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Purpose: Specialized devices for fixation of the acetabulum quadrilateral plate (QP) fractures may not be readily available in resource-constrained settings. In this article, we aim to explore the use of a 3.5-mm locking calcaneal plate in fixation of QP fractures., Methods: Twenty-eight patients with QP fractures underwent surgery using the modified Stoppa approach. Follow-up at 12 months assessed fracture healing and functional outcomes using the Majeed pelvic outcome score. Descriptive statistics summarized patient demographics and fracture characteristics. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and exact logistic regression explored associations between factors (age, AO/OTA classification, gender, and time to surgery) and Majeed scores., Results: The mean age of patients was 42.71 years, with the majority being male (64.29%). All patients achieved bony union. Post-traumatic arthritis developed in three patients, while two patients experienced post-operative fracture redisplacement. Evaluation using the Majeed pelvic outcome score revealed generally favorable outcomes, with 32.14% achieving excellent, 39.29% good, 21.43% fair, and 7.14% poor outcome. Only an older age was associated with a worse outcome score (excellent/good versus fair/poor, odds ratio: 0.87, 95% confidence interval: 0.77, 0.96)., Conclusion: Surgical management of quadrilateral plate fractures using 3.5-mm locking calcaneal plates demonstrates promising outcomes, particularly in resource-constrained settings, where specialized devices may be lacking., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli.)

Background: Septic arthritis of the hip joint (septic hip) is the bacterial infection of the hip. Delayed treatment increases the risk of extensive joint damage, systemic infection, prolonged recovery, higher healthcare costs, and long-term disability. This study explores the repercussions of delayed surgical treatment in pediatric septic hip., Methods: In this observational study, pediatric patients diagnosed with septic hip between 2012 and 2021 were retrospectively selected from a major referral center in Shiraz, Iran. We collected clinical and radiological data, including Kocher score and determined Choi classification in follow-up radiographs. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to assess the impact of delay to surgery on the development of clinical sequelae and radiological deformities in the presence of potential confounders of age and Kocher criteria., Results: Out of 49 children with delayed presentation, 46 survived and entered the study. Mean delay from symptom presentation to admission was 12.67 ± 10.51 days, and mean delay from admission to surgery was 5.33 ± 6.47 days. Of the 46 patients, 28.26% developed clinical sequelae. The Choi classification revealed that 54.35% of patients developed no residual deformity. A multivariate logistic regression analysis indicated a statistically significant association between delay to surgery and the development of radiological deformities (adjusted odds ratio: 1.36, 95% CI: 1.14-1.64, p = 0.001). Additionally, a separate analysis revealed that each additional day of delay was associated with a 12% increase in the odds of clinical sequelae (adjusted odds ratio: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.03-1.22, p = 0.006). Sensitivity analyses confirmed the relationship of delay from admission to surgery in developing both outcomes., Conclusion: Delay in medical care and surgical management remains the most important factor affecting the outcomes of septic hip. The study underscores the critical role of timely surgical intervention in reducing complications in pediatric septic hip patients., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© 2024 Professor P K Surendran Memorial Education Foundation. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background and Aims: The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped the epidemiology of various clinical conditions, including trauma which is closely tied to social policies. This study examines and compares the characteristics of trauma mortality patients, and their initial prognostic trauma scores, in the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods., Methods: We conducted a retrospective observational study involving patients who passed away at a level 1 trauma center from July 23, 2018, to February 19, 2020 (prepandemic), and from February 20, 2020, to September 22, 2021 (pandemic). A subgroup analysis that matched 12 of the same months of the year in the two periods was also done. Patients who arrived deceased or passed away immediately upon arrival were excluded from data analysis. We collected and analyzed demographic and clinical data, employing the Abbreviated Injury Score (AIS), Injury Severity Score (ISS), Revised Trauma Score (RTS), and Trauma and ISS (TRISS) to compare initial prognoses., Results: Our study encompassed 1128 patients, with 529 in the prepandemic group and 599 in the pandemic group. Demographic characteristics showed no significant differences in the number of patients in the two periods. Motor vehicle accidents remained the predominant injury mechanism in both periods. While the mean ISS increased insignificantly (22.80 vs. 22.91, p  = 0.902), the mean RTS decreased (6.32 vs. 5.82), and TRISS increased (23.97% vs. 28.93%) during the pandemic ( p  < 0.05). Hospital length of stay decreased in the pandemic period (15.57 vs. 12.54 days, p  < 0.05). Subgroup analysis revealed increased ISS, decreased RTS, and increased TRISS during the pandemic ( p  < 0.05)., Conclusion: In conclusion, while overall demographics and injury mechanisms remained virtually unchanged, trauma patients during the pandemic displayed worse estimated clinical prognoses, particularly in physiological trauma scores. The heightened mortality rate was attributed to poorer clinical conditions of patients., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2024 The Authors. Health Science Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Introduction: Mechanical root canal preparations and irrigation solutions are essential for reducing microbial counts in the root canal system. However, these methods do not completely eliminate microorganisms. Intracanal medicaments are used to further decrease microbial counts. This study aims to assess the cytotoxicity of various intracanal medicaments., Materials and Methods: In this in vitro study, murine fibroblast cell lines (L929) were cultured in a controlled environment. The MTT assay was employed to evaluate the cytotoxicity of different medicament combinations, including calcium hydroxide and triamcinolone (D1), niosomal doxycycline and triamcinolone (D2), calcium hydroxide (D3), and a combination of doxycycline and triamcinolone (D4). Statistical analysis was performed using ANOVA and Dunnett's test., Results: The results indicated that D1 and D2 had lower cytotoxicity, while D4 exhibited the highest cytotoxicity. D1 was found to be non-cytotoxic up to a concentration of 500 µg/mL over a period of 72 hours. D2 and D3 showed similar effects up to concentrations of 250 µg/mL and 100 µg/mL, respectively, for 72 hours. In contrast, D4 exhibited cytotoxicity at concentrations above 75 µg/mL at 72 hours., Conclusion: This study suggests that encapsulating doxycycline in niosomal structures (D2) reduces cytotoxicity in murine fibroblast cell lines (L929) for at least 24 and 48 hours. These findings offer promising implications for the development of endodontic medicaments with improved biocompatibility., Competing Interests: None.

Background: Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is one of the most common causes of vision loss. A substantial increase in the burden of AMD is expected in the aging populations, including the Iranians. We investigated the age and gender-specific prevalence of AMD and its determinants in Iran., Methods: We systematically searched international (PubMed, Scopus, Embase, etc.) and local (IranDoc, Magiran, etc.) online databases. We included cross-sectional or cohort studies, either clinic- or population-based, published on the prevalence of AMD among Iranians, with no limitation on age. Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) tools for critical appraisal were used. Prevalence estimates are pooled by applying random-effects modeling. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression were performed., Results: Seventeen studies with 16,120 participants were included. Based on studies in general population, the pooled prevalence of AMD was 10.8% (95% CI: 6.5-16.2%) in males, and 9.8% (95% CI: 4.7-16.4%) in females. 8.5% of moderate vision impaired, 13.6% of severe vision impaired, and 15.7% of blind participants were affected by AMD. The prevalence of AMD was 2% in 40-49, and 32.3% in the ≥ 80 population. The prevalence of AMD was 11.9% among the visually impaired vs. 8.7% in the general population. The study's sampling method, location, and mean age were correlated with the heterogeneities of the prevalence. We observed an increasing trend in the number of AMD cases (average annual percent change = 3.66%; 95% CI: 3.65-3.67%) from 1990 to 2050. The expected number of AMD cases in Iran will be near 5.5 million by 2050., Conclusion: The prevalence of AMD in Iran was somewhere between the prevalence of Asians and Europeans. Given the aging trend of the Iranian community and an average annual percent change of 3.66%, it is indispensable to adopt preventive and screening policies to diminish the burden of the disease in the future decades., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate the possible association between psychological disorders and risky driving behavior (RDB) in Iran., Methods: This case-control study conducted in Shiraz, Iran in 2021. The case group included drivers with psychological disorders and the control group included those without any disorders. The inclusion criteria for selecting patients were: active driving at the time of the study, being 18 - 65 years old, having a driving license, having a psychological disorder including depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety spectrum disorder, or psychotic disorder spectrum confirmed by a psychiatrist, and completing an informed consent form. The exclusion criterion was the existence of conditions that interfered with answering and understanding the questions. The inclusion criteria for selecting the healthy cases were: active driving at the time of the study, being 18 - 65 years old, having a driving license, lack of any past or present history of psychiatric problems, and completing an informed consent form. The data were gathered using a researcher-made checklist and Manchester driving behavior questionnaire. First, partition around medoids method was used to extract clusters of RDB. Then, backward logistic regression was applied to investigate the association between the independent variables and the clusters of RDB., Results: The sample comprised of 344 (153 with psychological disorder and 191 without confirmed psychological disorder) drivers. Backward elimination logistic regression on total data revealed that share of medical expenditure ≤ 10% of total household expenditure (OR = 3.27, 95% CI: 1.48 - 7.24), psychological disorder (OR = 3.08, 95% CI: 1.67 - 5.70), and substance abuse class (OR = 6.38, 95% CI: 3.55 - 11.48) were associated with high level of RDB., Conclusion: Substance abuse, psychological illnesses, and share of medical costs from total household expenditure were found to be main predictors of RDB. Further investigations are necessary to explain the impact of different psychological illnesses on driving behavior., (Copyright © 2022 Chinese Medical Association. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Myocarditis is an uncommon disease in children with potentially fatal consequences. An electrocardiogram (ECG) change seen in myocarditis is pathological Q wave. Pathological Q wave is linked to permanent damage and myocardial death in several cardiac diseases. We investigated the significance of pathological Q waves in children with acute myocarditis (AM)., Methods: This retrospective observational study analysed the data of 59 children with AM admitted to our hospital between January 2016 and July 2021. They were divided into Q wave and non-Q wave myocarditis groups. Patients' laboratory data, echocardiography, treatment and hospital outcome were analysed., Results: Patients were 64.4% male and had a median age of 6 years and 9 months. Pathological Q waves were found in 52.5% of the patients. Q wave myocarditis group had higher troponin I values (499 vs. 145 ng/L, p  = 0.011) and longer hospital stays (13 vs. 9 days, p  = 0.020) than the non-Q wave group. They also required higher doses of inotropic or vasoactive drugs. 61.3% of Q wave patients needed mechanical ventilation compared to 35.7% of non-Q wave patients ( p  = 0.069). All the patients who died or discharged with an LVEF < 30% belonged to the Q wave group., Conclusion: Q wave in AM warrants close monitoring and intensive treatment as it accompanies more severe complications and poorer outcomes. This readily available ECG finding can be a clue to prognoses of AM patients. Further research with larger populations is needed to better understand Q wave prognostic accuracy and its potential role in guiding more expensive treatments.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 is an ongoing health concern. In addition to affecting the respiratory system, COVID-19 can potentially damage other systems in the body, leading to extra-pulmonary manifestations. Hepatic manifestations are among the common consequences of COVID-19. Although the precise mechanism of liver injury is still questionable, several mechanisms have been hypothesized, including direct viral effect, cytokine storm, hypoxic-ischemic injury, hypoxia-reperfusion injury, ferroptosis, and hepatotoxic medications. Risk factors of COVID-19-induced liver injury include severe COVID-19 infection, male gender, advanced age, obesity, and underlying diseases. The presentations of liver involvement comprise abnormalities in liver enzymes and radiologic findings, which can be utilized to predict the prognosis. Increased gamma-glutamyltransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, and alanine aminotransferase levels with hypoalbuminemia can indicate severe liver injury and anticipate the need for intensive care units' hospitalization. In imaging, a lower liver-to-spleen ratio and liver computed tomography attenuation may indicate a more severe illness. Furthermore, chronic liver disease patients are at a higher risk for severe disease and death from COVID-19. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease had the highest risk of advanced COVID-19 disease and death, followed by metabolic-associated fatty liver disease and cirrhosis. In addition to COVID-19-induced liver injury, the pandemic has also altered the epidemiology and pattern of some hepatic diseases, such as alcoholic liver disease and hepatitis B. Therefore, it warrants special vigilance and awareness by healthcare professionals to screen and treat COVID-19-associated liver injury accordingly., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article., (©The Author(s) 2023. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Scorpion envenomation is associated with several complications. One of the most serious complications is the cardiac involvement in the form of myocarditis that remains the main reason for mortalities associated with scorpion envenomation. The present review aims to elucidate clinical and paraclinical findings associated with scorpion-related myocarditis, and to explore different management strategies and subsequent outcomes., Methods: We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar for articles related to keywords of myocarditis associated with scorpion envenomation up to May 1, 2022. Each article was carefully reviewed by two independent researchers. In case of disagreement for inclusion, we sought a third researcher opinion., Results: A total of 703 cases from 30 case reports and 34 case series were included in our review. Myocarditis associated with scorpion envenomation was usually reported in children presenting with cardiopulmonary symptoms including pulmonary edema (60.7%) and shock or hypotension (45.8%). The most common ECG findings are sinus tachycardia (82%) followed by ST-T changes (64.6%). The management typically included inotropes (especially dobutamine), prazosin, diuretics, nitroglycerine and digoxin, when indicated. Mechanical ventilation was required in 36.7% of the patients. Mortality in confirmed scorpion-related myocarditis cases is estimated at 7.3%. Almost all survived cases showed rapid recovery and improvement in the left ventricular function., Conclusion: Even though myocarditis associated with scorpion envenomation is rare, it remains a serious and in some of cases a fatal consequence of scorpion sting. In case of relative presentations, particularly in envenomed children, diagnosis of myocarditis should be considered. Early screening using serial cardiac markers and echocardiography can guide the treatment. Prompt treatment that focuses on cardiogenic shock and pulmonary edema usually results in a favorable outcome., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2023 Fereidooni et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: The antimicrobial activity exhibited by the plant extracts against various pathogens has previously been demonstrated to a limited extent. However, the antibacterial effects of most of them have not yet been clarified in endodontics., Aim: This study aimed to determine the antimicrobial activity of some medicinal plants' methanolic extracts against some root canal microorganisms., Methods and Materials: In this in vitro study, after gathering the five plants (pomegranate peel, clove, Zhumeria majdae, Eucalyptus galbie and green tea), their methanolic extracts were obtained by the maceration method, and the antimicrobial activity was determined using micro- and macro-dilution methods. The microorganisms tested in this study were Enterococcus (E.) faecalis, Porphyromonas (P.) gingivalis and Fusobacterium (F.) nucleatum. Non-ready-to-use calcium hydroxide (CH), ready-to-use Calcipex II CH and methanol were used as control materials., Statistical Analysis: The nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis and Friedman tests were used to analyse and evaluate the data and variables., Results: In all concentrations and time intervals studied, eucalyptus extract showed the highest antimicrobial activity against E. faecalis. All the extracts showed growth-inhibitory effects against P. gingivalis and F. nucleatum. There were no significant differences between the anti-enterococcus effects of eucalyptus extracts and non-ready-to-use CH (P > 0.05)., Conclusion: There was a greater efficacy of Eucalyptus galbie extract than other extracts., Competing Interests: None

Introduction: The interplay between social determinants of health (SDOH) and hospitalization is significant as targeted interventions can improve the social status of the individuals. This interrelation has been historically overlooked in health care. In the present study, we reviewed studies in which the association between patient-reported social risks and hospitalization rate was assessed., Method: We performed a scoping literature review of articles published until September 1, 2022 without time limit. We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar to find relevant studies using terms representing "social determinants of health" and "hospitalization." Forward and backward reference checking was done for the included studies. All studies that used patient-reported data as a proxy of social risks to determine the association between social risks and hospitalization rates were included. The screening and data extraction processes were done independently by two authors. In case of disagreement, senior authors were consulted., Results: Our search process retrieved a total of 14,852 records. After the duplicate removal and screening process, eight studies met the eligibility criteria, all of which were published from 2020 to 2022. The sample size of the studies ranged from 226 to 56,155 participants. All eight studies investigated the impact of food security on hospitalization, and six investigated economic status. In three studies, latent class analysis was applied to divide participants based on their social risks. Seven studies found a statistically significant association between social risks and hospitalization rates., Conclusion: Individuals with social risk factors are more susceptible to hospitalization. There is a need for a paradigm shift to meet these needs and reduce the number of preventable hospitalizations., (© 2023 The Authors. Health Science Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objectives. To investigate the prevalence, pattern, and socioeconomic risk factors of intimate partner violence (IPV) before and 6 months after the pandemic onset among a cohort of Iranian women. Methods. We conducted a population-based IPV survey among 2502 partnered Iranian women aged 18 to 60 years before (n = 2502) and 6 months after (n=2116) the pandemic's onset. We estimated prevalence and incidence of psychological, physical, and sexual IPV, and the odds of different forms of IPV associated with main exposure variables, adjusted for participant relationship factors. Results. Pandemic prevalence of IPV (65.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 63.4%, 67.4%) was higher than prepandemic prevalence (54.2%; 95% CI = 52.2%, 56.3%). At follow-up, the incidence of IPV was 25.5% (95% CI = 22.9%, 28.4%). The highest incidence was in cases of physical and sexual IPV. Women whose partners lost their employment were at significant risk of new exposure to IPV. Highest socioeconomic status (SES) was associated with less physical IPV (odds ratio = 0.03; 95% CI = 0.01, 0.14). Conclusions. IPV prevalence has risen since the COVID-19 epidemic began with many women who had never experienced IPV now facing it. Unemployment of women or their partners and prepandemic lower socioeconomic status are risk factors of IPV. Monitoring programs should target these populations. ( Am J Public Health . 2023;113(2):228-237. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.306839).

Introduction: This study aimed to compare the efficacy of ibuprofen, Novafen, mefenamic acid (MA), and celecoxib for pain relief in patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis prior to emergency endodontic treatment., Materials and Methods: This clinical trial was conducted on 120 patients with moderate to severe pain due to symptomatic irreversible pulpitis seeking emergency endodontic treatment. The patients were randomly divided into 4 groups to receive Novafen, MA, Celecoxib, and ibuprofen. The pain score of patients was measured before and 1 hour after analgesic intake using a visual analog scale (VAS). The success of analgesic treatment was analyzed by the binary logistic regression model., Results: A total of 117 patients including 76 females and 41 males with a mean age of 30.29 years completed the study and were statistically analyzed. Ibuprofen had the highest analgesic efficacy followed by Novafen, and caused a significantly greater reduction in pain score compared with MA and celecoxib [OR (Ibuprofen vs MA)=1.28, OR (Ibuprofen vs Celecoxib)=3.74, OR (Novafen vs MA)=2.94, OR (Novafen vs Celecoxib)=2.94, P <0.05]. Ibuprofen and Novafen had no significant difference in analgesic efficacy ( P >0.05). Baseline pain score was a predictive factor for the success of analgesics ( P <0.05). The success of analgesic treatment decreased by 0.68 times with each unit increase in pain score ( P <0.05). Gender and age of patients had no significant effect on success of analgesics ( P >0.05)., Conclusion: Both ibuprofen and Novafen can serve as the analgesics of choice for pain relief in patients with symptomatic irreversible pulpitis with moderate to severe pain when emergency endodontic treatment cannot be immediately performed., Competing Interests: ‘None declared’.

Background: Cardiac conduction disorders and electrocardiographic (ECG) changes may occur as a manifestation of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), especially in severe cases., Aim: To describe conduction system disorders and their association with other electrocardiographic parameters in patients who died of COVID-19., Methods: In this cross-sectional study, electrocardiographic and clinical data of 432 patients who expired from COVID-19 between August 1 st , 2021, and December 1 st , 2021, in a tertiary hospital were reviewed., Results: Among 432 patients who died from COVID-19, atrioventricular block (AVB) was found in 40 (9.3%). Among these 40 patients, 28 (6.5%) suffered from 1st degree AVB, and 12 (2.8%) suffered from complete heart block (CHB). Changes in ST-T wave, compatible with myocardial infarction or localized myocarditis, appeared in 189 (59.0%). Findings compatible with myocardial injury, such as fragmented QRS and prolonged QTc, were found in 91 patients (21.1%) and 28 patients (6.5%), respectively. In patients who died of COVID-19, conduction disorder was unrelated to any underlying medical condition. Fragmented QRS, axis deviation, and ST-T changes were significantly related to conduction system disorder in patients who died of COVID-19 ( P value < 0.05)., Conclusion: Conduction system disorders are associated with several other ECG abnormalities, especially those indicative of myocardial ischemia or inflammation. Most patients (73.14%) who died of COVID-19 demonstrated at least one ECG abnormality parameter. Since a COVID-19 patient's ECG gives important information regarding their cardiac health, our findings can help develop a risk stratification method for at-risk COVID-19 patients in future studies., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no competing interests., (©The Author(s) 2022. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Human papillomavirus (HPV), the most prevalent sexually transmitted disease worldwide, is the causative agent for several genital and oropharyngeal cancers and a suspected agent for many malignancies. HPV is associated with several adverse health outcomes during pregnancy. Infants are also at risk of HPV infection via different transmission routes: vertically from an infected mother and horizontally through sexual or non-sexual contact with infected individuals. Several HPV manifestations have been identified during childhood, ranging from common skin infections to severe complications such as juvenile recurrent respiratory papillomatosis. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the epidemiology, manifestations, and treatment strategies of HPV infection during pregnancy and childhood. Moreover, we underline the role of vaccination in preventing complications.

Background and Aims: COVID-19 has adversely impacted the public's mental health. One of the causes of psychopathology during the present pandemic is death anxiety and fear of COVID-19. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence and risk factors of death anxiety and fear of COVID-19 in Shiraz city, south of Iran., Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 982 participants in Shiraz from October to November 2021. Data were collected using Templer's Death Anxiety Scale and the Fear of COVID-19 Scale. Trained interviewers collected data throughout different city districts. A data-driven approach (latent class analysis) was applied to categorize the participants and determine the risk factors., Results: Among the participants, 507 (51.6%) were female, and 475 (48.4%) were male. The participants' mean age was 38.26 ± 15.16 years. Based on the analysis, 259 (26.4%), 512 (52.1%), and 211 (21.5%) participants had low, moderate, and severe levels of death anxiety. Also, 393 (40.06%) and 588 (59.94%) of the participants had low and high levels of fear, respectively. Higher death anxiety was significantly associated with being female, having an associate degree, being retired, share of medical expenditure from total expenditure of more than 10%, having a history of hospital admission due to COVID-19, history of COVID-19 in relatives, and having fear of COVID-19. Also, being female, expenses equal to income, history of hospital admission due to COVID-19, death in relatives, and higher death anxiety were linked to higher levels of fear of COVID-19., Conclusions: Death anxiety and fear of COVID-19 are closely associated with each other and affected by various sociodemographic and economic factors. Given this pandemic's unpredictable nature and chronicity, interventions at the community level to support high-risk groups are crucial., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2022 The Authors. Health Science Reports published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Introduction: This study aimed to evaluate the success rate of bypassing three NiTi rotary files (RaCe ® , Hero 642 ® , and K3 ® ), fractured in various root canal locations of extracted mandibular molars with two different canal curvatures., Materials and Methods: Ninety freshly extracted human first or second mandibular molars were selected. Three millimeters of the file tip (RaCe ® , Hero 642 ® , and K3 ® ), was fractured intentionally in the mesiobuccal root canal of each tooth by weakening the file in the last 3 mm of files #30 with 4% taper and preparing the root canals with two different degrees of curvature ( n =30). Then, bypass possibility of the fractured files was evaluated using #8, #10, and #15 K-files and compared in different groups. In addition, the rate of accidental procedural errors was compared between these groups. Data were analyzed with univariate analysis and logistic regression models at a significance level of 0.05., Results: The overall success rate of bypassing was 61.1%. RaCe ® files had the highest and the K3 ® files had the lowest bypass possibility rates ( P =0.01); the greater the degree of canal curvature, the less successful the bypass procedure ( P =0.01). The fracture of the files used to bypass was the most prevalent error., Conclusion: Based on this in vitro study the type of fractured file and the amount of canal curvature affected the success rate of the bypassing technique. In RaCe ® files and the mild curvature group, the success rate was the highest., Competing Interests: ‘None declared’.

Background: Categorizing different injury patterns of the talus, describing demographic data, mechanisms of injury and associated fractures are important issues in orthopedic trauma surgeries. Injuries of the talus require careful attention with appropriate treatment approaches in order to reduce possible complications., Methods: In a cross-sectional study, the demographic characteristics, mechanism of injury, fracture type, and associated fractures were compiled from all patients' files and operation notes with diagnosis of talar injuries from January 2014 to December 2019., Results: Among 367 patients, 317 (86.4%) males and 50 (13.6%) females with mean age of 31.8 ± 11.6 years were identified. There were three (0.8%) patients with bilateral talar fractures. The most common mechanism of injury was motor vehicle accident (MVA) (46.1%), followed by falls (43.3%), direct trauma (6.2%) and sport injuries (4.4%). About half of the patients injured in MVAs were motorcyclists. Isolated talar body fractures (21.9%) were more common than isolated talar neck (19.2%) or combined body & neck fractures (14.6%). Isolated lateral process fracture is the most frequent fractured process of the talus (14.3%). Hawkin type IIA (39.2%) was the most common type of talar neck, followed by Hawkin type III (22.3%), type I (21.5%), type IIB (14.6%) and type IV (2.3%). Medial malleolus, fibula and calcaneus were the most common associated fractures, respectively., Conclusions: The population that is most affected by talar injury are active young men who are involved in motor vehicle accidents, especially motorcycle crashes, with fracture of body and/or neck of talus being the most common type.

This equivalence, randomized, clinical trial aimed to compare the postoperative pain of root canal therapy (RCT) with pulpotomy with mineral trioxide aggregate (PMTA) or calcium-enriched mixture (PCEM) in permanent mature teeth. In seven academic centers, 550 cariously exposed pulps were included and randomly allocated into PMTA ( n  = 188), PCEM ( n  = 194), or RCT ( n  = 168) arms. Preoperative "Pain Intensity" (PI) on Numerical Rating Scale and postoperative PIs until day 7 were recorded. Patients' demographic and pre-/intra-/postoperative factors/conditions were recorded/analysed. The arms were homogeneous in terms of demographics. The mean preoperative PIs were similar ( P =0.998), the mean sum PIs recorded during 10 postoperative intervals were comparable ( P =0.939), and the trend/changes in pain relief were parallel ( P =0.821) in all study arms. The incidences of preoperative moderate-severe pain in RCT, PMTA, and PCEM arms were 56.5%, 55.7%, and 56.7%, which after 24 hours considerably decreased to 13.1%, 10.6%, and 12.9%, respectively ( P =0.578). The time span of endodontic procedures was statistically different; RCT = 69.73, PMTA = 35.37, and PCEM = 33.62 minutes ( P < 0.001). Patients with greater preoperative pain, symptomatic apical periodontitis, or presence of PDL widening suffered more pain ( P =0.002, 0.035, and 0.023, resp.); however, other pre-/intra-/postoperative factors/conditions were comparable. Pulpotomy with MTA/CEM and RCT demonstrate comparable and effective postoperative pain relief., Competing Interests: Saeed Asgary is the inventor of CEM cement (Endodontic Filling Material, USA, 7,942,961, 17 May, 2011). All other authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Mohammad Jafar Eghbal et al.)