Michiko Makino

Insomnia and depression impair oral health-related quality of life in the old-old.

A previous study reported that the oral health‐related quality of life (OHRQoL) of Japanese individuals dropped sharply as they reached old‐old age. The aim of present study was to explore the risk factors of OHRQoL by investigating the association of OHRQoL with oral indices, lifestyle and psychological distress.

Measurement of Reduced Gingival Melanosis after Smoking Cessation: A Novel Analysis of Gingival Pigmentation Using Clinical Oral Photographs

Background: Due to moisture and the anatomical complexity of the oral mucosa, it is difficult to measure the extent of gingival melanosis in an optical manner. Therefore, we developed a new quantitative method using clinical oral photographs and compared the extent of gingival melanosis before and after smoking cessation. Methods: A new analysis method, which we named the gingival melanosis record (GMR), is a quantitative analysis method using clinical oral photographs. We obtained 659 clinical photographs from 263 patients from 16 general dental offices in Japan. Standardized measuring sites were automatically spotted on the screen, and the presence of gingival melanosis was determined at the measuring sites. We assessed the validity of the GMR with the previously reported Hedin’s classification using Spearman’s rank correlation and intraclass correlation coefficients. Results: The GMR showed a significant association with Hedin’s classification (p < 0.01, correlation coefficient = 0.94). The GMR also showed excellent reproducibility of the substantial repeated agreement intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) (1,1) and ICC (2,1), p > 0.61). The longitudinal loss of gingival melanosis was confirmed by a change in the GMR among patients who successfully achieved smoking cessation for a mean of 4.5 years. Conclusion: The GMR is an effective method to assess gingival melanosis. The loss of gingival melanosis after smoking cessation can be objectively confirmed with the use of the GMR.

Characterization of the bone matrix and its contribution to tooth loss in human cadaveric mandibles.

Abstract Objective. It is uncertain as to what extent the major bone matrix constituents, mineral and collagen, show inter-individual variation and dependence on age and sex in jawbones. The purpose of this study was to clarify this uncertainty using cadaveric mandibles and investigate the association of bone matrix with the number of existing teeth. Materials and methods. Cortical bone samples (1 × 1 cm) collected from the mental of 48 cadaveric mandibles (27 men and 21 women; age range = 56–93 years and 63–103 years, respectively) were used to quantify three bone matrix indices: mineral content, collagen content and extent of lysine hydroxylation of collagen. Associations with age and comparisons by sex were evaluated based on bone matrix indices and the numbers of existing teeth. The numbers of existing teeth were compared between the groups showing low and high bone matrix index values. Results. A great amount of inter-individual variation was seen in all bone matrix indices. No bone matrix indices were associated with age, while the number of existing teeth was negatively associated with age. The bone matrix indices and number of existing teeth did not differ by sex. The number of existing teeth was nearly twice as high in the group showing high collagen content as in the low collagen group; however, an analysis of covariance showed a significant inter-group difference not from bone matrix indices, but rather from age. Interestingly, in comparison to femoral collagen, mandibular collagen showed lower lysine hydroxylation, which can represent an aspect of bone quality. Conclusions. Mandibular bone matrix shows great inter-individual variation and is independent of age and sex, but did not show as strong a relationship with tooth loss as age. Even so, mandibular collagen may represent a unique characteristic of bone matrix and deserves to be further investigated.

Effect of an Educational Program concerning Oral Assessment and Healthcare on Nurses’ Performance of Oral Health Checkups in a Hospital.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a group-based educational program on the awareness, attitudes, and confidence of nurses in the performance of oral health checkups.Materials and methods: The subjects (n=184) were nurses who worked in a hospital and an affiliated long-term care facility in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The subjects were divided to an intervention group and a control group. The intervention group participated in the program, which was a combination of a lecture and training program on oral assessment and oral healthcare. To investigate the effect of the program on their awareness, attitudes, confidence, and performances of oral health checkups, questionnaire surveys were conducted before and one month after the intervention.Results: Sixty-two nurses participated in the program. Fifty-five (88.7%) in the intervention group and 68 (84.0%) in the control group who completed both surveys were employed for the analysis. In the intervention group, there were significant differences between the baseline and follow-up in their awareness of detecting oral cancer and confidence in examining oral cleanliness (p<0.05). However, there were no positive changes in their attitudes toward and performance of oral health checkups in either group.Conclusion: These results suggest in addition to the continuous participation of nurses in the program, the introduction of oral assessment tools into their oral healthcare protocols might be needed to promote the performance of oral health checkups in their facilities. We believe that these findings will help promote the performance of oral health checkups in hospitals and long-term care facilities.

Exceptional Association Rule Set Mining from Oral Health Assessment Database

This paper proposes an extended method to discover exceptional association rule sets from incomplete databases. The proposed method calculates an odds ratio directly for the rule evaluation. The exceptional rule set is defined as each itemset X, Y has a weak or no statistical relation to class C, respectively; however, the join of X and Y has a strong relation to C. The exceptional rule set has potential to interpret long rules for the join of X and Y. The proposed method is applied to rule mining for oral health assessment databases. We obtained interesting exceptional rule sets and the results showed effectiveness of the method in the medical and health care fields.

DNA amplification using phi29 DNA polymerase validates gene polymorphism analysis from buccal mucosa samples

Venous blood is currently the most common source of DNA for gene polymorphism screening; however, blood sampling is invasive and difficult to perform in general dental treatment. Buccal mucosa samples provide an alternative source of DNA, but it is frequently difficult to effectively amplify the DNA owing to the small amounts of sample material obtained. This study was performed to establish a method for performing total genomic DNA amplification from buccal mucosa samples using phi29 DNA polymerase. Total genomic DNA was isolated from buccal mucosa samples obtained from healthy subjects and was amplified using phi29 DNA polymerase. To determine the suitability of the extracted DNA for genotyping, polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses were performed for the IL-1 gene polymorphism. Genotyping of the IL-1 polymorphism was successful using the amplified DNA from a buccal mucosa, but genotyping was unsuccessful using the unamplified control because of low DNA purity. The method of extracting DNA from a buccal mucosa is painless, simple, minimally invasive, and rapid. Genomic DNA from a buccal mucosa can be amplified by phi29 DNA polymerase in sufficient quantity and quality to conduct gene polymorphism analyses.

Direct Composite Buildup can be a Treatment Option to Improve Tooth Shape Irregularity

Article Title and Bibliographic Information Recontouring teeth and closing diastemas with direct composite buildups: a clinical evaluation of survival and quality parameters. Wolff D, Kraus T, Schach C, Pritsch M, Mente J, Staehle HJ, Ding P. J Dent 2010;38(12):1001-9. Reviewers Michiko Makino, DDS, PhD, Toru Naito, DDS, PhD Purpose/Question To ascertain the long-term clinical success of direct composite resin buildup to restore the irregularity of tooth shape. Source of Funding Information not available Type of Study/Design Cohort study Level of Evidence Level 2: Limited-quality, patient-oriented evidence Strength of Recommendation Grade Not applicable

Preoperative assessment of treatment planning on minimization of micro-movement during healing period of immediate-loaded implants using X-ray CT data-based simulation.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the possibility of practical preoperative design and its evaluation and to assess the effects of connected fixation on minimization of micro movement during healing period of immediately loaded implants.Mechanical simulation by loading an occlusal force (load), assumed to be that loaded under clinical conditions, was performed in a computed tomography (CT) data-based immediate-loaded implant placement simulation. Stresses on and displacements of the implants and surrounding bone tissue were analyzed mechanically using three-dimensional finite element analysis.An X-ray CT of the head was carried out, and implant placement simulation andthree-dimensional finite element analysis models were constructed from the CT data. Forces were loaded on four individual implants placed in this model or all connected implants, and a mechanical analysis was performed. A 100 N vertical force was loaded on each implant as individual loading for the control group, and a 400 N vertical force was loaded on the connected implants as connected loading for the test group. The displacement and stress distributions were assessed using the three-dimensional finite element analysis. In the test group, established on the assumption of connected fixation for provisional restoration facilitating immediate loading, the maximum stress and displacement of peri-implant bone were smaller than those in the control group undergoing individual loading.The implant displacement level was suggested to serve as a numerical prognostic index of osseointegration of immediate-loaded implants. This method was shown to be immediately applicable to implant placement simulations using CT data currently generated in clinical practice, with no modification. Such a mechanical assessment using the finite element analysis model can be performed noninvasively.