Brushing Frequency Research Articles

Dental Caries and Associated Factors in 3-5-Year-Old Children in Guizhou Province, China: An Epidemiological Survey (2015-2016).

Objective: This study aimed to explore the factors influencing dental caries among 3–5-year-old children in Guizhou Province and the interrelationship between these factors using structural equation modeling, while providing theoretical references to improve the prevention and control strategy.Materials and Methods: A total of 1,291 children aged 3–5 years in Guizhou Province were selected by a multistage stratified and whole group random sampling to examine the caries prevalence in whole-mouth deciduous teeth crowns, and parents were surveyed with questionnaires to analyze the caries-related factors. IBM SPSS Statistics v 23.0 software (IBM, Armonk, NY, USA) was used for statistical analysis.Results: The caries prevalence of children aged 3–5 years in Guizhou Province was 63.1%, the mean decayed-missing-filled teeth was 3.32, the caries filling rate was 0.5%, and there was no statistically significant difference between urban and rural areas and among genders in each age group; results of logistic regression analysis showed that the caries risk increased with the following factors: age, brushing frequency <2 times per day when parents did not take their children to the dentist, and with parents poor evaluation of the oral condition of their children. The higher the education of the parent, the lower the risk of children suffering from caries in deciduous teeth.Conclusions: With an overall poor situation about oral hygiene habits, oral healthcare attitude of the parents, and behavior transformation, the prevalence of dental caries in the deciduous teeth of children aged 3–5 years in Guizhou Province is high, and their caries status was severe, with more than 99% of the caries cases that were untreated. Therefore, prevention and treatment measures of caries in preschool children need strengthening through the improvement of public awareness and the enhancement of the management of oral health habits of their children.

The Efficacy of a Multi-Theory-Based Peer-Led Intervention on Oral Health Among Hong Kong Adolescents: A Cluster-Randomized Controlled Trial

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the effects of a peer-led oral health intervention based on the Health Belief Model and the Social Cognitive Theory on improving oral health among Hong Kong adolescents. MethodsThe study adopted a cluster-randomized controlled trial design, and 1184 students in 12 schools were randomized to intervention or control groups. After baseline assessment, the intervention group received a peer-led theory-based oral health intervention, while the control group received booklets for oral health promotion. Self-reported brushing and flossing, Health Belief Model/Social Cognitive Theory constructs, and oral health–related quality of life (OHRQoL) were measured at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months, and dental plaque accumulation and caries status were measured at baseline and 12 months. The trial was registered at https://www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT03694496). ResultsBrushing, flossing, and OHRQoL improved more in the experimental group than in the control group at the 6-month follow-up compared with baseline (p < .001). The mean gain score difference was .81 for brushing, .47 for flossing, and -2.51 for OHRQoL. At the 12-month follow-up, the mean gain score of brushing frequency, plaque index, caries status, and OHRQoL were .18, −.28, −.32, and −2.79, respectively, which all sustained the significant difference (p < .001). ConclusionsOur findings suggested that the Health Belief Model combined with Social Cognitive Theory in a peer-led intervention is effective to increase self-reported brushing frequency and improve oral hygiene status and OHRQoL among adolescents.

655Association between Crohn's disease onset and oral hygiene: a Japanese multicenter case-control study

Abstract Background The prevalence of Crohn’s disease is increasing in Japan, but risk factors for this disease have yet to be characterized. A recent study using mice, indicated that Klebsiella strains in the oral cavity may be associated with inflammatory bowel disease. We investigated the association between oral hygiene and Crohn’s disease onset. Methods We conducted a multicenter case-control study and compared oral hygiene in 69 patients with newly diagnosed Crohn’s disease to that in 113 control patients (patients with other diseases matched for institution, age, and sex). The exposure variables were number of teeth, use of dentures, implant treatment, and frequency of brushing. A conditional logistic model was used to calculate odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals of these factors for Crohn’s disease onset. Results The decreased odds ratios of brushing teeth were observed with increasing daily frequency (trend for p = 0.039), with 0.52 (0.20–1.33) for twice daily brushings and 0.26 (0.07–0.97) for three or more daily brushings, (reference category: brushing no or once a day). No other oral hygiene factors were associated with the onset of Crohn's disease. Conclusions Our findings suggest that frequent brushing may have a protective association with the development of Crohn's disease. Key messages This result may provide a clue to the possible involvement of oral bacteria in the development of inflammatory bowel disease.

1527Effect of a text-messaging intervention on oral self-care practices in antenatal women in Delhi, India

Abstract Objective to determine the effect of a mHealth (text-message) intervention compared with a structured health educational session on the oral care and hygiene practices of pregnant women. Methods We conducted a pilot Randomized Control Trial parallel design superiority trial with a 1:1 allocation ratio. A total of 76 pregnant women up-to 20 weeks of gestational age and capable of reading mobile phone text-messages were recruited during August-October’ 2020 from the antenatal clinic of a primary health centre in a low-income urban agglomeration in Delhi, India. The mHealth intervention arm participants were sent a daily text-message for 30 days while all participants were provided a face-face, brief didactic structured educational sessions towards oral health promotion. Results The baseline characteristics of both groups were comparable in terms of age-structure, education, parity, and oral hygiene but differed in terms of oral health problems. Post-intervention, although, the twice-brushing frequency increased in both arms, only the mHealth arm revealed a statistically significant reduction in the incidence of missed twice daily brushing episodes (p = 0.016). The absolute effect size for the primary outcome signifying the difference in the proportion of participants reporting twice daily brushing frequency habit between the mHealth and comparison arms’ was 0.090, the Cohen’s H was 0.182, and the odds of twice brushing habit in the mHealth arm was 1.44 times higher than in the comparison arm. Conclusions a mHealth based daily text-message intervention for one month was not superior to a one-time brief didactic structured educational intervention for oral health promotion in antenatal women. Keywords mHealth; Dental health promotion; Dental health education; Antenatal care

Association of Periodontal Disease with the Occurrence of Unruptured Cerebral Aneurysm among Adults in Korea: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study TRANSLATE with x EnglishArabicHebrewPolishBulgarianHindiPortugueseCatalanHmong DawRomanianChinese SimplifiedHungarianRussianChinese TraditionalIndonesianSlovakCzechItalianSlovenianDanishJapaneseSpanishDutchKlingonSwedishEnglishKoreanThaiEstonianLatvianTurkishFinnishLithuanianUkrainianFrenchMalayUrduGermanMalteseVietnameseGreekNorwegianWelshHaitian CreolePersian// TRANSLATE with COPY THE URL BELOW Back EMBED THE SNIPPET BELOW IN YOUR SITE Enable collaborative features and customize widget: Bing Webmaster PortalBack//.

Background and Objectives: Cerebral aneurysms can cause disability or death during rupture, but information on the etiology of cerebral aneurysms is currently lacking. Periodontal disease causes both systemic inflammation and local inflammation of the oral cavity. Systemic inflammation is a major cause of cerebral aneurysms. The aim of our study was to determine whether the presence of periodontal disease is related to the occurrence of unruptured cerebral aneurysms in a nationwide population-based cohort. Materials and Methods: We analyzed data on demographics, previous medical history, and laboratory test results of 209,620 participants from the Korean National Health Insurance System-Health Screening Cohort. The presence of periodontal disease and oral hygiene parameters, including the number of lost teeth, tooth brushing frequency per day, dental visits for any reason, and expert teeth scaling, were investigated. The occurrences of unruptured cerebral aneurysms (I67.1) were defined according to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases Related Health Problems-10. Results: The mean age of the participants was 53.7 ± 8.7 years, and 59.4% were male. Periodontal disease was found in 20.9% of the participants. A total of 2160 (1.0%) cases of unruptured cerebral aneurysms developed after 10.3 years of median follow up. In multivariate analysis, the presence of periodontal disease was significantly associated with an increased risk of unruptured cerebral aneurysms (hazard ratio: 1.21, 95% confidence interval: 1.09–1.34, p < 0.001). Conclusion: The presence of periodontal disease could be associated with the occurrence of unruptured cerebral aneurysms. It should be noted that when periodontal diseases are present, the risk of aneurysms is increased in the future.

Pregnant women utilization of dental services: still a challenge in low resource setting

BackgroundPoor oral health in pregnancy can be associated with poor pregnancy outcome, however, dental consultation among pregnant women appears to be low.MethodsThis was a questionnaire-based study of 413 women who attended the antenatal clinic of University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku/Ozalla, Enugu. The information obtained was analyzed using SPSS version 22. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsOnly 36 (8.7%) of the respondents had dental consultations in index pregnancy for complaints such as tooth ache and decay (66.7%) and pain as well as swelling of the gum (33.3%). The most common reason given for not visiting a dentist during the index pregnancy was the visit not being relevant to their pregnancy outcome (69.2%). After counseling them, only 249 (60.3%) agreed to have dental consultation during subsequent pregnancies. The relationship between visiting the dentist and place of residence (< 0.001), occupation (0.019) and frequency of brushing/ changing of brush (0.005, < 0.001 respectively) were statistically significant.ConclusionThe prevalence of dental consultation during pregnancy is very low. Pregnant women should be encouraged to have routine dental consultation with oral health counseling and check-up incorporated as part of routine antenatal care.

Periodontal disease status and treatment need among a Kurdish population in Sulaimani - Iraq as assessed by CPITN index

Background and Objective: This study identifies the prevalence and severity of periodontal diseases in a given population of Sulaimani using the Community Periodontal Index of Treatment Needs (CPITN) and attempts to find the relation of CPITN with age, sex, location, visit to dentist, tooth brushing, use of mouth wash and interdental aids, systemic disease, smoking status and missing teeth. Methods: Periodontal examinations were performed using CPITN, plaque index (PI) and bleeding index (BI). Other data including location, visit to dentist, tooth brushing, use of mouth wash and interdental aids, presence of systemic diseases, smoking status and missing teeth were also collected. The data were subjected to logistic regression to find a relation between periodontal status and other variables. Results: Among the 1354 subjects examined, 43.6% were male and the majority of these (80.9%) were from urban areas. The mean PI and BI were 0.64±24 and 0.39±0.28, respectively. Calculus was the most prevalent highest score amongst examined subjects (62.2%), followed by shallow pocket (22.2%) and bleeding (9%). Among the sextants, lower central sextants were found to have the highest percentage of calculus. The highest percentages of shallow and deep pockets were found at upper left (14%, 2.5%, respectively) and upper right (11.4%, 3.2%, respectively) sextants. Logistic regression analysis showed that age, sex, frequency of brushing and smoking significantly correlated with CPITN scores. Conclusion: Prevalence and severity of periodontal diseases are high in the examined population and age, sex, brushing and smoking were shown to have an impact on periodontal condition.

Evaluating mechanisms of change in an oral hygiene improvement trial with older adults

BackgroundThis paper compares the relationship between theoretically-driven mechanisms of change and clinical outcomes across two different interventions to improve oral hygiene of older adults participating in a group randomized trial.MethodsSix low-income senior residences were paired and randomized into two groups. The first received a face to face counseling intervention (AMI) and the second, a peer-facilitated health campaign (three oral health fairs). Both were based on Fishbein’s Integrated Model. 331 participants were recruited at baseline and 306 completed the post-assessment one month after intervention. Clinical outcomes were Gingival Index (GI) and Plaque score (PS), collected by calibrated dental hygienists. Surveys obtained data on patient background characteristics and ten mechanisms of change including oral health beliefs, attitudes, norms and behaviors. GLMM was used to assess the effects of time, intervention arm, participant characteristics, intervention mechanisms and differences between the two interventions over time in relation to outcomes.ResultsAt baseline, both groups had similar background characteristics. Both groups improved significantly in outcomes. Overall GI scores changed from baseline mean of 0.38 (SD = .032) to .26 (SD = .025) and PS scores changed from baseline mean of 71.4 (SD = 18%) to 59.1% (SD = 21%). T-tests showed that fears of oral disease, oral health intentionality, oral health norms, worries about self-management of oral health, flossing frequency and sugar control improved significantly in both interventions from baseline to post intervention. Oral health self-efficacy, perceived risk of oral health problems, oral health locus of control and brushing frequency improved significantly only in the counseling intervention. GLMM models showed that the significant predictors of GI improvement were intentionality to perform oral hygiene, locus of control, and improvement in frequency of brushing and flossing in association with the counseling intervention. Predictors of PS improvement were worries about oral hygiene self-management and fear of oral diseases, in association with the counseling intervention. In the reduced final models, only oral health locus of control (predicting GI) and fears of oral diseases (predicting PS) were significant in association with the counseling intervention. Locus of control, a key concept in oral hygiene interventions including the IM was the main contributing mechanism for GI improvement. Fear, an emotional response, drove improvement in PS, reinforcing the importance of cognitive/emotional mechanisms in oral hygiene interventions.ConclusionsThough both groups improved in outcomes, GI and PS outcomes improved more in response to the counseling intervention than the campaign. The counseling intervention had an impact on more mechanisms of change than the campaign. Improvements in intervention mechanisms across both interventions however, suggest a closer examination of the campaign intervention impact on outcomes over time.Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT02419144, first posted April 17, 2015.

Oral health status of individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder considering oral hygiene habits.

This study aimed to evaluate the oral health status of individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Ninety-two participants, aged 18 years and older from which 46 had OCD symptoms, were included in this comparative cross-sectional study. Data on age, sex, smoking habit, educational level, and potential mediators including brushing frequency (BF) and brushing duration (BD) were collected. Clinical examinations determined outcome measures including decayed-missing-filled teeth (DMFT), presence of root caries (PoRC), gingival recession (GR), plaque index (PI), and papillary bleeding index (PBI). Pathway analysis was used for data analysis. Individuals with OCD had significantly lower DMFT (p < .01), higher BF (p = .01), and lower PI (p = .01); however, there were no significant differences regarding BD, GR, PBI, and PoRC (p > .05). While BD did not have a mediating role, BF mediated the effect of OCD on DMFT (B = -0.31, CI = -0.60 to -0.06) and PI (B = -0.15, CI = -0.36 to -0.03). Males had less PI (B = -1.03, CI = -1.81 to -0.24) and PBI (B = -1.14, CI = -2.09 to 0.20) than females. Except for OCD and sex, other predictors were not significant. Individuals with OCD had lower caries experience and similar gingival health compared to controls. Part of the impact of OCD was mediated through brushing habits.

Dental Status Between Assisted Reproductive Technology And Natural Conceived Children: A Comparative Pilot Study

Objectives: ART children were proven to have low birth weight and some birth defects. However, limited number of studies found concerning dental status of ART children. This research aimed to determine oral health practice and dental status between Assisted-Reproductive (ART) and Natural Conceived (NC) children. Materials And Method: This cross-sectional study consisted of 34 subjects, 17 were ART children and 17 NC children as control. Intraoral examination was conducted and orthopantomogram (OPG) radiograph were obtained from the subjects. Any abnormalities of tooth development such as number and tooth colour were recorded. Oral hygiene practice such as tooth brushing frequency and supervision from the parents during tooth brushing were identified. Caries experience of both groups were recorded using dmft for deciduous teeth and DMFT for permanent teeth. Descriptive analysis, Bivariate analysis were done using Mann-Whitney’s test and Spearman rho test. Results: Most of the participants were girls (58.8%) and majority were aged of 7 – 8 years old (47.1%). 70.6% of ART group used intra-uterine insemination (IUI) technique while 29.4% used in-vitro fertilization (IVF). There was one hypodontia case found in each group. Caries experience in primary teeth showed significantly lower in the ART group with p < 0.05. Conclusions: There was a comparable case of hypodontia in ART and NC group. However, caries experience (dmft) of children in ART group was found significantly lower than NC group.

Toothbrushing and related factors among high school students in the Southeast of Iran: A cross-sectional study.

Dental caries is one of the most common problems in student, and tooth brushing at least twice a day is one of the preventive measures of dental caries. This study aimed to determine the frequency of daily brushing and its related factors among high school students in the southeast of Iran based on the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA). In this cross-sectional study, 2045high school students of 13-15years from urban areas of Zahedan in the southeast of Iran with multistage random sampling were selected. A self-administered questionnaire was used to assess demographic background, psychosocial constructs of the HAPA and daily brushing frequency. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine predictors of daily brushing. Only 18% of participants reported tooth brushing at least twice a day, which is the desired brushing behaviour. Multivariate regression showed that increased odds of daily brushing associated with gender (OR=2.38, 95% CI 1.84-3.08), mother education (OR=2.27, 95% CI 1.62-3.18), father job (OR=2.24, 95% CI 1.20-4.19), task self-efficacy (OR=1.24, 95% CI 1.08-1.42), action planning (OR=1.10, 95% CI 1.02-1.19) and maintenance self-efficacy (OR=1.20, 95% CI 1.13- 1.27). The brushing behaviour of students needs to be taken seriously in Zahedan. Motivational and volitional constructs of the HAPA include task self-efficacy, action planning, and maintenance self-efficacy could be considered in intervention programmes targeting increase adolescent brushing.

Risk factors associated with cat parasites in a feline medical center

ObjectivesThe present study was carried out to evaluate the risk factors for and presence of intestinal parasites in cats at the feline hospital ‘CEME Gatos’, Mexico City.MethodsIn total, 528 fecal samples from domestic cats were collected and analyzed in order to diagnose enteroparasites.ResultsThe parasite with the highest prevalence was Giardia species (21.97%), followed by Cryptosporidium species (7%), Toxocara cati (6.45%), Cystoisospora species (5.11%) and Dipylidium caninum (0.76%). One hundred and twenty-one cats (55.50%) were infected with a single parasite, 80 (36.69%) were infected with two and 17 (14.04%) were infected with three parasites. The results of the prevalence study showed that a liquid consistency of feces was associated with the presence of Giardia species, whereas age <7 months and mucus in the stool were factors associated with the prevalence of Cystoisospora species. Regarding T cati, the associated risk factors were age <7 months, being male, contact with other animal species and access to the outdoors. The last factor was strongly associated with the presence of T cati (eight times more likely) in outdoor cats’ feces. Brushing frequency was also an associated factor: T cati was present in cats that were never brushed. The results of the analysis of cats infected with D caninum showed that interaction with other species was a risk factor for infection.Conclusions and relevanceAge <7 months, mucus in feces, living with other animal species, outdoor access and frequency of brushing are risk factors for the presence of parasites.

Habits of Tooth Brushing and Tobacco/Betel Nut use among Patients Attending Dental Outpatient Department in a Teaching Hospital

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the use of tobacco/betel nut and frequency of tooth brushing in males and females reporting to OPD. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional survey was carried out on 600 patients attending the Dental OPD of Sindh Institute of Oral Health Sciences (SIOHS) in Karachi from January to March 2019. After obtaining informed consent from all participating subjects, data regarding tobacco/betel nut use and frequency of tooth brushing were recorded by the investigator. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 20.0 (SPSS Inc., USA). RESULTS: Regarding use of tobacco, more females were using smokeless tobacco (40%), whereas more males smoked cigarettes (27%). In terms of tooth brushing, greater proportion of non-tobacco users (54.7%) had better brushing habits compared to smokeless tobacco and cigarette smokers (26.7% and 17.5 % respectively).Regarding frequency of tooth brushing, more non-tobacco users (53%) brush or miswak at least once a day compared to tobacco users. Additionally, there is a significant difference in frequency of brushing habit between males and females (22.1% and 43.2 % twice a day respectively) suggesting that females have better brushing habits. A statistically significant association was seen between tobacco users and brushing habit using Chi-Square test (p < .001). CONCLUSION: Patients using tobacco reported poor oral hygiene practices than non-users. Patients using tobacco (cigarette smokers and smokeless tobacco) should be identified separately and oral hygiene measures reinforced as part of routine dental practice. KEYWORDS: Tobacco, Tooth brushing, Oral hygiene, Smoking

General Health, Dental Status &amp; Perceived Dental Treatment Needs of An Elderly Population in India

Objectives: This pilot study determined the general and dental health status; perceived medical and dental treatment needs of an elderly population dwelling in residential homes in Himachal Pradesh (India).Method: Subjects were chosen from OPD of Department of Prosthodontics &amp; Implantology, Himachal institute of dental sciences, Paonta sahib, (H.P) between April 2020 – April 2021. (N=133, female: 71 and male: 62) were involved in this study. A detailed questionnaire was prepared and dental examinations were conducted. Information was collected related to age, education levels, financial status, current physical functional status, general health, mental health, previous dental history, current dental status, oral hygiene practices and denture hygiene of these elderly people. The prevalence of edentulism, the presence and type of dental prostheses, dental and denture status and denture cleanliness were further evaluated.Results: The three most prevalent reported general health problems were associated with Genito-urinary problems (24%) followed by cardiovascular (18%) and respiratory problems (14%) varying significantly between genders, with males suffering more from cardiovascular problems than females (p &lt; 0.05). Females showed significantly higher gastrointestinal and orthopaedic problems than males (p &lt; 0.05). Females were more frequently edentulous than males but denture hygiene was significantly better in females than in males (p &lt; 0.05). Brushing frequency did not significantly increase denture hygiene (p = 0.6). More than one-third of the subjects had not been to the dentist within the previous 5–10 years, mainly due to lack of demand, followed by the cost of the dental care and fear. More than two-thirds of denture-wearing subjects wore their dentures only during eating.

Dental Caries in Relation to Sugar Consumption among Children - A Study from Southern Punjab, Pakistan

&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background and Objective:&lt;/strong&gt; Dental caries is one of the most prevalent diseases among children around the world. It has a complex aetiology and different factors like sugar intake, brushing habits, body mass index, and socio-economic status may play a significant role. Apart from dental pain, caries affects children&amp;rsquo;s over all body functions, body growth, and pose a financial burden on families. The objective of the study was to determine the association between sugar intake and dental decay among local paediatric population.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods: &lt;/strong&gt;This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Ibn-e-Sina Hospital Multan, Pakistan from July, 2019 to December, 2019. Data were collected on a specifically designed questionnaire. A total of 540 participants of age range between 5 and 12 years were selected for this study after taking consent from their parents. The data were analysed using statistical tests of significance.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;Female children were predominantly affected as compared to males (56.7% vs. 43.3%) caries was seen more frequently in children brushing teeth once than those doing it twice (p = 0.01). Children taking cariogenic food between meals and 2 hours before sleep showed a significant association with caries development (p = 0.02; p = 0.01). Primary teeth were affected more (74.18%) than the secondary teeth (11.92%).&lt;br /&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusion:&lt;/strong&gt; Irregular brushing habits and frequency and timing of cariogenic food intake are the leading causes of caries in children from local population.&lt;/p&gt;

Frequency Distribution of Gingival Biotype and Related Factors in an Adult Population of Isfahan

Background: Gingival biotype can be influenced by genetic factors, tooth-related factors and biological issues. This study aimed to determine the biotype of facial gingival and related factors. Methods: In this study, 300 patients (128 males and 172 females) with a mean age of 36.2 ± 13.27 were selected by simple random sampling. Patients’ characteristics including age, gender, smoking, dental and keratinized gingival anatomy and oral hygiene parameters were recorded and their associations with gingival biotype were investigated using Transparency method. Collected data were analyzed by SPSS24 using t test, Mann-Whitney, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation coefficient. The P&lt;0.05 was considered significant. Results: Frequency of thin gingival biotype was higher than that of thick gingival biotype. There was a significant relationship between gingival biotype of upper central incisors areas and age (P &lt; 0.001), vibratory brushing (P=0.019) and keratinized gingival width (P=0.021). There was also a significant relationship between the gingival biotype of lower central incisor area and gender (P=0.036), vibratory brushing (P=0.010), vertical brushing (P=0.009) and keratinized gingival width (P=0.011). Moreover, a significant direct relationship was discovered between Gingival biotype of upper and lower central incisors areas. No relationship was found between frequency and duration of brushing, dental flossing, plaque index, tooth shape, and smoking with gingival biotype (P&gt; 0.005). Conclusions: Gingival biotype was associated with age, gender and keratinized gingival width, as well as some brushing characteristics such as the brushing method.

Quantitative Assessment of Microbial Contamination and Patterns of Public Behaviour with Used Toothbrushes: Implications of Storage and Replacement

Introduction: Toothbrushes can readily become contaminated with microbes during use and storage. They present a potential hazard of cross-contamination and subsequent infection. Aims: To investigate the nature and level of microbial contamination of used toothbrushes and influence of participant lifestyle. Methods and Results: 103 used toothbrushes were donated, and microbial contents were determined by microbial culture and identification. 97% of toothbrushes revealed contamination. The microbial loads ranged from 0-1010 cfu/brush with median values of around 107, with Candida isolated in the highest levels. 90% of toothbrushes were stored in bathrooms presumably exposed to environmental contamination and 72% revealed the presence of enteric bacteria including Klebsiella, Serratia and Enterobacter. 50% of participants kept toothbrushes for &gt;3 months and 40% retained toothbrushes for 4-6 months; microbial loads were fully established during the first three months of use and did not increase further with prolonged use. Only 57% of participants brushed their teeth twice a day and 41% brushed once a day. Conclusion: Used toothbrushes are heavily contaminated and the presence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms constitutes a potential health risk. Significance and Impact of Study: There is an under-recognised risk of cross-contamination/infection, especially when multiple users store toothbrushes in close contact. Guidance on toothbrush age, brushing frequency and storage is not being followed. Further education is required to improve public awareness.

Oral health of overweight and obese children and adolescents: a comparative study with a multivariate analysis of risk indicators.

The aim of this study was to investigate the oral health status of overweight and obese children compared to normal weight children and to explore the effect of risk indicators, including stress, on the oral health of the children. For this cross-sectional study, 7-15-year-old children were enrolled: divided into a group of overweight and obese and a group of normal weight children. Parent-reported questionnaires were used to for data collection demographic data, children's medical and developmental history, brushing frequency and dietary habits. Participants' state and trait anxiety levels were evaluated using STAIC questionnaires while saliva cortisol was measured as a biomarker of stress. Dental Caries (DMFT/dmft), periodontal health (plaque index-PI and gingival index-GI), saliva flow rate and buffer capacity were recorded at the dental clinic by two calibrated examiners. Student's t-test, Pearson's r and Fisher's exact test were used for bivariate associations and backward stepwise multivariate regression analysis for each oral health outcome was performed (P ≤ 0.05). Overweight and obese children had significantly higher DMFT (3.92 ± 4.69 vs. 1.30 ± 2.49, P < 0.001), PI (0.9 ± 0.5 vs. 0.45 ± 0.52, P < 0,001) and GI (0.38 ± 0.39 vs. 0.18 ± 0.47, P < 0,001), salivary cortisol AUC (128.3 ± 55.5 vs. 99.4 ± 35.7, P = 0.004), lower saliva flow rate and decreased "high" saliva buffer capacity. There were no differences for the STAIC measures between the groups. Child's weight affected periodontal parameters but not dental caries, when controlling for other risk indicators. Oral status of overweight and obese children was worse compared to normal weight children and this did not correlate to stress variables.

The occurrence, severity degree, and associated risk factors of dental fluorosis among the 12-year-old schoolchildren in Jilin, China.

This study aims to describe the occurrence, severity degree, and correlated risk factors of dental fluorosis among the 12-year-old schoolchildren of Jilin, China.We conducted a cross-sectional, observational, and descriptive study among 960 12-year-old schoolchildren in Jilin. The Dean index was utilized to evaluate the severity degree of dental fluorosis. A questionnaire was sent to the guardians of children. Community fluorosis index was measured to estimate the importance of enamel fluorosis for the whole population's public health. The logistic regression analysis was also utilized to identify the correlation between fluorotic teeth and the independent variables.Nine hundred sixty children were assessed. Among them, 480 (50%) were female. 30.5% of subjects had dental fluorosis, 7.19% had very mild dental fluorosis, 10.73% experienced mild dental fluorosis, 9.58% suffered moderate dental fluorosis, and 3.02% encountered severe dental fluorosis. The overall community fluorosis index was 0.73. The results of logistic regression showed that schoolchildren who brushed teeth more frequently (OR: 2.012, 95% CI 1.767–2.342), deficiency of parental supervision (OR: 4.219, 95% CI 3.887–4.573), and lived in rural areas (OR: 2.776, 95% CI 2.163–3.489) were more correlated with enamel fluorosis. Moreover, schoolchildren whose mothers or fathers were of high education level (OR: 0.336, 95% CI 0.217–0.413 and 0.346, 95% CI 0.113–0.512) and only child (OR: 0.378, 95% CI 0.213–0.415) were protective factors for dental fluorosis.In the Jilin province of China, the risk indicators for dental fluorosis include rural areas, more frequency of brushing, low educational background of parents, and deficiency of parental supervision.

Association of oral hygiene practices with the outcome of untreated dental caries and its clinical consequences in pre- and primary school children: A cross-sectional study in a northern province of Saudi Arabia.

ObjectivesTo assess the association amongst oral hygiene practices, untreated dental caries (UDC) and clinical consequences of UDC in pre‐ and primary school children aged 3–5 and 6–7 years.Materials and methodsA total of 250 subjects were recruited. The demographic and oral hygiene data were collected using a closed‐ended questionnaire. The UDC was measured using the ‘d/D' component of the decayed, missing, filled teeth (dmft/DMFT) index, and its clinical consequences were recorded using the ‘p/P' component of the pulpal involvement, ulceration, fistula and abscess (pufa/PUFA) index. The data were analyzed by multiple logistic regression.ResultsOverall, 94.2% and 56.5% of the participants had one or more UDC and pulp involvement (p ≥ 1), respectively in 3–5‐year‐old age group. In the 6‐7‐year‐ age group the prevalence of UDC was 26.7% and the pulp involvement was 11.6%. Children who brushed with their fingers were 4.7 times more likely to have UDC (crude odds ratio [COR] = 4.71; 95% CI: 1.21–18.40). Twice‐daily brushing resulted in a 39% (p = 0.732) lower likelihood of having UDC compared with once‐daily brushing (COR = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.04, 10.09). Children with irregular brushing frequency were 3.2 times more likely to have pulpal involvement (COR = 3.21; 95% CI: 1.74–5.93).ConclusionFinger brushing, irregular frequency of brushing and lack of parental supervision whilst brushing were associated with UDC and its consequences.