The evolving science of the oral microbiome has revealed a sophisticated regulatory system — the sialo-microbial-dental complex—encompassing the dynamic interplay among saliva, resident microbiota, and tooth mineral structures. This framework challenges the reductionist, pathogen-centric paradigms that have dominated oral care since the late nineteenth century, and positions microbial homeostasis as the central mechanism underlying enamel remineralization, periodontal resilience, and systemic immune modulation. This review traces the intellectual lineage from germ theory through probiotic theory to contemporary ecological plaque theory, examines the evidence base for fluoride, nano-hydroxyapatite, xylitol, and essential oils, and articulates the rationale for a prebiotic approach to oral care that selectively augments the sialo-microbial-dental complex rather than suppressing it. The clinical imperative emerging from this literature is clear: sustainable oral health depends on ecological stewardship of the oral environment, not pharmacological warfare against its resident communities.
Light-based therapies are increasingly used in dentistry as adjunctive and minimally invasive tools. They support diagnosis, microbial reduction, tissue modulation, pain control and healing. This mini review summarizes their applications in cariology, endodontics and periodontology. The main modalities include dental lasers, antimicrobial photodynamic therapy, photoactivated disinfection and photobiomodulation. In cariology, light-based therapies assist in caries detection, selective caries removal, bacterial reduction, enamel and dentin modification, remineralisation support and dentin hypersensitivity management. However, most data are derived from in vitro or short-term clinical studies, and their long-term benefits over conventional preventive and restorative care remain unclear. In endodontics, laser-assisted irrigation and antimicrobial photodynamic therapy may improve root canal disinfection and biofilm disruption and may be helpful in managing persistent infections. However, differences in wavelengths, power settings, photosensitizers and clinical protocols limit standardisation. In periodontology, light-based therapies have been studied as adjuncts to scaling and root planing, peri-implant disease treatment, postoperative pain control and soft-tissue healing. Current evidence suggests short-term reductions in inflammation and microbial load, but clinical outcomes remain variable. Important limitations include unclear indications, variable dosimetry, thermal safety concerns, high cost and limited long-term clinical evidence. Standardised protocols and high-quality randomised clinical trials are needed. Future progress will depend on precise dosimetry, device standardisation, and improved understanding of light–tissue–microbe interactions. Overall, light-based therapies show promising potential in dentistry, with existing literature supporting their various applications and effects; however, substantial heterogeneity in study designs and treatment parameters precludes standardised recommendations.
IntroductionGenerative AI tools (GAI) are widely used to speed literature reviews, yet their fidelity and reliability for literature synthesis remain unclear. This study had two Objectives: 1) summarize the evidence on associations between social determinants of health (SDOH) and periodontal disease (PD) in U.S. adults. 2) comparatively evaluate how accurately GAI tools summarize evidence compared to a PRISMA-guided human review.MethodsFor the comparative analysis between a PRISMA-guided human systematic review and GAI tools, we selected the base models of ChatGPT-5.5, Gemini-3.5, and Perplexity. We conducted a search of five databases between January 2012 and December 2024, examining associations between SDOH and PD. A standardized prompt was used across all GAI tools. GAI output performance was evaluated using Checklist Coverage, Summary Fidelity, and Unsupported Content Score. Checklist Coverage assessed whether required checklist elements were included. Summary Fidelity Score assessed how well the outputs reflected the original content. Unsupported Content Score assessed whether the outputs introduced information not supported by the original study.ResultsSeven studies met the inclusion criteria. ChatGPT-5.5 and Gemini-3.5 showed high checklist completeness (98%, 96%) with moderate content fidelity scores (71%, 70%). Perplexity showed checklist coverage (40%) and fidelity (24%). Unsupported content (ChatGPT-5.5 14%, Gemini-3.5 12%; Perplexity not evaluated due to low checklist coverage and summary fidelity) was mainly observed in the areas of limitations and future directions.Discussion/conclusionsGAI tools could help organize and generate quick, preliminary outputs, although they may not achieve the same level of rigor, consistency, and quality as a human-generated synthesis.
BackgroundShort-term salivary metabolomic changes following fluoride varnish application remain poorly characterized. This study examined longitudinal molecular-feature profiles in preschool children with contrasting caries experience.MethodsTwenty children with high caries experience (dmft ≥ 8) and 20 with no caries (dmft = 0) provided saliva at baseline and at 1 and 14 days after varnish application. Samples were analyzed using LC–MS/MS-based untargeted metabolomics. Longitudinal changes were assessed using mixed-effects models and paired contrasts with Benjamini–Hochberg correction. Upstream gap filling was enabled; no additional imputation was applied to the complete post-QC matrix. Supervised models were evaluated using seven-fold cross-validation and 200 label-permutation tests to assess model stability and potential overfitting; nested cross-validation and bootstrap validation were used to examine ROC optimism.ResultsOf 3,893 initially detected molecular features, 3,196 passed quality-control filtering, including 420 with Level 1/2 annotations. Mixed-effects analysis identified 602 features with an FDR-supported overall time effect, whereas no feature showed an FDR-supported overall caries-group effect or group-by-time interaction. Using the same robustness criterion in both groups, 32 features in the high-caries group and 32 in the no-caries group changed consistently from baseline at both follow-up assessments. Twenty-three persistent feature records were shared by both groups; 11 carried Level 1/2 annotations, of which ten decreased and 18-HETE increased. Eight of these 11 records were excluded from biomarker and mechanistic interpretation; only crotonic acid, DL-stachydrine and 18-HETE were unflagged. The shared day-14 set produced a sparse, nominal sphingolipid-metabolism signal supported by two compounds with opposite directions (p = 0.00237; q = 0.332). Acetophenone had an apparent AUC of 0.815; baseline classification with feature reselection yielded mean AUCs of 0.558 in nested cross-validation and 0.511 in out-of-bag bootstrap validation.ConclusionShared short-term salivary molecular-feature changes followed fluoride varnish application. Only three persistent shared Level 1/2 records—crotonic acid, DL-stachydrine and 18-HETE—remain unflagged provisional targets for analytical confirmation. Their identities and quantitative reliability require verification, including clarification of the DL-stachydrine/proline betaine relationship. The sparse sphingolipid-related signal remains hypothesis-generating. Without an untreated comparator, these results describe post-application temporal associations rather than a fluoride-specific mechanism.
BackgroundBreastfeeding is a complex process involving coordinated activation of the orofacial musculature and dynamic mother–infant interactions, although little is known about longitudinal electromyographic (EMG) activity during early breastfeeding.AimWe aimed to characterize EMG patterns of orofacial muscle activity during breastfeeding in infants with normal lingual frenulum anatomy and function and explore their relationship with maternal breastfeeding self-efficacy, breastfeeding-related pain and difficulties, and infant gastrointestinal discomfort.MethodsThirteen mother-infant dyads were followed from birth to 3 months. Lingual frenulum anatomy and function were assessed using the Martinelli protocol. Surface EMG of bilateral masseter and suprahyoid muscles was recorded during breastfeeding at days 5–7, 1 month, and 3 months. Maternal self-efficacy and infant colic-related outcomes were assessed using Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale–Short Form and Infant Colic Questionnaire tolls, respectively. Longitudinal changes and associations were analyzed using repeated-measures and correlation analyses.ResultsBilateral masseter activity progressively increased during follow-up, while suprahyoid activity increased at 1 month and decreased at 3 months postpartum, without significant longitudinal differences. Mothers presented high breastfeeding self-efficacy scores (62.1 ± 6.8). Infant and parental ColiQ scores significantly improved between 1 and 3 months postpartum (p < 0.05). No significant correlations were identified between EMG activity, breastfeeding self-efficacy, and ColiQ scores.ConclusionsInfants with normal lingual frenulum anatomy and function showed relative stability of orofacial muscle activity during early breastfeeding. Maternal self-efficacy was high, infant and parental well-being improved over time, and neither BSES-SF nor ColiQ scores were significantly associated with EMG activity.
