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Background: Tooth loss has been associated with cognitive decline, but the underlying mechanisms involving speech and psychosocial impairment remain unclear. Objectives: To investigate the impact of tooth loss‐related speech and psychosocial impairment on cognitive function in Hong Kong's older population. Methods: Seventy‐six Cantonese‐speaking participants between the ages of 51–92 were classified into three groups: patients with complete dentures (CD), partially edentulous patients with less than 10 occluding tooth pairs (OU <10), and at least 10 occluding tooth pairs (OU ≥10). Cognitive function was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment Hong Kong Version, One‐minute Verbal Fluency Task and Hayling Sentence Completion Test. Objective and subjective speech assessments were carried out using artificial intelligence speech recognition algorithm and a self‐designed speech questionnaire. The impact of tooth loss on psychosocial condition was evaluated by the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test and a self‐designed questionnaire. Statistical analyses (one‐way ANOVA, ANCOVA, Kruskal–Wallis test, Spearman correlation test) were performed. Results: Tooth loss was significantly associated with lower cognitive function (p =.008), speech accuracy (p =.018) and verbal fluency (p =.001). Correlations were found between cognitive function and speech accuracy (p <.0001). No significant difference in tooth loss‐related psychosocial impact was found between the three groups. Conclusion: While warranting larger sample sizes, this pilot study highlights the need for further research on the role of speech in the association between tooth loss and cognitive function. The potential cognitive impact of tooth retention, together with its known biological and proprioceptive benefits, supports the preservation of the natural dentition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This systematic review and meta‐analysis aimed to investigate the prevalence of opportunistic respiratory pathogens colonizing removable dental prostheses in older adults without respiratory diseases. Methods: This review was registered with PROSPERO and conducted in accordance with the principles formed by the working group of the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) to evaluate systematic reviews of prevalence data. Literature searches were conducted across five electronic databases. Quality assessments were determined according to a revised JBI critical appraisal checklist across nine criteria. Comparison between fixed‐ and random‐effects meta‐analyses were performed for sensitivity analysis. Prediction intervals were also presented when three or more studies were included in the meta‐analysis. Results: Across the databases, 1091 articles were identified, and 591 articles remained after the removal of duplicates. Twenty "potentially effective" studies were identified. Ultimately eight studies informed this review and meta‐analyses were performed for 13 known respiratory pathogens. The meta‐analyses identified the top three common respiratory pathogens residing on the removable prostheses were, in descending order: Staphylococcus aureus: 31.81% (95% CI: 13.34%–48.24%); Staphylococcus epidermidis: 14.07% (95% CI: 7.88%–21.48%); Klebsiella pneumoniae: 10.50% (95% CI: 2.55%–22.30%). The heterogeneity scores for nine respiratory pathogen analyses were classified as "unimportant inconsistency", I2 = 0% (p > 0.1). For sensitivity analysis, there was no difference between the random‐ and fixed‐effects models. Conclusion: The existing evidence demonstrated a high burden of certain opportunistic respiratory pathogens, which may be considered a major potential cause of respiratory infections in older adults wearing removable prostheses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: This study aimed to establish a neural‐related gene risk score (NRGRS) for the prediction of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma prognosis and explore its predictive value on the benefit of immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy. Methods: Based on the transcriptome data of HNSCC patients (n = 546) from The Cancer Genome Atlas database, 37 neural‐related hub genes were identified by weighted gene co‐expression network analysis. Four genes (ITGA5, PYGM, GNG7 and ATP2A3) were identified to construct NRGRS using Lasso‐Cox regression method based on the derivation cohort and validated in the Gene Expression Omnibus cohort (n = 109). The survival analysis was performed to validate the prognostic value of NRGRS and immune characteristics in NRGRS‐defined subgroups were analyzed. Results: NRGRS‐high patients had a worse overall survival than NRGRS‐low patients. Tumors with high NRGRS were more likely to have high infiltration of naive CD4+ T cells, M0, M2 macrophages and resting mast cells, which illustrated suppressive immunity and less benefit from immunotherapy therapy. Conclusion: NRGRS strongly correlates with survival and is a promising biomarker to predict immunotherapy benefits for head and neck cancer patients. This study provides evidence for the potential correlation between neural‐related transcriptome alteration and immune activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of magnifying loupes (×2.5) on the quality of tooth preparation for complete coverage crowns; performed by predoctoral students using an objective and quantitative digital method. Materials and Methods: Forty‐two predoctoral students were randomly assigned into 2 groups to perform tooth preparation for a complete coverage crown on a mandibular first molar in a manikin, with and without the use of magnifying loupes. All preparations were digitally evaluated by PrepCheck 3.0 (Dentsply Sirona). Parameters including tooth reduction, total occlusal convergence (TOC), undercut, margin quality and surface quality were assessed. Continuous data were analysed using Paired t‐tests or Wilcoxon Signed Ranks tests. Ordinal data were analysed by McNemer's tests. To further detect the majority pattern (> 50%) in each group (with and without loupes), one‐sample t‐test or one‐sample Wilcoxon Signed Rank test was performed. The level of significance was set at p =.001 after Bonferroni adjustments for multiple testing. Results: No significant differences in the measured outcomes were found between the groups with or without the use of magnifying loupes (p >.002). The majority (>50%) of both groups had no undercuts (99.3% and 99.4% both p <.001) and the preparation type was within tolerance (81.6% and 85.3%, both p <.001) with acceptable margin (86.4% and 86.3%, both p <.001) and acceptable surface quality (99.0% and 99.1%, both p <.001). However, the majority of both groups underprepared occlusally (96.0% and 95.4%, both p <.001) and axially (65.3% and 67%, both p <.001). Only 30.0%–42.1% of the participants achieved the TOC within 0–20°. Conclusions: Within the limitations of this study, the use of magnification loupes does not appear to significantly improve the quality of tooth preparation for complete coverage crown. The TOC was also found to be overprepared and occlusally underprepared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives/Hypothesis: Human papilloma virus (HPV) infection has been confirmed as a favorable prognostic factor in oropharyngeal cancer. However, the prognostic value of HPV in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is still unclear. Therefore, a systematic review and meta‐analysis was performed to evaluate the prognostic value of HPV infection in OSCC patients. Study Design: Systematic literature review with meta‐analysis. Methods: A systematic literature review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines in PubMed, EMBASE, and MEDLINE databases. The primary outcomes were overall survival (OS), disease‐free survival (DFS), disease‐specific survival (DSS), and secondary outcomes were local control (LC), regional control (RC), and distant control (DC). Results: A total of 22 articles with 3065 OSCC patients were included in this study. Meta‐analysis demonstrated that compared to HPV‐negative OSCC patients, HPV‐positive OSCC patients had a significantly shorter OS (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.45, 95% confidence intervals [CI], 1.10–1.93) and lower DC (HR = 2.16, 95% CI, 1.54–3.04). There was no significant difference in DFS (HR = 1.20, 95% CI, 0.63–2.26), DSS (HR = 1.20, 95% CI, 0.63–2.26), LC (HR = 1.44, 95% CI, 0.97–2.14), and RC (HR = 1.50, 95% CI, 0.98–2.30) between HPV‐positive and negative OSCC patients. Sensitivity analysis confirmed the above results. Conclusions: Our systematic review and meta‐analysis reveal that HPV‐positive is associated with significantly decreased OS and DC, suggesting HPV infection is an adverse prognostic factor in OSCC. Laryngoscope, 132:1760–1770, 2022 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background To analyze the regular dental care behavior and prevalence of edentulism in adult Danes, reported in sequential cross-sectional oral health surveys by the application of a marginal approach to consider the possible clustering effect of birth cohorts. Methods Data from four sequential cross-sectional surveys of non-institutionalized Danes conducted from 1975-2005 comprising 4330 respondents aged 15+ years in 9 birth cohorts were analyzed. The key study variables were seeking dental care on an annual basis (ADC) and edentulism. For the analysis of ADC, survey year, age, gender, socio-economic status (SES) group, denture-wearing, and school dental care (SDC) during childhood were considered. For the analysis of edentulism, only respondents aged 35+ years were included. Survey year, age, gender, SES group, ADC, and SDC during childhood were considered as the independent factors. To take into account the clustering effect of birth cohorts, marginal logistic regressions with an independent correlation structure in generalized estimating equations (GEE) were carried out, with PROC GENMOD in SAS software. Results The overall proportion of people seeking ADC increased from 58.8% in 1975 to 86.7% in 2005, while for respondents aged 35 years or older, the overall prevalence of edentulism (35+ years) decreased from 36.4% in 1975 to 5.0% in 2005. Females, respondents in the higher SES group, in more recent survey years, with no denture, and receiving SDC in all grades during childhood were associated with higher probability of seeking ADC regularly (P < 0.05). The interaction of SDC and age (P < 0.0001) was significant. The probabilities of seeking ADC were even higher among subjects with SDC in all grades and aged 45 years or older. Females, older age group, respondents in earlier survey years, not seeking ADC, lower SES group, and not receiving SDC in all grades were associated with higher probability of being edentulous (P < 0.05). Conclusions With the use of GEE, the potential clustering effect of birth cohorts in sequential cross-sectional oral health survey data could be appropriately considered. The success of Danish dental health policy was demonstrated by a continued increase of regular dental visiting habits and tooth retention in adults because school dental care was provided to Danes in their childhood.

Objectives: Eye tracking has been used in medical radiology to understand observers' gaze patterns during radiological diagnosis. This study examines the visual identification ability of junior hospital dental officers (JHDOs) and dental surgery assistants (DSAs) in radiographic and nonradiographic images using eye tracking technology and examines if there is a correlation. Material and methods: Nine JHDOs and nine DSAs examined six radiographic images and 16 nonradiographic images using eye tracking. The areas of interest (AOIs) of the radiographic images were rated as easy, medium, and hard, and the nonradiographic images were categorized as pattern recognition, face recognition, and image comparison. The participants were required to identify and locate the AOIs. Data analysis of the two domains, entire slide and AOI, was conducted by evaluating the eye tracking metrics (ETM) and the performance outcomes. ETM consisted of six parameters, and performance outcomes consisted of four parameters. Results: No significant differences were observed for ETMs for JHDOs and DSAs for both radiographic and nonradiographic images. The JHDOs showed significantly higher percentage in identifying AOIs than DSAs for all the radiographic images (72.7% vs. 36.4%, p =.004) and for the easy categorization of radiographic AOIs (85.7% vs. 42.9%, p =.012). JHDOs with higher correct identification percentage in face recognition had a shorter dwell time in AOIs. Conclusions: Although no significant relation was observed between radiographic and nonradiographic images, there were some evidence that visual recognition skills may impact certain attributes of the visual search pattern in radiographic images. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Objective: Single‐item self‐reported oral health (SROH) is a convenient and reliable measure for the assessment of population‐based oral health. However, little is known about trends and its associations among US adults. This study investigated trends in SROH (aged 20+ years) and the associated factors among adults living in the United States. Methods: Self‐reported oral health data for 41 621 adults aged 20+ years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999 to 2014 were analysed. Survey‐weighted descriptive statistics were computed to provide nationally representative estimates. Multivariable logistic regression was performed separately for each survey period with SROH as the primary outcome. Independent variables included were age, gender, race/ethnicity, education level and family poverty income ratio or PIR. Pooled survey‐weighted multivariable logistic regression was also performed to consider possible time‐changing effects. Results: The survey‐weighted proportions of “excellent or very good” in SROH increased from 27% in 1999‐2000 (n = 4873) to 38% in 2013‐2014 (n = 5765). Separate multivariable logistic analyses for each survey period suggested that females, Whites (vs Mexican and Black Americans) as well as respondents from high family PIR had higher odds of reporting their oral health as “excellent or very good” (P < .05). The pooled multivariable logistic model confirmed results in the separate logistic regression, and respondents in the more recent survey periods had higher probabilities of reporting “excellent or very good” oral health. Respondents aged 50‐59 years were found to have relatively lower probabilities of reporting “excellent or very good” oral health, while people aged 20‐29 years had higher probabilities than those aged 30‐39 years. Compared to respondents with lower education, those with higher education were more likely to report their oral health as excellent or very good. Conclusions: Self‐reported oral health improved from 1999 to 2014. In general, respondents who were young, female, White, had higher education or higher income or were surveyed in more recent years reported excellent or very good oral health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]