Oral Hygiene Habits Research Articles

Condition of the Oral Cavity in Patients After Heart Transplantation: A Preliminary Report.

BACKGROUND The constant impairment of the immune system caused by lifelong use of immunosuppressive drugs in patients after heart transplantation has a significant impact on oral cavity health. The aim of this study was to analyze the health of the oral cavity in patients after heart transplantation, with particular regard to occurring pathogens. MATERIAL AND METHODS The study included 25 patients after heart transplantation. The research scheme was divided into 2 parts. The first part consisted of a survey on general health and oral hygiene habits. The second part of the examination consisted of an analysis of the health of the oral cavity: the mucosa, periodontium, and hard dental tissues. Particular attention was paid to PET (test for the presence of pathogens causing periodontitis/periimplantitis) and CAT (diagnostic test for the presence of Candida in the oral cavity), which are real-time PCR tests used to detect pathogens causing periodontitis and microorganisms present in oral candidiasis. RESULTS The conducted research and in-depth analysis of the results showed that the oral health condition in patients after heart transplantation is not satisfactory, regardless of the time that has elapsed since the surgery, sex, age, hygiene habits, or the type of immunosuppression used. The oral cavity of patients after heart transplantation is colonized with Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Treponema denticola, and Candida albicans. CONCLUSIONS The cooperation of the dentist with the attending physician at each stage of the treatment should play an unquestionable role.

Genetic aspects of dental caries

Dental caries is a common chronic disease affecting humans in all age groups. Various factors can affect the formation of caries including demineralization and remineralization processes with oral flora; dietary and oral hygiene habits; salivary composition, flow rate, pH and buffering capacity; morphological features of the teeth; fluoride exposures, environmental and socioeconomic factors. One of the most important factors causing inter-individual variations in caries susceptibility is the host genetics. Several genes affect individual caries susceptibility. Genes play a role in immune response, development of saliva and tooth enamel. The present review aims to overview the literature focusing on the genetic features of dental caries.

Oral-Health-Related Self-Efficacy among the Elderly Population in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Oral health self-efficacy is a fundamental determinant of behavioral changes among elderly patients. Objective: To assess the oral self-efficacy among the Saudi population aged 65 years old and above in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional survey conducted on elderly individuals in Riyadh. An Arabic version of the Geriatric Self-Efficacy Scale for Oral Health (GSEOH) was administered to all participants. The dependent variables included oral function, oral hygiene habits, and dental visits. For the statistical analysis, two independent sample t-tests and a one-way ANOVA test were used. Significance was judged at a p-value less than 0.05. Results: Of 400 participants recruited, 53% were males. About 58% had retained teeth, and 72% had visited a dentist in the past 12 months. Overall, 31.6%, 34.64%, 22.65%, and 11.14% of the participants rated their oral health as good, fairly good, rather poor, and poor, respectively. Age (p < 0.001), educational level (p < 0.001), and working status (p < 0.001) were significantly associated with GSEOH scores. Other sociodemographic characteristics were not found to affect the GSEOH scores. Conclusions: The overall self-efficacy of oral health among Saudi elderly individuals is fairly good. Age, educational level, and occupational status are the main determinants of oral health self-efficacy scores.

Oral hygiene practices, dental experiences and dietary habits in school going children

Background: Prevalence of oral diseases is increasing with growing urbanization and changes in living conditions. Increasing consumption of sugary snacks, chocolates, sugary or aerated drinks are making children prone to develop dental problems. Regular toothbrushing, rinsing mouth with water, use of mouthwashes and inter dental brush or dental floss, a balanced diet and regular visits to dentist are associated with a decreased risk of dental diseases. Objective was to determine the oral hygiene practices, dietary habits and dental experience among children of 3-15 years.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study carried out at a tertiary care center and dental college. Questionnaire was used to determine the dental health practices, dietary habit and dental experiences. Responses of 100 duly filled forms were included and statistically analyzed.Results: 100% of the students brushed their teeth daily with toothpaste. About 53% brushed at least twice daily. 85% children rinsed mouth with water after brushing, 42% rinsed mouth with water after every meal. Adult help required for brushing and habit of eating in between meals snacks were significantly more in children of primary section compared to children of 6th standard onwards. Only 16% children were using mouthwash regularly. 47% children visited dentist for various reason out of which 46.8% visited for routine check-up.Conclusions: In our study 100% children were brushing their teeth at least once a day, 42% were rinsing mouth after every meal. Efforts should be made to promote good oral hygiene habits among children through various educational programs.

Application of Dental Indices to Evaluate Oral Health Status for Schoolchildren in Central Tripoli, Libya

Background and objective. The present study aims to determine the treatment needs index (TNI), care index (CI), restorative index (RI) and functional measure index (FMI) among Libyan schoolchildren. This study also aims to evaluate the impact of self-assessed brushing frequency and the role of parental observation during brushing on DMFT scores. Methods. a cross-sectional study was carried out on 185 schoolchildren (125 boys and 60 girls) between the ages of 12-14 years in Tripoli to collect the data for decayed, missing and filled teeth in the permanent teeth (DMFT). TNI, CI, RI and FMI were determined. The impact of brushing frequency and parental observation during brushing on the DMFT score were assessed within the stated age range. Data were analyzed using GraphPad Prism version 9. Results. high rates of treatment needs were observed amongst girls (66%) and boys (55%), with no statistically significant difference. CI was found to be 6.8 and 4.6 for boys and girls, respectively, whereas RI was shown to be 0.08 and 0.05, for boys and girls, respectively. FMI was found to be 0.9 amongst both genders. Brushing frequency was correlated with DMFT scores. In contrast, the role of parents in encouraging oral hygiene habits did not impact oral health status. Conclusion. The study indicated unmet treatment needs for dental caries and little experience of restorative treatment. Oral hygiene education for children and parents needs to be implemented to maximize opportunities for oral health improvement.

Mobile Application Design: Caries Health Care for Children

Tooth decay is a problem that occurs in every person. However, children are the most vulnerable due to their diet, the consumption of foods high in sugar and poor oral hygiene. Due to this problem, the design of a mobile application was developed with the objective of preventing tooth decay in children, encouraging good oral hygiene habits in children. The mobile application basically teaches the child with the help of 3D modeling the correct way to brush his or her teeth. In addition, of using the smartphone camera to capture a photograph of the teeth. In this way it performs the analysis applying artificial intelligence to diagnose if the patient presents symptoms of caries. Also, creates a dependency of the child on the application each time he/she brushes correctly. The application provides bonuses for progressing and unlocking new interactive features; this way, attention is captured and a good habit is maintained. The agile Scrum methodology was used because it presents an orderly structure and allows adaptability. Also, offers a wide variety of graphical tools and strategies capable of displaying information in a structured way.

The rs35874116 single nucleotide polymorphism increases sweet intake and the risk of severe early childhood caries: a case–control study

BackgroundDental caries is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases worldwide among children. The rs35874116 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the sweet receptor gene TAS1R2 has been associated with dental caries at a high risk in permanent teeth among school children and adults. To date, little is known about the association of this SNP with sweet intake and caries risk in the primary school children.MethodsTotal of 236 children were included, namely 118 subjects in the non-caries (NC) group and severe early childhood caries (S-ECC) group, respectively. Oral mucosa cells were collected from all the selected children, and the full length of exon 3 in TAS1R2 was sequenced to analyse rs35874116 polymorphism. A questionnaire was used to collect information about socio-demographic information, frequency of sweet intake and oral hygiene habits. Multiple logistic regression models were applied to assess the relationship of rs35874116 polymorphism with frequency of sweet intake and S-ECC among the five-year-old children.ResultsChildren with the TT genotype of rs35874116 had a higher frequency of sweet intake than CT/CC carriers (51.3% vs. 32.7%; x2 = 5.436, p = 0.020), and S-ECC individuals were more likely to be TT genotype carriers than NC individuals (53.5% vs. 46.5%; x2 = 4.353, p = 0.037). Multiple logistic regression analyses showed that the TT genotype of rs35874116 was not only significantly related to the frequency of sweet intake (OR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.14–4.44) but also significantly associated with S-ECC (OR = 2.11, 95% CI = 1.01 ~ 4.42).ConclusionsThe rs35874116 polymorphism might increase sweet intake and the risk of S-ECC among five-year-old children in Nanning, China.

Soft drinks and dental erosion during pediatric age: a clinical investigation.

Dental erosion is an irreversible condition of loss of teeth hard tissues caused by intrinsic or extrinsic acids attack, without bacterial involvement. Common soft drinks have an acid pH and they release hydrogen ions and act as chelating agents, dissolving teeth mineral component. The aim of the study was to investigate the correlation between the consumption of soft drinks in children and the degree of dental erosion. A questionnaire of 15 multiple choice questions was addressed to the parents of the 231 children needing different dental treatments. Responses were compared with the level of dental erosion of their child, that was clinically investigated using the Basic Erosive Wear Examination (BEWE) index. About 26.8% of subjects fall into a high-risk category of dental erosion while 24.2% in a low risk level. Socioeconomic status and oral hygiene habits are able to affect the degree of dental erosion. Toothpastes containing fluoride have not proved effective in preventing this phenomenon and no significant correlations were found between the type of toothbrush used and its frequency of use. It is necessary to apply preventive measures such as information on the processes and causes of erosion, instruction about right home oral hygiene maneuvers and the possible use of specific products, to avoid the development of problems related to severe dental wear.

Teeth and gums in diabetes

Teeth and gums in diabetes

Periodontal Disease Risk Factors Assessment in Association with Frequency of Tooth Brushing

Aim: To analyze the co-relation between frequencies of tooth brushing as a periodontal risk assessment tool in a population. Study design: Cross Sectional Survey Place and duration of study: Bacha Khan Medical College, Mardan from 1st January 2021 to 31st December 2021. Methodology: Four hundred and eleven participants were enrolled. Data was collected by administering the study questionnaire including 14 items assessing risk factors for periodontal disease as well as their oral hygiene habits. Descriptive statistics were used for data summarization and presentation. Results: Approximately 34.3% of study participants claimed to brush twice daily and 61.6% once daily. Mean age was 22.1 years and majority of them females constituting 66.7%. 39.33% had a history of bleeding gums while 28.2% had swollen gums. 51% of the subjects reported brushing for less than 2 minutes duration. 67% participants of population were of upper middle socioeconomic status. Conclusion: The clear correlation establish amongst risk of emerging periodontal disease and occurrence of tooth brushing. Keywords: Periodontal disease, Oral hygiene, Risk factors, Tooth brushing

Differences in Korean adult inpatients' oral care behaviour in daily life and hospitals.

The objectives of the study were to identify the differences in oral care methods between current and past hospitalizations and to investigate the need for inpatient oral care education for South Korean adults who have been hospitalized for more than 24 h. This study employed a cross-sectional design. Between 23 December 2019 and 4 May 2020, a questionnaire was administered to 200 adult inpatients awaiting treatment and their guardians at university hospitals or clinics. Of these, the data of 195 patients were analysed. Frequency analysis, descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used for data analysis. In daily life, the participants reported brushing their teeth thrice a day (52.3%) for 2 min (60%). A single product was the most used (51.3%). During hospitalization, 40% of the participants brushed their teeth thrice or more a day, 84.1% brushed for <1 min, and 83.6% did not use additional oral care products. Differences were observed between South Korean adults' oral care behaviours in daily life and those performed in hospitals. Oral hygiene habits, the frequency and duration of tooth brushing, and the use of oral care products decreased during hospitalization. Our findings can be applied to the development of oral care interventions for inpatients, while considering changes in the hospitalization environment and physical activity levels during hospitalization.

The influence of overweight and obesity in the oral health of a sample of portuguese adults

Abstract Background Overweight and obesity may lead to different problems in various body systems and in the oral cavity. Dental caries and periodontal disease have been related with overweight. The aim of this study was to assess how overweight and obesity have impact on the lifestyle, oral habits and oral pathologies. Methods We conducted an observational cross-sectional study where we applied a questionnaire to 140 individuals from Lisbon and Viseu, Portugal., which 70 had a normal Body Mass Index (BMI) (control group) and 70 had an excessive BMI. We also made an oral observation in each individual to record the permanent teeth decayed, missing and filled index (DMFT), the Community Periodontal Index and the oral hygiene status. Results From the final sample, 30% of the subjects with overweight brushed their teeth once a day or less, while the majority (62.9%) of the control group brushed twice a day. In the oral examination, 70% had calculus, while in the control group only 22.5% presented calcified plaque. The DMFT was higher among the obesity group in comparison with the control group. Regarding periodontal disease, the participants with overweight need more dental intervention (81.4%) in contrast with the control group (14%). Conclusions Most overweight and obese individuals present precarious oral hygiene habits, higher prevalence of dental caries, and worse periods of periodontal health. They are not aware of the repercussions of the association between their cariogenic diet, oral health and overweight. Key messages • Oral health behaviors are related with other health conditions, namely obesity and this is a fundamental public health issue. • Primary preventive strategies should be established having in consideration the oral health status of adults in treatment for obesity and in weight control programs.

Tobacco Use Prevention and Cessation Programme For Pregnant Women Accessing Antenatal Care In Urban Public Health Facilities In Southern India

Abstract Backgrounds and problem By 2030, tobacco use is estimated to kill more than 8 million people worldwide annually, with LMICs accounting for over 80% of those deaths. In India, about 4.6% of women continue to use tobacco mainly (&amp;gt; 80%) in smokeless (SLT) form during pregnancy. This may lead to: higher risk of anemia (∼ 70%), hypertension, and postpartum hemorrhage; poor fetal development; and 2-3 times higher rate of low-birth and stillbirth babies. Importance Anti-tobacco initiatives often focus on smoking over SLT, which is commonly consumed by women. Drivers of SLT use among women include: cultural appropriateness, medicinal benefits, and poor social determinants of health. These factors must be taken into account while formulating effective anti-tobacco interventions for pregnant women, ensuring safe motherhood and neonatal health. Solution We propose integrating oral health interventions in mitigating tobacco use within the existing antenatal care (ANC) model. Women enrolled in public health facilities in an urban poor neighborhood in South India receive oral health education (OHE) integrated into ANC. The intervention promotes oral hygiene habits, dietary advices, improving dental healthcare utilization, and sensitization on the ill-effects of tobacco-use. Training for ANC providers focuses on delivering antenatal tobacco screening, cessation, and referral services. This includes expanding the medical history to record tobacco use, conduct oral examination and referrals to dentists and/or tobacco cessation centres. Final outcomes of OHE will be measured using pre and post KAP surveys informed by WHO Oral Health Surveys; and training programme using in-depth interviews among providers. Desired policy change is the inclusion of tobacco prevention and cessation programme in the Indian ANC guidelines.

Prevalence of Gingivitis in Second Trimester of Pregnancy

Background Gingivitis simply means the inflammation of gingiva. It is a reversible state but can lead to periodontitis. The final result could be the exfoliation of the tooth causing decreased masticatory function leading to a compromised quality of life. Gingivitis in the pregnant woman should be carefully assessed and treated and given special attention. There is rare documentation on the prevalence of gingivitis in pregnancy in the least developed countries.&#x0D; Objective To evaluate the prevalence of gingivitis in the second trimester of pregnancy and assess its relationship with age, parity, education, occupation, gravidity, oral hygiene habit and frequency of brushing.&#x0D; Method An observational descriptive study was conducted among 384 pregnant females in their second trimester in Kathmandu, Nepal. Demographic variables and general information including those related to oral hygiene practices and habits were collected during an interview. Plaque index and Gingival Index was recorded among the patients through full mouth examination at four sites.&#x0D; Result The prevalence of gingivitis in the second trimester of pregnancy was 76.3%. Statistically significant relationship was found between gingivitis and gravida and parity. A relation could not be established between gingivitis with age, education, occupation, oral hygiene habit and frequency of brushing.&#x0D; Conclusion The prevalence of gingivitis is found to be high in Nepalese pregnant women. Special strategies should be introduced targeting the pregnant women of least developed countries to uplift their periodontal health.

Body Mass Index as a Proxy Indicator for Poor Oral Hygiene Habits in Adult Diabetic Patients.

To analyse if body mass index (BMI) could be used as a fast proxy indicator of poor oral hygiene habits (POHH) among the adult population with diabetes mellitus. Adults, aged 25-74, from the Slovenian 2016 nationwide cross-sectional survey based on the Countrywide Integrated Non-Communicable Disease Intervention (CINDI) Health Monitor methodology, who reported being diabetic, were included in the study (n=560). We assessed the relationship between POHH and BMI, adjusted to confounders, using multiple binary logistic regression. In the total sample, the POHH prevalence was 50.9%. Taking into account BMI, POHH prevalence in participants with normal BMI values was only 37.8%, in the overweight group it was 1.22-times higher (46.0%), while in the obese group it was 1.63-times higher (61.6%) (p<0.001). Also, the odds for POHH were 2.64-times higher in the obese group in comparison to the normal BMI group (95% CI: 1.55-4.51; p<0.001). After adjustment for confounders, this OR decreased only moderately (OR=2.45; 95% CI: 1.35-4.44; p=0.003). BMI could be used as a readily assessable, fast, simple, and cheap tool indicating higher odds for having POHH among the diabetic population. By defining the high-risk group it could be easier for physicians and dentists to take further referrals and actions for promoting oral health in this group. The suggested tool can save time and could have an important positive impact on the quality of life of diabetics, as well as on health expenditures.

Home oral hygiene is associated with blood pressure profiles: Results of a nationwide survey in Italian pharmacies.

Periodontal diseases are associated with cardiovascular risk factors/diseases, and whether home oral hygiene practices are inversely related to the same conditions could carry relevant practical implications. We investigated the association of home oral hygiene habits with hypertension. During World Hypertension Day 2020, a nationwide cross-sectional survey was conducted on volunteers ≥18 years at 733 Italian pharmacies. Participants underwent standardized blood pressure (BP) measurement and answered a questionnaire on cardiovascular risk factors, oral health status, and home oral hygiene habits (toothbrushing daily frequency and manual/electric toothbrush). The association between home oral care habits and BP was assessed using multivariate logistic regression. Interactions between exposures and outcome were formally tested. Among the 4506 participants (44.8% males, 66.1± 37.8 years), 47.6% reported brushing ≥3 times/day and 23.4% declared using the electric toothbrush. Brushing ≥3 versus &lt;3 times/day and use of electric versus manual toothbrush were associated with 19% (odds ratio [OR]: 0.81, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.70-0.94) and 28% (OR: 0.72, 95% CI 0.61-0.85) lower odds of hypertension, respectively. No significant additive interaction was observed in the association of exposures with the outcome. Regular daily brushing and electric toothbrushing are associated with a better BP profile in a real-world context. Future interdisciplinary research is warranted to test these findings.

Dietary and oral hygiene patterns as risk factors for oral health in a Brazilian city without water fluoridation system

The objective was to investigate dietary and oral hygiene patterns as risk factors for dental caries, fluorosis and tooth erosion in a subsample of individuals of a population-based study in the city of João Pessoa (without water fluoridation program), Brazil. In this cross-sectional study data were collected through clinical examinations and questionnaires addressing dietary and oral hygiene habits. The clinical examination was performed by two calibrated examiners (Kappa &gt; 0.80). The sample (n = 244) was distributed among four age groups: G1 (0-13 years), G2 (14-30 years), G3 (31-54 years) and G4 (≥ 55 years). The prevalence of dental caries was high (87.4%) whereas fluorosis and erosion was low (4.1% and 6.1%, respectively). The mean DMFT index was 1.49 ± 2.19 in G1, 8.19 ± 6.10 in G2, 18.19 ± 7.00 in G3 and 25.81 ± 6.80 in G4. Significant associations were found between the DMFT index and both diet (p = 0.05) and income (p = 0.022), suggesting an associated effect of these variables. Oral hygiene was not related to dental caries experience. Cariogenic diet was related to the high DMFT index in all age groups supporting that dietary pattern was a stronger risk factor for caries experience in contrast to oral hygiene habits that no association was found.

Impact of oral hygiene habits on oral health-related quality of life of in-school adolescents in Ibadan, Nigeria.

Recent evidence has shown that the prevalence of periodontal diseases is still high among adolescents and, thus, there is an impetus to promote good oral hygiene habits among them through schools. There is a need to provide baseline data on the oral hygiene habits of adolescents and how it impacts their oral health-related quality of life for appropriate intervention to be instituted. Moreover, oral health-related quality of life describes how oral health affects the daily activities of individuals; thus, it provides a holistic means of involving individuals in making decisions about their oral health including uptake of oral hygiene habits. To assess the impact of oral hygiene habits on adolescents' oral health-related quality of life. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,800 adolescents aged 14-18 years attending 36 Senior Secondary Schools in the metropolis of Ibadan, Nigeria. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire, which assessed students' sociodemographic characteristics, oral hygiene habits, and oral health-related quality of life with COHIP-SF19. Data obtained was analyzed with SPSS version 25 and the p-value was set at <5%. The mean age of the adolescents was 15.16 (±1.16) years. Many 1,094 (60.3%) cleaned their teeth twice or more often daily with 126 (7.0%) cleaning after meals and 1,519 (84.4%) changing their tooth cleaning agent at three months intervals or less. About 1,215 (67.5%) spent three minutes or longer in cleaning their teeth. Only a few 238 (13.2%) cleaned interdentally and 137 (7.6%) used dental floss. The OHRQoL scores of the adolescents ranged from 9-76. A total of 1,612 (93.5%) had at least an impact on their OHRQoL. Those who cleaned their teeth more frequently (twice or more) were more likely to have better OHRQoL (OR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.1-2.4, p = 0.025) and those who did not clean interdentally were more likely to have better OHRQoL (OR = 2.8, 95% CI = 1.2-6.5, p = 0.014) than others. The oral hygiene habits of the adolescents were suboptimal and those who cleaned their teeth twice or more often each day had fewer impacts on their OHRQoL, whereas those who engaged in interdental cleaning had higher impacts on their OHRQoL than others.

Impairment of salivary function in juvenile idiopathic oligoarticular arthritis is a sign of early onset disease.

Recent evidences of the presence of reduced stimulated salivary flow rate and altered saliva composition in oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (o-JIA) suggest a specific damage to the salivary glands. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate whether reduced salivary flow rate could be related to age and gender at disease onset in o-JIA. A total of 57 Caucasian patients (41 females and 16 males) aged 5 to 16 years affected by o-JIA were consecutively enrolled in the study. Information on medication intake, dietary and oral hygiene habits were gathered through a standardised questionnaire. All patients underwent oral and sialometry examination. Early onset disease would seem to be associated with salivary glands impairment. Regular dental and salivary gland function assessments may be highly recommended in o-JIA patients considering that saliva collection is a non-invasive and inexpensive procedure.

No association between dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) alleles and crack/cocaine dependence in Brazilians

Introduction: The causal mechanisms behind crack/cocaine use are still unknown, but genetic influences are suggested. Objective: To investigate the relationship between the genetic polymorphism TaqI (rs1800497) in the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) gene and susceptibility to crack/cocaine dependence in a group of addicts to crack/cocaine and a non-addicted group. Methods: The case group (n=515) was composed of crack/cocaine-dependent men and the control group (n=106) comprised men who were considered not dependent on crack/cocaine. The oral hygiene habits, decayed, missing, and filled teeth index, gingival index, and plaque index were evaluated. The reference single nucleotide polymorphism (rs1800497 C/T) of the DRD2 gene was genotyped by a real-time polymerase chain reaction technique. Student’s t-tests for independent samples or the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test were used to compare groups regarding quantitative variables. Results: The case group showed a mean time of 9.91±7.03 years of crack use, and 61.06±92.96 stones/week. The socio-demographic profile of the sample was White, single men, with basic education, blue-collar worker, smoker, and reporting alcohol use. There was a high frequency of gingival inflammation, plaque accumulation, and caries experience. For all genetic models tested, there was no significant difference in the genotypic frequency in rs1800497 of the DRD2 gene, between case and control groups (p&gt;0.05). Conclusion: The genetic variant in the DRD2 did not increase the vulnerability to develop crack/cocaine dependence. The complex genetic nature of crack/cocaine dependence and a large variation of DRD2 allele frequencies, depending on the population group sampled, could be one explanation for the no association.