Post-maxillectomy patients often face significant challenges related to chewing, speech, facial symmetry, and overall quality of life due to the loss of facial structures. Therefore, it is of interest to evaluate the functional and esthetic outcomes of zygomatic implant-supported prostheses in 30 post-maxillectomy patients. Significant improvements were observed in chewing efficiency, speech intelligibility, and facial symmetry, with a high implant survival rate of 96.7%. The prosthetic rehabilitation also enhanced patient satisfaction, as evidenced by improved quality of life (QoL) scores. Thus, the gap in understanding the functional and esthetic outcomes of zygomatic implant-supported prostheses in post-maxillectomy patients, providing evidence of their effectiveness in improving chewing, speech, and facial symmetry while demonstrating high implant survival and patient satisfaction.
Biologic width (BW) is the distance between the junctional epithelium and the supracrestal connective tissue above the alveolar crest, typically measuring approximately 2.04 mm. It is crucial for the health of periodontal, gingival, and alveolar bone tissues this creates a seal around the tooth’s neck to prevent periodontal disease and gingival inflammation. Violation of BW can create a myriad of complications, like gingival inflammation, attachment loss, and bone loss. The article further discusses restorative and implant margin placement strategies, as well as surgical interventions such as crown lengthening, which help preserve BW. New digital tools provide a more precise assessment of BW in dentistry.
Abstract Objectives: This in vitro study evaluated and compared the efficacy of various irrigant activation techniques for removing calcium hydroxide (CH) and N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP)-based CH (Cleanical) from artificially created grooves. Materials and Methods: Fifty-six extracted human permanent mandibular premolars were selected according to specific inclusion and exclusion criteria. Following decoronation, canals were prepared using rotary files. Samples were longitudinally split, and standardized coronal and apical artificial grooves were created in the canal walls using Cavitron tips. Root halves were reattached and fixed in Eppendorf tubes. Samples were randomly assigned to groups and subgroups ( n = 7) based on the irrigant activation technique and intracanal medicament (ICM) type. Artificial grooves were filled with either CH powder mixed with distilled water or Cleanical. Root halves were reattached and subjected to irrigant activation using needle irrigation (NI), EndoActivator, passive ultrasonic irrigation (PUI), or XP-Endo Finisher (XPF). The efficacy of ICM removal was evaluated under a stereomicroscope using van der Sluis et al. scoring criteria. Data were analyzed statistically using the Mann–Whitney U test, Kruskal–Wallis test, and Bonferroni correction, with significance set at a 95% confidence interval. Results: Cleanical was removed more efficiently than CH from both coronal and apical artificially created grooves. Statistically significant differences were observed between PUI and NI, as well as between XPF and NI. However, none of the techniques achieved complete removal of ICM. Conclusions: NMP-based CH demonstrated increased solubility with irrigants and enhanced penetration into dentinal tubules. PUI and XPF were more effective than other techniques in removing ICM from artificially created grooves.
Shape-memory NiTi archwires may improve early orthodontic treatment by reducing plaque retention and enhancing patient comfort. Thus the goal was to assess the effect of shape-memory archwires on plaque retention and comfort in orthodontic patients with active inflammation in a total of 100 patients which were equally divided into 2 groups i.e. group 1 NITI archwire and stainless steel archwire. Plaque index, gingival index, and patient comfort were assessed at Baseline, 1 week, 4 weeks, and 8 weeks. We have found that, both the groups showed improvement over time, but the test group demonstrated a greater reduction in plaque index and gingival index compared with the control group. Patient comfort was also better in the shape-memory archwire group at all follow-up points. The intergroup differences were statistically significant, indicating superior clinical performance of shape-memory archwires. Thus, we have come to conclude that, shapememory NiTi archwires were more effective than stainless steel archwires in reducing plaque retention, improving gingival health, and enhancing patient comfort.
INTRODUCTION:The present study aimed to compare the use of conventional freehand access cavity preparation with the static-guided (SG) endodontic technique in terms of its ability to locate and negotiate root canals, iatrogenic errors (perforations), and the amount of tooth structure loss while treating single-rooted traumatized teeth with pulp canal calcifications. METHODS:This randomized clinical trial was registered in the Clinical Trial Registry of India (https://ctri.nic.in, CTRI/2024/01/061580). A total of 30 patients with traumatized teeth exhibiting calcified root canals were included in the study. The patients were randomly divided into 2 groups as follows: SG endodontic technique and conventional freehand technique. Following the completion of the treatments, the cases were evaluated as either successful (canal located) or failed (perforation or canal not located). In addition, the amount of removed tissue was calculated on the postoperative radiographs using ImageJ software (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD). Chi-square and Mann-Whitney U tests were performed to analyze the data (P = .05). RESULTS:In the SG endodontic group, the root canals were located in all teeth, while in the conventional freehand approach, 13% of cases reported failure to locate the root canals. The tooth sturucture loss was significantly lower in the SG approach compared to the conventional freehand approach (P < .05). CONCLUSION:The conventional freehand technique caused three times more tooth structure loss compared to the SG endodontic approach. There were no failed cases in the SG endodontic technique group, and all root canals were successfully located.
