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Objectives: To assess the knowledge, attitude, and awareness with regards to hepatitis B in dental health care professionals, and to estimate the efforts made by them to prevent the transmission of hepatitis among patients. This study also evaluated the immunization status of hepatitis B among dentists. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional observational study was conducted among dental professionals in Central India. A Predesigned questionnaire was given to assess the general awareness, attitude, and behavior toward hepatitis B infection and vaccination along with questions to evaluate their own immunization status. Results: A total of 424 dentists responded to the questionnaire. Among them, 24.05% had not received even a single dose of Hepatitis B vaccine while 50.48% had not completed the required course of vaccination. Most common reason cited by dentists for non-immunization was that they had not thought about it (66.03%). Ninety-six percent of the participants were aware of the Hepatitis-B vaccination programme. Conclusion: Despite the availability of an effective vaccine in the market, dentists continue to remain non-vaccinated. It is the lack of awareness and carelessness on the part of dentists coupled with the negligence of the risk that has led them being incompletely vaccinated. There is a need to ensure that every doctor is vaccinated against Hepatitis B before he/she enters professional practice.

The purpose of this study is to examine the differences in pressure sensitivity for areas of the foot in a toe-off position and with the feet on the ground. This data could provide a base for adapting the softness of different areas while designing footwear. 21 healthy subjects are asked to participate in a test where a researcher applies pressure with an advanced force gauge in 20 locations on the foot until the subject starts experiencing discomfort. Rigid shells of three sizes have been designed and 3D printed based on 3D foot scans. The test is performed in two positions: standing with load on the plantar surface and toe-off loading only the forefoot. The outcome is a pressure discomfort threshold map of the foot. Interestingly, in 16 locations the sensitivity was similar in both conditions (toe-off and complete foot on the ground). Especially, stretched areas showed increased sensitivity.

Objective: To investigate the clinical performance of International Caries Detection and Assessment System II (ICDAS II) (a ranked visual scale), radiovisiography (RVG) (a digital radiography device), and an alternating current impedance spectroscopy (ACIS) device for the detection and assessment of occlusal caries in primary teeth. Materials and Methods: Twenty-five molars were assessed using all three systems under standardized in vivo conditions. They were then extracted and also assessed by examiners in vitro. Downer′s histological scoring criterion was the validation gold standard. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative likelihood ratios, and area under the receiver-operator curves were calculated for enamel caries and dentine caries. Repeatability was analyzed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). The performances of the systems between in vivo and in vitro settings by the same examiner were also compared. Statistical Analysis: SPSS version 17.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) was used to analyze the data. Comparison of the performance of all three systems for all caries and dentine caries using receiver operating characteristic curves was calculated using a range of cutoffs. Reliability was assessed using ICC method. Results: ICDAS II system showed the highest validity and repeatability for assessing occlusal caries in the primary molars. RVG was less accurate than the ICDAS II for detecting caries lesions confined to enamel. However, when dentine was involved, RVG was found to be as effective as ICDAS II. Conclusion: Within the limitations of the study, the in vivo results of ICDAS II and RVG were satisfactory and comparable to those obtained in vitro, with ICDAS II performing better. The ACIS device was least accurate among the three systems for caries assessment.

Aim: To evaluate microleakage of Nanoionomer (3M ESPE Ketac™ N100 Light cured Nanoionomer Restorative) and Nanocomposite (3M ESPE Filtek™ Z350 XT Universal Restorative) restorations, immersed in fruit drink, fresh fruit juice and soft drink. Study design: Eighty caries free maxillary premolars extracted for orthodontic purpose were used for the study. Class V cavities were prepared and restored with Nanocomposite on buccal surface and Nanoionomer on the palatal surface. The teeth were thermocycled following the restoration. The experimental groups comprised of 72 teeth (3 groups comprising 24 teeth each for fruit drink, fresh fruit juice and soft drink), while remaining 8 formed the control group. Each of experimental group was further divided into three subgroups (low, medium and high immersion). The teeth were finally immersed in Rhodamine B dye, sectioned and evaluated under stereomicroscope. Statistical analyses used were Mann-Whitney test and ANOVA test. Results: The teeth showed statistically significant microleakage as the immersion regime increased. Soft drink group showed highest microleakage followed by fresh fruit juice and fruit drink. Nanocomposite exhibited more microleakage but the comparison was not statistically significant. Conclusion: The three beverages used in the study affected the microleakage of both restorative materials significantly. The microleakage scores increased as the frequency of the immersions increased. Soft drink caused highest microleakage followed by fresh fruit juice and fruit drink.

Background: Paediatric Endodontics is an important clinical procedure commonly used to manage pulpally involved or non-vital teeth in children. One of the important steps in root canal preparation in deciduous teeth is the removal of organic debris. Aim: The aim of this study was to compare instrumentation time and cleaning efficacy of manual instrumentation, rotary systems and reciprocating systems in the preparation of primary molar root canals. Materials and Methods: India ink was injected into 120 root canals of maxillary and mandibular primary molars. The teeth were randomly divided into three experimental groups, Group one K-file (n = 30), group two ProTaper (n = 30), group three WaveOne (n = 30) and one control group (n = 30). The root canals were prepared using one of the three file system followed by clearing the teeth with different demineralizing solutions. The results were statistically evaluated using Kruskal-Wallis tests. Results: The file systems were compared at coronal, middle and apical level. In the coronal third, WaveOne showed more ink removal and the difference found was highly significant (P < 0.0001). In the middle third of the root canal, WaveOne performed better than ProTaper and K-file (P < 0.005). At the apical level, there was no statistical difference between the three systems. Conclusion: The reciprocating and the rotary systems showed better cleaning efficacy when compared to manual instrumentation especially, in coronal and middle one third.

Aim: To assess the DMFT index of children with Special Health Care Needs (SHCN) in Navi Mumbai. To correlate the DMFT index with Streptococcus mutans count in the supragingival bacterial biofilm and with plaque pH. Materials and Methods: Dental examination of 158 patients aged 5–18 years was conducted to determine the DMFT/dmft index. Supragingival plaque samples were collected from the buccal surfaces of all teeth. The samples were inoculated in mitis salivarius bacitracin agar medium and incubated at 37°C for 48 h. Supragingival plaque was collected from interproximal sites of the molar area (preferably mandibular) for conducting plaque pH test. Chi-square test and Pearson's correlation were used to find the significance of the study parameters on categorical scale between the two groups. Results: The mean DMFT recorded was 4.90 ± 4.63 and the mean dmft recorded was 1.77 ± 3.14. Mean number of S. mutans colony-forming units found was 2.961 × 104. Mean plaque pH recorded was 6.2. Conclusion: No statistically significant correlation was found between the DMFT index with the number of S. mutans and plaque pH.

Variation of the dissociation constant of weak acids by solubility method has been investigated. The results are in accordance with the explanation given in previous papers by Bhagwat and co-workers.