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Background: The aim of this study was to assess risk factors for tooth loss in the population of the city of Bialystok, in north-eastern Poland, taking into account the entire population and different age groups. The study included 1138 subjects divided into three subgroups: 20–44 years, 45–64 years, and 65–79 years. Participants were classified according to the number of teeth lost (0–8 vs. 9–28). Socio-economic variables, smoking history, and dental habits were collected through a questionnaire. Medical examinations provided data on the body mass index and the fasting blood glucose level. Data were statistically analysed using Mann-Whitney U, Student’s t, chi2 tests, and binary logistic regression, p < 0.05. Results: For the general population, being female (OR 1.38, 1.07–1.79, p = 0.015), having secondary education (OR 4.18, Cl 2.97–5.87, p < 0.000), higher body mass index (OR 1.13, Cl 1.10–1.17, p < 0.000), higher fasting blood glucose level (OR 1.03 1.03–1.04, p < 0.000), being former smoker (OR 1.72, Cl 1.29–2.31, p < 0.000), ever smoker (OR 1.69, Cl 1.29–2.20, p < 0.000), current smoker (OR 1.62, Cl 1.15–2.29, p < 0.006), longer smoking period (OR 1.11, Cl 1.09–1.14, p < 0.000), last visit to the dentist over a year ago (OR 1.92, Cl 0.44–2.58, p < 0.000) and tooth brushing less than two times a day (OR 1.6, Cl 1.14–2.23, p < 0.006) were associated with losing more than 8 teeth. In the subgroup aged 20–44 years, only smoking duration was a risk factor for tooth loss (p = 0.02). For the middle-aged and oldest groups, education level (respectively p < 0.001, and p = 0.001), body mass index (respectively, p < 0.001, and p = 0.037), smoking status ever/former/current (respectively p < 0.001 and p = 0.002), smoking status never/ever (respectively p < 0.001 and p = 0.009), smoking duration (p < 0.001) were related to tooth loss. Additionally, in the elderly group, fasting blood glucose level (p = 0.044) and frequency of dental visits (p = 0.007) were related to tooth loss. We concluded that in the evaluated population, tooth loss was associated with socio-demographic, medical, and behavioural factors.

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to map dental students’ experience of the study situation throughout the pandemic. All clinical dental students (year 3 to 5) at the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Clinical Dentistry (IKO), University of Bergen (UiB), Norway, were invited. Participation was anonymous and voluntary, and the response rate was 63%. Questions regarding stress-related factors were divided into three categories. In the category «Stressors/learning», a statistically significant difference was observed between both the genders (p = 0.001) and years of study (p = 0.028). Statistically significant differences between the genders were also observed in the category «Stressors/infection» (p = 0.008). Women were significantly more stressed due to lack of clinical skills (p = 0.048), not receiving as good theoretical teaching as before the pandemic (p = 0.016), and uncertain issues around the exams (p = 0.000). Fourth year students were significantly more stressed due to lack of clinical skills (p = 0.012), for not passing the clinic/skills courses due to lack of study progression (p = 0.005), and worries about not being a good enough dentist after graduation (p = 0.002). In conclusion, the pandemic had a major impact on dental students. The most prominent stressors in relation to the study situation were experienced by students from the fourth year and female students. Clinical and theoretical learning outcomes among students were regarded as worse than before the pandemic. The students preferred in presence lectures, but experienced digital asynchronous video lectures as a good alternative. The pandemic negatively affected the students’ social life. Dental schools should be aware that students have been exposed to increased distress and burden through the pandemic and should provide support for those in need.

The aim of the study was to determine oral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL) using the measures Geriatric/General Oral Health Assessment (GOHAI) and Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) in relation to missing teeth in the Polish population aged 20–79. This was a cross-sectional study carried out among 1112 randomly selected participants. The mean age was 48.72 and mean number of teeth was 20.12. Altogether, in the GOHAI, the percentage that gave a positive response to each question ranged from 3.3% to 48.0%; in the OHIP-14, these answers ranged from 2.4% to 25.1%. The GOHAI measure was statistically significant, with more grouping variables than the OHIP-14 measure. Both measures showed significant associations with gender, age, dry mouth, education, professional status, number of teeth, and upper and lower total dentures. We detected a significant relationship between oral health–related quality of life and the factors influencing the presence or absence of dentition. Missing teeth were statistically associated with GOHAI, OHIP-14, advanced age, self-reported dry mouth, lower education, higher Body Mass Index (BMI), lower professional status, diabetes, myocardial infraction, and total dentures in upper or/and lower jaws. However, edentulous individuals had two times higher risk of having an OHIP-14 score above the median. This suggests that oral health practitioners should work to prevent oral diseases that lead to tooth loss in their patients, starting from an early age.

PurposeThe assessment of the role of school nurses in the oral health education and counselling of children and adolescents aged 7–19 years.MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was used to evaluate nurses’ practice in oral health education, previous training in caries prevention, collaboration with a dentist and self-assessment of knowledge. Data were analysed with the Chi square test.ResultsThe study group consisted of 140 Polish school nurses. Respondents declared the following activities: dietary counselling (99.2%), oral hygiene education (92.8%), NHS-funded supervised fluoride prophylaxis (82.8%), and caries screenings (4.3%). 47.1% participated in training on caries prevention, 25.7% had a collaboration with a dentist. Nurses from schools located in towns less frequently provided oral hygiene education (p p p p p p ConclusionPolish school nurses have potentially crucial roles in improving the oral health status in pupils through oral hygiene education, dietary counselling and fluoride prophylaxis included in their duties.

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the Polish school nurses’ opinion on the topical fluoride treatment and their knowledge about fluoride safety. Material and methods: A cross-sectional study with the use of a self-administered questionnaire was conducted on 164 school nurses. The questionnaire concerned previous training in caries prevention, action taken at schools with regard to caries prevention, cooperation with dentists, opinion on the topical fluoride application program and nurses’ knowledge about fluoride safety. Results: 93.9% of nurses included oral health in their duties and 81.7% accomplished the topical fluoride treatment. 52.1% never attended any training concerning dental issues. Nurses from cities and villages more often than those from towns provided lectures on caries prevention and fluoride topical applications (respectively p= 0.033 and p=0.021, chi2 test). The nurses had a positive opinion on the effectiveness and safety of topical fluoride application. Only a half of respondents knew the fluoride probable toxic dose and one fifth of them did not know the concentration of fluoride in gel. The knowledge was statistically dependent on the level of nurses’ education (p=0.019, Kruskal-Wallis test). Nurses with a low level of knowledge were not aware of a potential harm effect of fluoride and they had negative opinion about the effectiveness of fluoride program at school. Conclusion: Polish school nurses had a positive opinion on topical fluoride treatment. However, there are gaps in their knowledge and the institutional training is needed.

Ewa Rodakowska,1 Magdalena Wilczyńska-Borawska,2 Justyna Fryc,3 Joanna Baginska,4 Beata Naumnik5 1Department of Restorative Dentistry, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland; 2Department of Social and Preventive Dentistry, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland; 3Faculty of Medicine, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland; 4Department of Dentistry Propaedeutics, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland; 5I Department of Nephrology and Transplantation with Dialysis Unit, Medical University of Bialystok, Bialystok, Poland Aims: The aims of the study were to determine oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients and to estimate which scale describing OHRQoL, Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14) or Geriatric/General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI), was more useful in this particular group. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted by means of a census survey. The Polish versions of OHIP-14 and GOHAI were used to assess OHRQoL. The oral examination included decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMF-T) Index; Oral Hygiene Index simplified; Plaque Index and Gingival Index. In the statistical analysis, the Kruskal–Wallis test, Mann–Whitney U test, Pearson’s χ2 test and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficients were used as appropriate. Results: The final sample consisted of 72 patients (mean age 63.2±15.2years). The mean duration of HD treatment was 43.8months. The mean number of teeth was 10.9. The majority of participants (81.9%) were dentate; only 22.2% of the respondents had >20 teeth. Among the dentate subjects, 44.1% wore removable dental prostheses (60.7% women). The most prevalent items for GOHAI (mean 14.71; SD 7.21) were uncomfortable to swallow, discomfort when eating and unhappy with appearance. The most prevalent items for OHIP-14 (mean 8.87; SD 10.95) were uncomfortable to eat foods, and diet has been unsatisfactory. The internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) was 0.637 for GOHAI and 0.918 for OHIP-14. Chewing problems were significantly related to GOHAI (p=0.001) and OHIP-14 (p

This paper describes a rare case of erupted double supernumerary teeth with unusual morphology in a 14-year-old patient with an eating disorder. The coexistence of dental morphological anomalies: multilobed mesiodens, multiple dens in dente of different types and root dilaceration have not been previously reported. The paper highlights anatomical and radiological aspects of dental abnormalities and clinical implications of delayed treatment.

Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the Polish school nurses’ opinion on the topical fluoride treatment and their knowledge about fluoride safety. Methods A cross-sectional study with the use of a self-administered questionnaire was conducted on 164 school nurses. The questionnaire concerned previous training in caries prevention, action taken at schools with regard to caries prevention, cooperation with dentists, opinion on the topical fluoride application program and nurses’ knowledge about fluoride safety. Results 93.9% of nurses included oral health in their duties and 81.7% accomplished the topical fluoride treatment. 52.1% never attended any training concerning dental issues. Nurses from cities and villages more often than those from towns provided lectures on caries prevention and fluoride topical applications (respectively p= 0.033 and p=0.021, chi2 test). The nurses had a positive opinion on the effectiveness and safety of topical fluoride application. Only a half of respondents knew the fluoride probable toxic dose and one fifth of them did not know the concentration of fluoride in gel. The knowledge was statistically dependent on the level of nurses’ education (p=0.019, Kruskal-Wallis test). Nurses with a low level of knowledge were not aware of a potential harm effect of fluoride and they had negative opinion about the effectiveness of fluoride program at school. Conclusion Polish school nurses had a positive opinion on topical fluoride treatment. However, there are gaps in their knowledge and the institutional training is needed.

Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the self-reported oral health behaviour of Scandinavian and Polish medical students studying in Poland. Methods: Three hundred and fifty subjects took part in the questionnaire survey. They were the 4th to 6th year Scandinavian and Polish medical students attending the same medical school. Test-retest reliability demonstrated an accepted level of kappa > 0.50. The questionnaire comprised issues dealing with demographics, dental health behaviour, fluoride tablet recommendation, self-rated oral health, and smoking habit. Statistical analyses were performed using the Fisher-Freeman-Halton test, Fisher's exact test and the multiple logistic regression. A p value

The aim of the study was to perform preliminary research to compare the smoking prevalence, attitudes and behavior between dentistry students in two universities in Europe using the standardized Global Health Professions Student Survey (GHPSS) questionnaire. This was cross-sectional carried out among dentistry students from the Medical University in Bialystok, Poland and Sapienza University of Rome, Italy. There were 582 participants, 282 were Italians, 202 were smokers and 42% were Italians. The response rate was 79.9% of Italian students and 79.6% of Polish students. The prevalence of smoking was significantly higher among Italian students (42% vs. 28.0%). Attitudes and behaviour of smokers and non-smokers differed statistically. Polish and Italian dental students presented statistically different behavior regarding the time to smoke the first cigarette, the willingness to stop smoking and trying to stop smoking in the last year. The multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that two independent variables, exposure to second-hand smoke (SHS) both at home and in public places (OR = 3.26 and OR = 5.9, respectively), showed a significantly higher occurrence of smoking. There is a high use of tobacco among dental students, which is particularly high in Italian dental students. Students realizes the positive perception of their own tobacco counsellor role in a dental setting. Dental students should be role models to their peers and patients.

The youngest population in society is recognized as that at the healthiest stage of life but is burdened by the occurrence of premature death that should be avoidable. There is a need to use adequate statistical methods in assessing the health status of the population of developmental age. The aim of the study was to analyze trends of mortality in children and adolescents by age and gender in the Podlaskie Voivodeship in the years 2003-2012 by joinpoint regression and to identify the causes of mortality. The mortality rate was analysed according to gender and the age groups: 0, 1-4, 5-9, 10-14 and 15-19 years in the Podlaskie Voivodeship. The data were obtained from the Central Statistical Office for the period 2003-2012. Differences in mortality levels between age and gender subgroups were obtained by the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Join- point regression was used to analyze the trends in mortality. The nomenclature of ICD-10 was used to assess the causes of mortality of children and adolescents. In the Podlaskie Voivodeship in the years 2003-2012 in the 0-19-year-old age group, the highest proportion of deaths (42.4%) occurred during the first year of life. There were differences in mortality rates between boys (8.0/104) and girls (3.1/104) in the 15-19-year-old age group (p < 0.01), and also between the 1-14-year-old and 15-19-year-old age groups (p < 0.01), both among boys (2.1/104 vs. 8.0/104) and girls (1.5/104 vs. 3.1/104). Monotonous trends were shown regarding total mortality rates in infants. There was a drop in the mortality rate of infant girls (AAPC = 5.3%, p < 0.05) and boys (AAPC = 4.7%, p < 0.05). Changes in the direction of the total mortality rate trend were visible in the population of boys aged 1-14 years, in which, between 2003 and 2010, a significant reduction in mortality (AAPC = 9.5%) was observed, while in the years 2010-2012 the trend was not significant. No statistical evidence was found that mortality changed among girls in the 1-14-year-old and 15-19-year-old age groups. Deaths in infancy were due to perinatal conditions and congenital mal- formations. The main causes of mortality in the 1-19-year-old age group were external causes, mainly traffic accidents and intentional self-harm. Joinpoint regression indicated a uniform decrease of mortality in the years 2003-2012 except for boys from 1-14 years old, for whom the decreasing trend was for the years 2003-2010 with subsequent stabilization. The main problems are still infant deaths due to perinatal conditions, traffic accidents and intentional self-harm in boys in the 15-19-year-old age group.

Background The frequency of dental trauma in schools is secondary only to accidents at home. The aim of this study was to evaluate the knowledge of first aid in the avulsion of permanent teeth presented by Polish school nurses from different areas. Methods A cross-sectional study with the use of a structured self-administrative questionnaire was conducted in 2014 on school nurses working in randomly selected Polish provinces. The instrument consisted of demographic questions, questions referring to nurses’ experience and training in dental trauma and questions checking knowledge of first-aid in the avulsion of permanent teeth. The maximum number of points to be scored was eight. Data were analyzed with the Kruskal-Wallis, the Mann–Whitney U and Chi2 tests with the level of statistical significance at p

To evaluate the caries prevalence and experience in primary molars in Polish 6- to 7-year-old children using the Caries Assessment Spectrum and Treatment index.This cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of 332 out of 468 invited children (140 6- and 192 7-year-olds). Cluster sampling was used to select the participating schools. Dental status was evaluated according to the criteria dedicated to CAST. The means of the individual CAST scores were assessed. Data were statistically analysed using the Mann-Whitney U-test (p0.05). The percentage of children according to the highest CAST score was calculated. The mean values of the dmft index, based on three different caries thresholds--CAST codes 3 to 7 (d3-7t), 4 to 7 (d4-7t) and 5 to 7 (d5-7t)--were calculated.The response rate was 70.9%. One-fifth of the participants showed a healthy, functional dentition (CAST codes 0-2). The highest percentage of children had at least one carious tooth with pulpal involvement (26.2%), followed by children having an obvious dentin caries lesion (20.8%). The means for CAST codes 3, 4 and 5 were 0.61 ± 1.0, 0.19 ± 0.53 and 1.23 ± 1.61, respectively. The means of molars with pulpal involvement was 0.83 ± 1.32 and with dental sepsis 0.07 ± 0.33. Apart from filled teeth, no age-dependent differences were observed. The d3-7mft, d4-7mft and d5-7mft were as follows: 5.18, 4.61 and 4.41, respectively.The surveyed Polish children showed high caries prevalence and severe caries experience in the primary molars. The CAST index was a useful tool for the epidemiological analysis of primary molars.

Background The Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14) and the Geriatric/General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) have never been compared for a group of the same subjects in the Polish population. The aim of the study was to compare the OHIP-14 and GOHAI measures. Methods 178 independently living people over the age of 55 were included in the study. The GOHAI and OHIP-14 measures were used. Other variables included age, gender, self-ratings of oral general health, education, number of missing teeth, chewing problems and dry mouth. Results The mean age of respondents was 70.8 years. The internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) showed a high internal consistency for both measures. Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient between the GOHAI and OHIP-14 scores was 0.81. Using the additive method of creating scores, 1.1% of respondents had the GOHAI score of zero, indicating no impact from oral conditions, while 13.5% of them had an OHIP-14 score of zero. Dental status, partial dentures, chewing problems, dry mouth and self-rated oral health were significantly associated with the results of the GOHAI and the OHIP-14 (Kruskal–Wallis test, Mann–Whitney U test). The numbers of preserved and missing teeth significantly correlated with the GOHAI and the OHIP-14, while DMF was significantly associated with the GOHAI only. 6 individuals with discrepant results were revealed. After the exclusion of the abovementioned patients, the internal reliability (Cronbach’s alpha) still showed a high internal consistency, and the correlation between the GOHAI and OHIP-14 scores using Spearman’s rank-correlation coefficient increased to 0.87. This phenomenon was identified as a “fatigue effect”. Conclusions There was a strong correlation between the GOHAI and the OHIP-14. Both instruments demonstrated good discriminant properties and helped capture the respondents’ oral health problems. The questionnaires should be randomly distributed to avoid the influence of “fatigue effect” on the results of a comparison of different measures.

Background No reports on a caries pattern covering the full spectrum of the disease could be found in the literature. The aim of this study was to evaluate caries in primary and first permanent molars of 7-8-year-old Polish children by the Caries Assessment Spectrum and Treatment (CAST) index and to find whether there was any correlation between the caries stages in such teeth. Methods The study covered 284 7-8-year-old children from randomly selected schools in the Bialystok District, Poland. The prevalence of CAST categories was evaluated with regard to the first and second primary, and first permanent, molars. The Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient was used to explore the correlation of the distribution of CAST codes among the evaluated teeth. The level of statistical significance was established at p

Purpose The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and experience of clinical consequences of untreated dental caries in primary dentition in 5 and 7 year-old children from north-east Poland and to find whether there is a correlation between dmft and pufa indices. Material/Methods Two hundred fifteen children aged 5 and 7 years living in the Podlaskie region were examined in the course of the Polish National Oral Health Survey 2011. Caries prevalence and experience in primary dentition was evaluated according to WHO criteria (dmft index). The clinical consequences of untreated dental caries were assessed by pufa index. Results The dmft index was 5.56±4.45 in 5-years-old children and 6.69±3.14 in 7-years-olds. The prevalence/experience of pufa index was 43.4%/2.20±3.43 and 72.4%/2.44±2.22, respectively. Children living in rural areas presented a worse dental condition. A statistical analysis revealed a strong relation between dmft and pufa in both age groups. Conclusion The present study revealed negligence in the dental treatment of children from north-east Poland resulting in the high prevalence and experience of the pufa index in primary dentition. This index is a valuable measurement tool to record the clinical consequences of untreated dental caries.

Dental caries is still a social problem in many countries, including Poland. Through epidemiological studies conducted in index groups among children and adults, it is possible to monitor its progress and take appropriate action. The Podlaskie region is an area where the severity of dental caries in children has been the highest in the country for a few years, both in urban and rural settings.Evaluation and comparison of indicators of the progress of caries--Decayed Missing Filled Teeth (DMFT)--in 12-year-olds from the urban and rural areas of north-eastern Poland, measured between 2003-2010.In 2003 and 2010, respectively, 445 children were examined: in 2003--188: 101 boys, 87 girls; 98 from urban areas, 90 from rural areas, and in 2010--257 adolescents: 134 boys, 123 girls; 157 from urban areas and 70 from rural areas. The study protocol was strictly subordinated to the WHO study monitor guidelines. DMFT indices were evaluated in particular years. The distribution of their individual components was then compared and analyzed. The outcomes resulting from the place of residence and gender of the adolescents were taken into account. In the statistical analysis, Shapiro-Wilk test and Mann-Whitney U test were used.In 2003, the mean value of DMFT was 4.76, and in 2010 it decreased to 3.36 (p0.0001). In 2003, DMFT was 4.42 in the rural areas, and after 7 years it has risen to 4.77. There was a significant decrease in the value of the index (from 5.08 to 2.82, p0.0001) in the urban areas. No significant differences based on gender were observed between these years.The values of caries intensity among 12-year-olds from the Podlaskie region, both in rural and urban areas, are still high. Among children from the rural areas, dental caries progression is more visible and has not improved during the years 2003-2010. These findings should lead to the development of programmes for the inhabitants of rural areas.

Denticles are foci of calcification in the dental pulp located mostly in pulp chambers. Their etiology is not fully understood. They occur mostly in molars and lower incisors. Denticles vary in size, ranging from microscopic particles to larger masses that almost obliterate the pulp chamber and are visible on radiographs. In the absence of pain, observation is recommended. The aim of this study was to present a case of a denticle in tooth 21 which possibly lead to pulp necrosis and two cases when denticles were detected accidentally during management of dental caries. Denticles are usually found on plain radiographs taken for other reasons.

Letter to the Editor