Dental problems are among the main concerns of seafarers and a relevant cause of medical consultations aboard international vessels. Seafarers may neglect their oral hygiene during long voyages and are known for their excessive intake of beverages or unhealthy food which contains copious amounts of fermentable carbohydrates and sugars, which are prime risk factors of dental caries. Majority of studies done on oral health status of seafarers are dated. This paper presents a questionnaire developed by Centro Internazionale Radio Medico (CIRM), the Italian Telemedical Maritime Assistance Service (TMAS) to investigate the oral hygiene condition of seafarers and to assess their awareness and sensitivity on this pertinent health problem.

A questionnaire including 26 questions covering general information about the subject, including denture status, smoking, drinking and eating habits, general appearance of gingiva, oral muscosa and lips was developed. The research questionnaire was created to assess the oral health situation of Seafarers on board various ships around the world. The questionnaire was forwarded to different ships using the platform of Centro Internationzionale Radio Medico in Rome. Twenty-six questions on various oral hygiene indicators were part of the questionnaire. Captains of the ship were requested to summarize the results on a summary sheet provided by CIRM. CIRM started out sending questionnaire at the end of June 6 and the project concluded in October.

In the 3 months of the survey, CIRM assisted 1,198 ships. All these ships were requested to take part in the research survey. CIRM received positive response from 65 vessels. The rate of return was 5.4%. Two thousand and sixty seamen filled the questionnaire. No difficulty was reported by ship's captains in summarizing the results of the survey.

The findings of the research will be presented in an original research article after completion of data analysis. Captains of the ships who took part in the project were awarded certificates of appreciation for their effort. The results of the project will be useful in future policy initiatives regarding oral healthcare of seafarers.

Mahdi SS, Mancini M, Sibilio F, Amenta F. Research Questionnaire on Perception of Seafarers about Oral Hygiene and Oral Dietary Habits. World J Dent 2015;6(1):1-4.

To study the effect of 17% EDTA with PIPS on dentinal surfaces of pediatric, adolescent and geriatric teeth using scanning electron microscope (SEM).

The debriding ability of an Er:YAG laser system equipped with a new tapered and stripped tip of 400 micron diameter and auxiliary irrigating solutions after mechanical preparation.

For each group, 20 single rooted human mandibular premolars were selected. The groups were categorized as group 1 pediatric, group 2 adolescent and group 3 geriatric. These groups were further divided as subgroup A (control)—saline and subgroup B—EDTA and PIPS. Access opening was done for all the samples and respective irrigation protocol was followed. The samples were then sectioned and observed under SEM.

The observational study shows that the efficacy of smear layer removal was better in the pediatrics group followed by adolescent and geriatric groups.

The PIPS technique resulted in effective debriding and decontamination of the root canal system in all the three types of dentin.

Hegde V, Vangala A, Jain P, Srilatha S, Dixit V. The Effect of PIPS on Three Different Types of Dentin: A Surface Observational Study. World J Dent 2015;6(1):5-9.

Dentinal sealers (desensitizing agents) are used to protect the pulp from possible injurious effects after tooth preparation and also prevent the penetration of dentinal tubules by bacteria and their products which are currently thought to cause most of the pulpal inflammation under the crowns.

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of effect of three different desensitizing agents on retention of crowns cemented with resin-modified glass ionomer cement.

Forty freshly extracted maxillary first premolars were notched for retention and the teeth specimens were mounted in autopolymerising resin. The axial height of all the specimens was 4 mm with a 20° angle of convergence. Impressions of the prepared teeth were made, later waxed invested and casted. Thirty teeth were coated with three different desensitizing agents were used in this study: Cavity varnish (Namuvar, Deepti Dental Products), Glutaraldehyde (Gluma- Heraeus Kulzer), Resin (AdheSE, Ivoclar Vivadent). Ten teeth were not coated with desensitizing agents to act as control group. Independent T test used to compare the mean values between groups.

Tensile strength for average surface area of the groups I, II, III and IV are 0.3759, 0.2375, 0.2411, 0.2348 respectively. The t-test shows ‘p’-value is statistically not significant (p < 0.05) for groups II and III, where as in group IV ‘p’-value is statistically significant (p < 0.01).

The use of AdheSE/resin-based dentinal sealer showed increase in bond strength of the crowns luted with resin-modified glass ionomer cement when compared with control group. This study advocates the use of resin-based sealer or a glutaraldehyde-based sealer before cementation of the crowns. The cavity varnish, however, reduces the bond strength and is not acceptable.

Janapala SDR, Reddy PS, Jain AR, Pradeep R. The Effect of Three Dentinal Sealers on Retention of Crowns cemented with Resin-modified Glass Ionomer Cement: An in vitro Study. World J Dent 2015;6(1):10-15.

Development of bacterial resistance to the available antibiotics and increasing popularity of traditional medicine has led researchers to investigate the antibacterial compounds in plants. In this context, curcumin has been shown to have a range of beneficial properties, like antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties, which might be favorable for the treatment of inflammatory diseases like periodontitis.

The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial potential of curcumin against Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (ATCC 29523).

The bacterial strains of A. actinomycetemcomitans from the stock were revived and transferred to sterile brain heart infusion (BHI) broth. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined by serial broth dilution of curcumin. The last tube with clear supernatant was considered to be without any growth and taken as MIC value.

The mean MIC value of curcumin against A. actinomycetemcomitans (ATCC 29523) was reported to be 0.2 μg/ml.

Thus, it can be concluded that the pleiotropic activities of curcumin derived from its complex chemistry and its ability to influence and control the multiple signaling pathways, makes it a suitable and safer option for the treatment of periodontal diseases.

Savita AM, Dawra C, Bhat K. An in vitro Evaluation of Antibacterial Activity of Curcumin against Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans. World J Dent 2015;6(1):16-19.

Tyagi A, Prasad BSK, Shashikala K. Evaluation of Effectiveness of Cleaning of Root Canals using Protaper and K3 Rotary Systems: A Sem Study. World J Dent 2015;6(1):20-25.

To compare acrylic color and India ink for their use as a surgical margin. Since, acrylic paints are available in multiple colors, they can be used to mark different surgical margins with different specific colors.

The study was carried out on 30 surgically excised and formalin fixed oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) specimens. Four surgical margins of each 15 specimens were marked with India ink and the remaining were marked with acrylic colors. The grossed specimens were then processed using routine histopathology technique. The 4 mm sections of tissue block were cut using microtome and sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin stain. Various macroscopic and microscopic parameters were used to study the suitability of acrylic color as surgical ink.

Three different technicians found equal ease of application for acrylic color and India ink. The drying time for acrylic color (1.30 ± 0.009 minutes) was significantly less than India ink (2.30 ± 0.05 minutes). Out of total 60 blocks made for acrylic colors, 52 (86.66%) displayed clear visibility on paraffin blocks (93.33%). In contrast, out of 60 blocks made for India ink, only 34 showed faint visibility on paraffin blocks (56.66%). All acrylic colors were visible very clearly and uninterruptedly under the microscope, while three (5%) surgical margins stained with India ink were interrupted. With the acrylic colors, no contamination or staining of other tissues, processing fluids and solutions were reported. However, with India ink, three (5%) samples reported contamination in alcohol and xylene. There was no interference with the microscopic interpretation of nuclear and cellular details for both acrylic color and India ink whatsoever.

Acrylic colors are more suitable as surgical ink over India ink because of its availability in different colors, ease of application, faster drying time, and no contamination with processing fluids, easy availability and excellent visibility on paraffin blocks and under microscope. Moreover, if needed, painting with multiple colors could also help in reassessment of surgical margins of the gross specimen in the future.

Sarode SC, Sarode GS, Patil S, Mahajan P, Anand R, Patil A. Comparative Study of Acrylic Color and India Ink for Their Use as a Surgical Margin Inks in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma. World J Dent 2015;6(1):26-30.

Forces delivered by elastomeric chains are not constant and degrade overtime. The degree of degradation could result in forces that fall below the threshold value, precluding any therapeutic effect. Correct evaluation of degradation of force of these materials under various environmental conditions is the need of hour.

To analyze and compare the effects of commonly consumed liquids, such as Cola, tea and mouthwash, on the force degradation of orthodontic elastomeric chains was conducted.

An in vitro study was done to assess factors which affect the decay properties of the three elastomeric modules (Ormco Power Chain, 3M Unitek Alastik Chain and American Orthodontics) in the following food stimulants: black tea, milk, aerated drink, mouthwash and artificial saliva. Two different module lengths (long and short) of each product were used for the initial load-comparison study and force decay was evaluated over 21 days at constant extension and at decreasing extension. Means of percentage change in tensile strength were calculated and analyzed using one way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey's correction for multiple group comparisons. p < 0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.

The evaluated force degradation in percentage in tensile strength on 21 days post-treatment in tea was significantly higher in product A compared to products B and C with product type short. The evaluated force degradation in percentage in tensile strength on 21 days post-treatment in Cola was significantly higher in products A and C as compared to product B with product type short. The force degradation of product B was significantly less compared to the products A and C initially. However, it degrades at the end of the 21 days and is equivalent with other products.

Irrespective of the solvents used, the force degradation varies for different products.

Nachan RA, Kalia A, Al-Shahrani I. Force Degradation of Orthodontic Elastomeric Chain due to Commonly Consumed Liquids: An in vitro Study. World J Dent 2015;6(1):31-38.

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) are increasingly becoming a nuisance for dental professionals. Nearly, 2 million workers across the world suffer from MSDs each year, with dentists facing an increased risk of developing these ailments.

This study is an attempt to assess the risk of MSDs among dental professionals, and eventually to spread awareness regarding the importance of good posture and proper ergonomics.

To determine the presence of MSDs among Indian dentists.

A research survey was conducted among dental professionals practicing in and around Maharashtra state, India. The questionnaire for the study included a series of questions, when coupled with the rapid entire body assessment (REBA) scale, allows one to assess his/her posture during work and eventually determines the need to improve the same. Two hundred dentists completed the questionnaire given.

The study revealed a high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain among dental professionals.

A relation was observed between the severity of the pain experienced by the dentists and their REBA score indicating that dentists with a higher REBA score need to adapt their working postures and employ proper ergonomics.

Bhagwat S, Hegde S, Mandke L. Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders among Indian Dentists: A Pilot Survey with Assessment by Rapid Entire Body Assessment. World J Dent 2015;6(1):39-44.

Sharma N, Shrivastav S, Kamble RH, Sharma P. The Use of Magnets in Orthodontics. World J Dent 2015;6(1):45-48.

Grover HS, Singh Y, Bhardwaj A. Role of Periodontist in Pediatric Dental Patients. World J Dent 2015;6(1):49-54.

Patel KNA, Dandgi S, Singh R. Lip Reconstruction using Karapandzic Flap. World J Dent 2015; 6(1):55-57.

Bharadwaj B, Bansal A, Vashishth A, Sharma S. Ectodermal Dysplasia in a 6 Years Old: A Clinical Challenge. World J Dent 2015;6(1):58-60.