);d. biochemical tests: pre-dialysis serum albumin, serum creatinine, alkaline reserve, Kt/V and Protein C Reactive (CRP). The patients were followed-up for 6 months.

The aim of the study is to perform a global sensitivity analysis for a model describing the HIV pathogenesis with cytotoxic T-lymphocytes and infected cells in eclipse phase. The viral dynamics of the model is defined by a system of five ordinary differential equations defining rates of variation for the cell populations. The global sensitivity is carried out by sensitivity heat maps and parameter sensitivity spectra generated for several scenarios corresponding to infection-free and endemic equilibria.

The General Linear Modeling is a statistical method which combines the regression and the variance analysis for a dependent variable in the presence of an independent variable and one or more factors, whose effects can be analyzed separately or combined. We used the GLM univariate models on a database made from 6384 patients, recorded in the Oro-Maxillo-Facial Clinic, "Sf. Spiridon" Hospital Iasi, between 2004 – 2015, in order to investigate the influence of patients’ age over the hospitalization length, modulated by gender, domicile, season, etiology and main diagnostics. We found as significant factors the domicile, the season and the diagnostics: the patients from rural areas are expected to stay in hospital with 0.396 days less than those from urban areas, those hospitalized during spring stay in hospital with 0.320 days less than those hospitalized during other seasons, and the patients with maxillary fractures have an hospitalization length longer with 0.877 days than the other patients; the patients with mandible fractures have an hospitalization length longer with 0.755 days than the other patients and the patients with dental fracture and dislocations have an hospitalization length shorter with 0.840 days than the other patients. No significant interactions between these factors were identified.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate on a group of 67 patients (29 boys and 38 girls) aged 6-37 years the frequency of the type of impacted teeth, the treatment performed, as well as to compare the images obtained on the panoramic radiographs and on the cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) in order to establish an appropriate therapeutic decision. The impacted canine was the most frequent, followed by the incisor and premolar impaction. The most common therapeutic procedure was surgical exposure and orthodontic traction. The therapeutic decision was changed after examining the CBCT images, which brought additional information about the impacted tooth and the relationships with the adjacent tissues. The three-dimensional CBCT reconstructions were relevant for visualizing the path of the impacted tooth, the buccal-palatal choice of the surgical opening and the evolution of the orthodontic traction of the impacted tooth.

The study aims to analyze the biomechanical behavior of flexible acrylates compared to conventional acrylates, acrylates reinforced with polyethylene fibers, polyamide structures, which are subject to tensile forces, respectively rupture, while the stresses induced in the structure of biomaterials. A number of 6 specimens were made, in the form of thin rectangular plates with a longitudinal dimension of 40 mm, the width of about 20 mm, having a thickness ranging from 1.8 to 2.5. From these traction specimens were made having the ends armed with aluminum plates glued with adhesive (cyanoacrylate). The tests were performed on a HEKERT 50 machine (on the 10 kN scale) and on a Textenser test machine (with a maximum force of 500 N) The specimen of the flexible acrylate has the highest resistance to force breaking. The specimens made of classical acrylate have fractured with the displacement of the fragments.

The recent researches showed that the multimedia content is a useful tool for the educational process, because it is dynamic, attractive and stimulates the students' engagement. The animations facilitate the learning of dynamic information and help the learners to understand better the changes in time. Last year we introduced the video presentations as teaching method during the practical stages at Medical Informatics and Biostatistics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, "Grigore T. Popa" University of Medicine and Pharmacy from Iasi, and, because the students' feedback was highly positive, this year we extended this method for all the stages, not only to solve certain practical problems, but also to explain theoretical concepts, from the biostatistical field. The videos were developed using Sony Vegas Movie Studio Platinum 14.0 and contain live demonstration, registered using CamStudio 2.7, with oral explanations recorded separately, static images and animations made in Microsoft PowerPoint. We intend to upload all these videos on YouTube, on a personal channel, because this resource has nowadays a huge popularity between youngers. The current paper presents a review regarding the efficacy of YouTube and other similar products in the educational process and shows the opinion of our students about this initiative. This information was obtained through an opinion survey among the students of our University. We used an anonymously questionnaire with 20 items and answers recorded on a five-level Likert scale of agreement; we used 3 samples of study in order to make comparisons: a sample of 75 students in the 1st year, Faculty of Dental Medicine (they had video presentations during the practical stages, being able to evaluate objectively the drawbacks and benefits), a sample of 90 students in the 1st year, Faculty of Medicine (they did not watch video presentations during the practical stages, but they know the concept) and a sample of 85 students in the 5th year, Faculty of Dental Medicine (they also did not watch video presentations during the practical stages, they know the concept and can make more mature evaluations, having a higher age).

Sensitivity analysis methods have a long history and have been widely applied in different fields, such as environmental modeling, economical modeling for decision making, parameter estimation and control, chemical kinetics, and biological modeling analysis, with metabolic networks, signaling pathways and genetic circuits. Cancer immunotherapy is based on the idea of immune surveillance. Immunotherapy, also named biologic therapy, represents a type of cancer treatment that boosts the body's natural defenses to fight cancer. It uses substances made by the body or in a laboratory to improve or restore immune system function. The aim of this paper is to perform a global sensitivity analysis applied to a mathematical model for the tumor-immune interaction. Global sensitivity analysis quantifies the importance of model inputs and their interactions with respect to model output. It provides an overall view on the influence of inputs on outputs as opposed to a local view of partial derivatives as in local sensitivity analysis. The model under investigation is specialized for autologous dendritic cell transfection therapy. It consists of a system of five nonlinear ordinary differential equations which define the rates of change for the following key immune cell populations: the tumor-specific CD4 T helper cells, the tumor-specific CD8 T cells or CTLs cytotoxic cells, the cancer cells that expose the tumor-associated antigens or TAAs, the mature dendritic cells loaded with the TAAs, and the IL-2 secreted by the tumor-specific CD4 T helper cells and responsible for T cell growth. We show how to globally analyze the sensitivity of this complex system by means of several graphical objects: sensitivity heat map, singular spectrum plot, and parameter sensitivity spectrum.

Sample size is the first requirement when the study starts. One should know the precision needed in order to have a consistent statistical analysis. The minimum number of data in the sample defines the error in estimating the parameters and therefore is related to the confidence interval. In medical area the frequency of an event (event rate, proportion) is often of great interest (have a look on the prevalence or incidence of a disease).There are different ways to estimate the confidence interval of a proportion. One use the approximation with a normal distribution, others compensate the lack of continuity by adding adjustments terms while others use the exact methods based on binomial distribution. Therefore if we have different ways of computing the confidence intervals which are related to the sample size we should take these into account. We have computed the sample size based on 4 confidence intervals: Wald, Wilson, Clopper-Pearson exact method, and finally the arcsin transformation. To compare the results, we have checked the precision on estimating the event rate by the probability of belonging to the range of acceptable proportions (similar to coverage probability). Finally we found that the simplest Wald method which is the most used in literature is practically the worse for extreme event rates but is robust in estimation for proportions close to 0.5.Clopper-Pearson and Arcsine are more trustful if we are to be sharp in computing the sample size. Wilson method is closed to Wald even if for confidence intervals it performs better.

Aim: Study aimed to test whether implants inserted in posterior mandible sites augmented with screw-guided bone regeneration (S-GBR) technique differ from implants placed in non-grafted sites regarding the success and survival rate. Materials and Methods: 20 edentulous patients (mean age 59.45 ± 15.220) were divided in a test group (S-GBR) (immediate implants placed simultaneously with grafting procedures) and control group (implants placed in naturally healed sites). Primary outcomes (implants success, implants survival) and secondary outcomes (clinical parameters of soft tissues: mPI, mGI, probing depth, keratinized mucosa, marginal-bone-level) were evaluated at 24-months follow-up. Results: Plaque levels were higher (p = 0.046) in S-GBR group (0.97 ± 0.882 mm) when compared with control (0.66 ± 0.695 mm). Keratinized mucosa width was higher in S-GBR group (4.13 ± 1.033 mm) than control (3.34 ± 0.821 mm) (p = 0.000) Probing depth (PD) width was higher in S-GBR group (3.50 ± 1.372 mm) than control (2.56 ± 1.332 mm) (p = 0.000). mGI was higher among implants placed in S-GBR group (0.90 ± 1.020 mm) than control (0.56 ± 0.794 mm) (p = 0.061). The difference between the average bone loss (MBL) for implants placed in grafted sites (Group S-GBR: 2.20 ± 1.867 mm) and for those placed in naturally healed sites (Group B: 1.09 ± 1.678 mm) was statistically significant (p = 0.000). The overall implant success rate after 24-month follow-up was 76.7% in S-GBR group and 90.6% in control group (p = 0.001). The survival rate after 24-month follow-up was 86.7% in S-GBR group and 93.8% in control group (p = 0.182). The reconstruction of the alveolar bone using S-GBR technique and immediate implant placement is a valid guided bone regeneration strategy for mandibular alveolar bone with severe horizontal resorption. The choice of S-GBR technique should be based on specific indications as implants placed in grafted sites recorded worse marginal success rate, survival rate and bone resorption than those placed in non-grafted sites.

An important aspect of orthodontic microimplants is represented by biocompatibility and avoidance of infection development at living tissue surrounding it. Therefore, nanotechnology has the ability to improve this issue by coating microimplants with metal oxides type nanomaterials possessing antimicrobial effect. Some features of advanced nanostructured materials used as implant coatings, such as composition, structure, specific surface area, porosity, shape and size are factors that make them suitable as antimicrobial agents. The present work deals with the structural and morphological studies of ZnO and TiO2 nanoparticles used to combat oral diseases. Coating microimplants with nanosized titanium oxide (TiO2) and zinc oxide (ZnO) may improve conditions for osseointegration in accordance with preventing oral infection. These metal oxides nanopowders were synthesized using sol-gel method. Structural and morphological investigation were carried out by XRD and FTIR spectra, SEM-EDX and TEM images respectively. XRD and FTIR analyses confirmed metal oxides crystallization and metal oxide bonds. SEM-EDX and TEM features confirmed elemental composition of these nanoparticles and their textural characteristics such as shape, size, porosity and agglomeration degree.

The Faculty of Medicine, with all its specializations, is a very challenging choice for the high school graduates. The admittance exam is difficult, but it is just the beginning because, after this stage, the young students in the 1st year of study find themselves in front of an even more difficult situation – the lectures and the practical stages have often a high and dense level of scientific information, hard to be understood and learned, and the academic requirements are much more demanding than those in high school. That is why the percentage of students who obtain poor results in the first session of examinations is usually increased and can lead to serious consequences, such as abandoning studies. This situation is a challenge for the students, who are not prepared for the new demands and the new learning style, as well as for the teachers, who are interested to facilitate as much as possible this transition period and to help the students to understand better the scientific notions and to learn with pleasure. In order to reach these objectives, the solution is to use new didactic methods and tools, like the PowerPoint presentations, the online resources and the interactive lectures, based on questions, answers and discussions. Another tool, whose potential is briefly investigated in the present paper, is the using of videos, eventually uploaded online, on YouTube. We developed such videos as didactic materials for the Medical Informatics and Biostatistics practical stages, in order to explain theoretical concepts (databases and statistics) and practical procedures (how to perform different operations in Access and Excel); the videos are based on live demonstrations, combined with oral explanations and static images and are uploaded in the academic network, being available at any moment for the students. A comparative study showed that the marks obtained at the practical exam by the students who use these resources are better than the marks obtained at the same exam by the students in the previous generations, who didn’t have access to them. Also we asked 60 students from the 1st year of study, Faculty of Dental Medicine, through a questionnaire, about their opinions regarding the utility and the attractiveness of this teaching resource, as well as its role in simplifying the learning process, and their answers were generally favourable. These preliminary results encourage us to continue with this project and to extend it, but also to evaluate it permanently, in order to detect its limits.

Comparing data sets to highlight statistical differences is achieved by applying the t test (two samples) or ANOVA technique (2 or more samples). However, the cause-effect link is not demonstrated using these, even if a statistical significance is obtained. Multiple regression identifies and controls the effect of covariates which can contribute to explaining the observed variation of dependent variable, while reducing the variance error (unexplained variation). For an analysis with known covariates of interest that can affect the dependent variable, an effect adjustment by ANCOVA method is needed. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) is an extension of ANOVA that provides a way to statistically control the (linear) effect of covariates for which no descriptive examination is wanted. ANCOVA's advantage consists in calculating the adjusted averages and applying their comparison test based on analysis of control variables (covariates). A tough condition in ANCOVA is the homogeneity of regression slopes. In the case of biological data, this condition is difficult to achieve, with the effects of covariates presenting major differences. Therefore, we have proposed and analysed a multiple linear regression model inspired by the ANCOVA technique in which the condition of homogeneity of the slopes can be not fulfilled. The proposed model includes the averages of the groups defined by the independent variable and the deviations of the covariates as slopes with different values. The model was applied to medical data. Comparison of the multiple linear regression model that includes all covariates was compiled for comparison, highlighting the differences between the two methods.

The aim of the study was to identify psychosocial factors that contribute to the acquisition of children's sanogenous behaviors, on a sample of 90 preschool children divided in two groups and their mothers, who answered independently to an oral health questionnaire. The questionnaire was applied to children in three stages and they received a sanogenous education program. Results show significant differences between age, education level and the mother's income in relation to their knowledge and with two groups of children from kindergartens with or without medical staff, by gender and by education consecutively.

The aims of the study was to compare the marks obtained at the final assessment, using MCQ tests and at the oral evaluation, for a preclinical and a clinical discipline, on a sample of 285 undergraduate students at dental medicine divided into two groups according to their year of study, in order to evaluate the advantages and the drawbacks of these performances. The statistical results showed that the grades’ distribution at MCQ tests follow the normal law, but their averages were significantly lower than the average marks obtained at the oral evaluation, regardless the year of study or gender.

Our experiment focused on identifying the elemental chemical composition of salivary crystals' surface, obtained from patients with/without orthodontic appliances or metal-ceramic crowns in order to test their influence on human saliva. We used 110 samples of saliva derived from 19 patients (11 males and 8 females), with ages between 11–26 years old, divided into three groups: the control sample (without orthodontic appliances/metal-ceramic crowns), the study sample A (with orthodontic appliances/physiognomic metal-ceramic crowns) and the study sample B (former patients with previous orthodontic appliances). The surface elemental chemical composition was observed through Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and was analyzed by X-ray Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). The statistical analysis was performed in SPSS 20.0. Metallic elements (Ni, Al, Zn) that do not derive from the chemical composition of human saliva were found on all the salivary crystals. There were found statistically significant differences for Ni between the study sample B and the control sample (p

The risk factors analysis in medicine is a very complex problem, with significant practical implications in taking the right decisions in the health policies field. A useful approach is the study of interaction between risk factors through additive and multiplicative schemes, required when the identified risk factors are not independent in causing a certain outcome. Several models were developed to solve this problem, but it is critical to choose the right one, because different methods can lead to different conclusions about the same biological processes. Our paper describes the additive and multiplicative interaction schemes and presents a practical application of them in investigating the effects of a few particular diet habits on the chances to develop gingival recession, on a sample made from 2389 people coming from Iasi county. 8 diet habits were investigated; only 4 of them were identified as risk factors and, among the 6 possible paired combinations, 4 were identified as major positive interaction, 1 was identified as moderate interaction and 1 was identified as weak.

The aim of this study concerns the individualization of correlative aspects of the type of smile, teeth and visibility of how the therapeutic solution chosen, according to the particular clinical case provides ultimate clinical success through the aesthetic requirements. The analyzed group was represented by 40 patients, diagnosed with partial edentation; The sample was evaluated through descriptive statistics (performed in SPSS 20.0) and the smile type was emphasized by detecting the contours through image processing in Corel PhotoPaint 7.0. Regarding the type of smile met, we noted a prevalence of the convex-not contacting smile in a proportion of 35%, followed by smile convex-contacting and convex-covering, a rate of 25%, assuming the gingival smiles for a 15%. The therapeutic solutions which provided an optimal rehabilitation optimally were elected according to the established smile type. Beside the correctness of the clinical and technological maneuvers, the esthetic evaluation and the individualization of the esthetic area influence in a decisive way the final results.

The hearing assessment is an important step in detecting any possible hearing loss which leads to specific communication and speech pathologies. Different speech intelligibility tests have been developed for some languages, but calibrated materials for Romanian language were not validated until now. We used a new originally kit test containing monosyllabic and bisyllabic words from spoken language, corresponding to the normal speech. The words were filtered by special software in order to select the most common and frequency spectrum homogeneous word lists, and the audiological assessment was made in standard test conditions. The aim of the study was to mathematically assess and validate this material in Romanian language for speech audiometry. In order to do this we recorded for each list the percentage of words correctly identified by different subjects with normal hearing at different sound intensities (in dB) and we generated the corresponding curve, which was then compared with the ideal curve known from literature, corresponding to a normal hearing. The difference between these curves was calculated as a normalized root mean squared error (NRMSE), and a tested list was validated when this difference was small enough. The simulations were made in MATLAB, and we wrote a dedicated algorithm in order to generate the curves and to calculate the proposed error. We tested 260 lists, among them 85.4% were identified with a NRMSE error smaller than 15%; these lists were kept as valid, the others being reformulated. The behaviour of the valid lists was further statistically analysed, in order to prove its usefulness as a clinical tool for widely use in the evaluation of hearing loss or communication disorders.

Cholesterol gallstone disease is often associated with the metabolic syndrome. Female gender is an unmodifiable risk factor for cholelithiasis and, in its turn, the metabolic syndrome features a sexual dimorphism which warns that a global approach might overlook important discrimination. We carried out a retrospective analytical case-control study in order to perform a comparative analysis between two groups of female patients with metabolic syndrome and gallstones (n=60) or without gallstones (n=65). All the patients were investigated by abdominal ultrasound and met at least three criteria for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome. Cases and controls were compared regarding anthropometric measurements, a complex lipid profile, and liver function tests. The risks associated with the likelihood of gallstones were estimated by means of cross-tabulation. In order to rank the significant variables we developed a binary logistic regression model which identified lean body weight ≤ 46.44 kg (OR 0.165; 95% CI 0.045–0.611; P = 0.007), total cholesterol ≥ 4.9 mmol/L (OR 15.948; 95% CI 2.700–94.205; P = 0.002), and direct bilirubin > 5.1 µmol/L (OR 0.056; 95% CI 0.013–0.235; P < 0.001), as variables with significant probability of association with the risk of gallstones in women with metabolic syndrome.

Our experiment's aim was to make a three-dimensional (3D) analysis of a case with malocclusion and to simulate the orthodontic treatment with fixed poliaggregate appliance. We used intraoral photos, panoramic radiographs and lateral cephalograms which were processed in Rhinoceros Nurbs Modelling Tool v.5.0 Service Release 9. To create the 3D model we used the programs Keyshot v.5.0.86 with trial license, Adobe Photoshop CS6 v. 13 and SnagIT v. 12.2.0, requiring the application of several sequences of graphic processing. Individualizing the original 3D model consisted of customizing component elements, repositioning dental units, matching their alveoli, blocking them in three layers, creating jaw and mandible and positioning in occlusion. Customizing the 3D model showed the status of the chosen clinical case. In order to simulate the orthodontic treatment brackets and archwires were built and were placed on each maxillary and mandibular tooth. Our 3D model has many advantages, varied functionality, diagnostic and therapeutic importance.

A subject of high interest in epidemiology is to register monthly and yearly the prevalence of certain diseases, in order to make prognosis regarding the expected number of new patients. It is suitable to solve these sorts of problems by treating these monthly reports as time series and making forecasts through the modelling methods of Time Series Analysis. Our paper propose this approach in making forecasts about the expected number of 4 types of oro-maxillo-facial traumas at patients from Iasi, during a period of 8 months (May 2015–December 2015) based on 11 years records made within the Oro-Maxillo-Facial Surgery Clinic, "Sf. Spiridon" Emergency Hospital Iasi. The forecasts were made in SPSS 16.0, using the Expert Modeler module, and the best suitable models found were Simple Seasonal Exponential Smoothing and Simple Exponential Smoothing. The paper presents the results of this analysis and the predicted values, with 95% confidence intervals.

was to determine the etiological risk factors and predictors of crossbite' treatment at children.270 cases with crossbites and 255 controls with other malocclusions were uniformly evaluated. The crossbites cases were divided in group I (anterior crossbite), group II (posterior crossbite) and group III (anterior and posterior crossbites) and were compared between them per Angle Class malocclusions, dysfunctional and dental causes, associations with other discrepancies, as well by need and types of treatment. Binary logistic regression was used to find risk factors and predictors.The mean age of cases was 10.25?2.770 years. There were found significant differences between the groups of crossbites cases (p0.05). There were identified risk factors (non-attrition of deciduous teeth, Angle Class II malocclusion and permanent teeth extraction) and protective factors of the crossbite (the tooth decay of deciduous teeth, eruption anomalies and tongue-thrust swallowing). There were found predictors for early corrective treatment (sucking habit, non-attrition and buds crowding) with a precision of 78.5%; for normal treatment (mouth breathing and buds crowding) with a precision of 71.5%; for late treatment (Angle Class III malocclusion, dental crowding and TMJ disorders) with a precision of 83.0%; for maxillary expansion (eruption anomalies and buds crowding) with a precision of 77.0%; for oral associated surgery (macrodontia and TMJ disorders) with a precision of 75.9% (HL test, p0.05).The risk factors were dental furthermore; the predictors of treatment were adequate with dentition, etiology and disorders at age identification, suggesting the contribution of practitioners in intercepting this orthodontic emergency.

The study on the accuracy of manual and digital measurements was conducted on conventional lateral cephalograms of 66 randomly selected patients with malocclusion from the Clinical Orthodontics at the Ambulatory Clinic of the “St. Spiridon” University Emergency Hospital, Iasi, Romania. Forty-six linear and angular measurements were performed with Steiner, Tweed and Jarabak analyses. The manual measurements were conducted with a ruler and a protractor, the digital ones with Onyx CephTM (Onyx CEPH 2.7.18 (174) Image Instruments GmbH, Chemnitz, Germany). The statistical analyses were performed in SPSS, version 20.0. The results presented different mean values of measurements calculated with two analyses, being statistically significant (p

The medical databases usually contain records for a large number of parameters, being difficult to interpret properly; Data Mining is an analytical technique used to explore large quantities of data, in order to identify consistent patterns and systematic relationships between variables, and to validate these results by applying them to new data sets. The Principal Components Analysis is a specific technique in this field, used to extract the smallest number of components from a large collection of variables, preserving as much as possible the information contained in the original data set. We present and discuss in this paper the theoretical background of this technique and a practical application in the specific case of cephalometric studies, which involves a large number of measurements on teleradiographies, being a perfect choice for this type of analysis.

Introduction: The growing prevalence of urticaria in children over the last decade and the importance of determining the involved pathogenic mechanisms as well as of detecting the etiologic factors are some of the aspects that led to the choice of research topic. Materials and Methods: The early diagnosis and the establishment of the therapeutic and prophylactic conduct in the urticaria are a necessity. There have been evaluated through a retrospective questionnaire, anamnesis and biochemical evaluation a number of 246 children diagnosed with chronic IgE and non IgE mediated urticaria, and prick tested for a wide range of food allergens. The assessment of the intensity of the eruption was done by calculating the urticaria activity score (UAS), both at diagnosis and at subsequent evaluations to assess the response to the treatment. The immunological investigations which were carried out included the determination of the IgA, IgG, IgM, total IgE and specific IgE to food allergens and airborne allergens, as well as the determination of the IgG4-type antibodies to 20 food allergens by means of enzyme immunoassay. The ELISA method was used for dosing the total IgE, while the CLA System Quanti Scan method (Innogenetics, Heiden, Germany) was used for determining the serum-specific IgE for 20 of the most common food allergens and airborne allergens (Innogenetics, Heiden, Germany). Results: Positive statistical correlations have been made with IgE and non IgE mediated reactions, also with IgG4 antibodies. The result of the multivariate analysis shows that the existence of the atopy represents a risk factor which significantly influences the allergic sensitisation (HR = 3.186→95% CI: 2.57-5.96), followed in the order of importance by food diversification before the age of 6.months (HR = 2.157→95% CI: 1.86-5.35), natural feeding before 3.months of age (HR = 1.78→95% CI: 1003-4581) and artificial or mixed feeding (HR = 1.56→95% CI: 1056-3861). Conclusion: There have been reported different correlations between specific IgE and IgG4 with different food allergens and the period of time between the onset and the duration of chronic urticaria. The regression of specific IgE has a predictive value upon the remission of urticaria (AUC=0.557, p=0.447, 95%CI: AUC→0.398–0.717). The logistic regression for analysis of the predictives factors for the regresson of urticaria showed several factors involved:.Speciphic IgE values, compliance for the eliminating diet and treatment, allergic antecedents and the eventual polisensitivisation.

In the present paper we consider a parameter identification problem associated with systems governed by nonlinearparabolic partial differential equations with delays. To be precise, a distributed parameter model describing spatially-dependent hepatic processing of the chemical compound named dioxin or TCDD is analysed. The associated inverse problem is formulated in an operator theoretic setting for a least squares optimization problem. Galerkin type approximations are used to define a family of approximate optimization problems. Finally, the convergence result of the parameter identification problem is tested numerically, using both exact and noisy data.