Journal of Baghdad College of Dentistry

Background: Vitamin D deficiency is a problem for pregnant women, and it
affects general and oral health. This problem increases as vitamin D requirements increase
during pregnancy. This study was conducted among pregnant women in urban and rural
areas in order to assess the relation between salivary vitamin D3 and dental caries. Materials
and methods: In this comparative cross-sectional study, all women participating were attending the primary Health Care Centers in Baghdad city in AL-Karkh sector, they were with
age ranged from (15-44) years old. The total number 90 pregnant women in the second trimester only which include: The first group consists of (45) pregnant women attendance
seeking dental treatment in urban areas, The second group consists of (45) pregnant women
attendance seeking dental treatment in rural areas. Collection of the unstimulated saliva was
done according to Tenovuo (1996). After that the clinical examination of Dental caries
DMFT/S was performed according to the world health organization in (2013). Results: The
findings of this study revealed that the percentage of pregnant women in the age range of 15–
29 years was higher in the rural areas than in the urban areas. While those in the age range of
30–44 years were higher in the urban areas. Regarding the age, the percentage of dental caries
experience was increased with age. Regarding the area, the percentage of dental caries was
higher in the urban area than in the rural area. The highest mean value of DMFT was found
in the urban area, with no significant differences. While the highest mean value of DMFS was
found in the rural areas with no statistically significant difference, except the FS, where was
statistically significant and higher in the urban areas. The mean value of salivary vitamin D3
was found to be higher in rural areas than in urban areas, although statistically
non-significant. The correlation between dental caries experience (DMFT/S) and salivary
vitamin D3 level was statistically non-significant among urban and rural pregnant women,
except in the urban areas where the DMFS was found to be significant with salivary vitamin
D3. Conclusions: According to the results of this study, there was a non-significant negative
correlation between dental caries and salivary vitamin D3 among pregnant women in urban
and rural areas. Except, the correlation between dental caries experience by surfaces and
salivary vitamin D3 was negative and significant among urban pregnant women.

Background: Monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) is a chemokine expressed by inflammatory and endothelial cells. It has a crucial role in initiating, regulating, and mobilizing monocytes to active sites of periodontal inflammation. Its expression is also elevated in response to pro-inflammatory stimuli and tissue injury, both of which are linked to atherosclerotic lesions. Aim of the study: To determine the serum level of MCP-1 in patients with periodontitis and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease in comparison to healthy control and evaluate the biomarker's correlations with periodontal parameters. methods: This study enrolled 88 subjects, both males and females, ranging in age from 36-66 years old, and divided into four groups: 1ST group with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) without periodontal disease (25 patients), 2nd group with periodontitis and systemically healthy, (25 patients),3rdgroup having both ASCVD and periodontitis (25 patients), and the 4th is the control group without any systemic disease and with good oral hygiene (13 subjects). The clinical periodontal parameters plaque index (PL I), Bleeding on probing (BOP), Probing Pocket depth (PPD) and clinical attachment level (CAL) were used to evaluate periodontal health status. Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease patients were chosen after clinical examination by specialists and diagnoses confirmed with catheterization. Following clinical assessment, 5ml of venous blood was drawn from each participant MCP-1 levels in the blood were then measured using enzyme-linked-immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results: According to the findings of this study, the mean values of PLI and BOP were higher in periodontitis group and athero+periodontitis group than in athero group and control group, PPD and CAL mean values were greater in athero+periodontitis group than in periodontitis group. The serum level of MCP-1 was higher in athero+periodontitis group than in athero, periodontitis and control groups. Regarding the correlations between MCP-1 and clinical periodontal parameters. In periodontitis group there was a positive correlation with PPD and CAL and there was a positive correlation with CAL in athero+periodontitis. Conclusion: This study revealed that periodontitis with higher MCP-1 level may be linked to an increased risk of atherosclerosis.

Background: The Streptococcus genus are the predominant bacteria in the mouth and the Streptococcus sanguinis is one of them which performing a primary function for expansion of dental biofilm. Gingival and periodontal disorders are caused by dental biofilm, today, there is a necessity to discover naturally presenting antibacterial compounds from herbs with less side effects as a substitutive to the commonly handled chlorohexidine. Thus, the purpose of this study was to assess the antibacterial activity of thymus vulgaris oil on Streptococcus sanguinis bacteria In vitro. Materials and Methods: Human supragingival plaque samples were taken from 10 subjects, then morphological and microscopical exami-nation, biochemical tests, Optochin test, hemolytic ability test and conventional polymerase chain reaction test was applied to assure coincidence of Streptococcus sanguinis. The sensitiv-ity of bacteria to Thymus vulgaris oil, the minimum concentration that inhibit the growth and killed the test bacteria were identified a partly as comparable to 0.2% chlorhexidine as a pos-itive control and10 % dimethyl sulphoxide as a negative control. Results: Thymus vulgaris oil presented a significant antibacterial property on Streptococcus sanguinis with several grades of inhibition zones. When compared to Chlorohexidine, Thymus vulgaris oil had stronger an-tibacterial properties. The minimum concentration that inhibited the growth and killed Streptococcus sanguinis was (0.09%). Conclusion: Thymus vulgaris oil displayed higher anti-bacterial action with each concentration on Streptococcus sanguinis as compared to Chloro-hexidine, therefore; it can be used as a natural substitutive oral health care product to Chlo-rohexidine.

Background: Elastomeric chains are used to generate force in many orthodontic procedures, but this force decays over time, which could affect tooth movement. This study aimed to study the force degradation of elastomeric chains. Data and Sources: An electronic search on Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE, LILACS, and PubMed was made, only articles written in English were included, up to January 2022.Study selection: Fifty original articles, systematic reviews, and RCTs were selected. Conclusion: Tooth movement, salivary enzymes, alcohol-containing mouthwash, whitening mouthwash, and alkaline and strong acidic (pH <5.4) solutions all have a significant impact on elastomeric chain force degradation. The force level of elastomeric chains degrades rapidly over time; however, the force degradation rate is slower in thermoset chains than in thermoplastic ones. An efficient tooth movement could be achieved by using a thermoset chain type with monthly replacement. Ethylene oxide and gamma sterilization methods are preferred to avoid the risk of cytotoxicity.

Background: Chronic hyperplastic candidiasis is the least common type of oral candidiasis. The diagnosis, long-term treatment, and prognosis of this potentially malignant oral condition are still currently unclear. Objective: the aim of this study is to analyze the demographic features and clinical characteristics of oral chronic hyperplastic candidiasis. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was performed on blocks and case sheets of patients who were diagnosed with chronic hyperplastic candidiasis in the archives of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology at the College of Dentistry/University of Baghdad. Demographic and clinical characteristics were analyzed. Results: twenty-one cases with chronic hyperplastic candidiasis were collected and reviewed. Buccal mucosa was the most affected sites. Regarding the clinical features, lesions color frequently presented as white plaque. Regarding clinical diagnosis, leukoplakia was noted the highest one among other previous diagnosis. Conclusions: Older adults are the mostly affected age group by chronic hyperplastic candidiasis with slight male predilection. White plaque is the most presented clinical feature with buccal mucosa being the most affected oral site.

Background: To investigate the effect of different types of storage media on enamel surface microstructure of avulsed teeth by using atomic force microscope.Materials and methods : Twelve teeth blocks from freshly extracted premolars for orthodontic treatment were selected . The study samples were divided into three groups according to type of storage media :A-egg white , B- probiotic yogurt , and C-bovine milk . All the samples were examined for changes in surface roughness and surface granularity distribution using atomic force microscope, at two periods: baseline, and after 8 hours of immersing in the three types of storage media. Results: Milk group had showed a significant increase in the mean of the roughness values at the test period, while the egg white and the probiotic yogurt groups showed decrease in the surface roughness at the test period. No significant changes was found in the grain size of enamel surface of the avulsed tooth in any types of three storage media at eight hours interval. The use of egg white and probiotic yogurt to store the samples may be beneficial in that they contain various ions and proteins that fill up enamel valleys, while the longer periods of milk exposure encourage the bacteria to continue fermenting lactose, resulting in continual acid generation and increased demineralization. Conclusion : Milk group demonstrated the highest roughness values, while the egg white group demonstrated the lowest roughness values of the teeth. No significant changes in the grain size of enamel surface of the tested teeth in any types of three storage media at eight hours interval .

Manual probing and periodontal charting are the gold standard for perio-dontal diagnosis that have been used in practice over a century. These methods are afforda-ble and reliable but they are associated with some drawbacks that cannot be avoided. Among these issues is their reliance on operator’s skills, time-consuming and tedious proce-dure, lack sensitivity especially in cases of early bone loss, and causing discomfort to the patient. Availability of a wide range of biomarkers in the oral biofluids, dental biofilm, and tissues that potentially reflect the periodontal health and disease accurately encouraged their use as predictive/diagnostic/monitoring tools. Analysing biomarkers during care-giving to the patient using chairside kits is known as Point of Care (POC) testing. Introduction of POC in periodontal practice could provide more flexibility and add further dimensions to the process of diagnosis and tailoring more precise treatment plan for the patients. This review aimed to highlight available POC testing used for periodontal diagnosis and disease predic-tion/monitoring.

Background:Continuous chelation can be defined as the concept of using a single mix of a weak chelator with NaOCL throughout the entire root canal preparation pro-cedure without causing a reduction in the antimicrobial and proteolytic activity of NaOCL. Etidronic acid, also known as "1-Hydroxyethylidene-1, 1-Bisphosphonate" HEBP, or HEDP, is a soft biocompatible chelator utilized in direct combination with sodium hypochlorite to form an all-in-one deproteinizing, disinfecting, and chelating solution. It's the only chelator available as a certified commercial product, "Dual Rinse HEDP," approved for endodontic usage. This review aims to analyze and bring up-to-date data about the continuous chelation protocol using a combination of HEDP with sodium hypochlorite in endodontic irrigation. Data: only papers that were published electronically were searched within the review. Sources: “Google Scholar”,” PubMed” websites were used for searching data by using the following keywords: : Bisphosphonates, Continuous chelation, Dual rinse HEDP, Etidro-nate, HEBP. The most relevant papers related to the topic were chosen, specifically the orig-inal articles and clinical studies, including only English-language articles from 2005 to Sep-tember 2022. Conclusion:Combining a weak chelator with NaOCL solution, a single irriga-tion solution mixture with soft tissue dissolving ability and antibacterial properties with chelating capability can be created, which can be considered a good alternative to the con-ventional irrigation protocol (sequential irrigation) with NaOCL followed by using a strong chelator such as EDTA. The obvious benefit is that only one solution is required for root canal cleansing and decontamination, also decreasing the time for irrigation and providing better conditioning of root canal walls for root-filling materials.