Vijay Prakash Mathur

Impact factor and other standardized measures of journal citation: A perspective

The impact factor of journals has been widely used as glory quotients. Despite its limitations, this citation metric is widely used to reflect scientific merit and standing in ones field. Apart from the impact factor, other bibliometric indicators are also available but are not as popular among decision makers. These indicators are the immediacy index and cited half-life. The impact factor itself is affected by a wide range of sociological and statistical factors. This paper discusses the limitations of the impact factor with suggestions of how it can be used and how it should not be used. It also discusses how other bibliometric indicators can be used to assess the quality of publications.

Prevalence of dental caries among adults and elderly in an urban resettlement colony of New Delhi

BACKGROUND Dental caries remains the most important dental health problem in developing countries. In India the prevalence of dental caries is reported to be about 50-60%. Most of the Indian studies have been carried out in school children and very few in adults. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of dental caries in the adult population (aged 35-44 years) and in the elderly (60 years and above) in an urban resettlement colony in New Delhi. METHODOLOGY A community-based cross-sectional study was carried out in Dakshinpuri, New Delhi, from January to February 2007. A local adaptation of the WHO questionnaire was used. Oral examination was done and dentition status was recorded by trained investigators and according to the standard procedures. RESULTS A total of 452 participants were enrolled in the study. The prevalence of dental caries in the 35-44 years age-group was 82.4% and it was 91.9% in those > or =60 years. The DMF index was 5.7 +/- 4.7 in the 35-44 years age-group and 13.8 +/- 9.6 in the > or =60 years age-group. Of the participants, 27.9% were currently using tobacco. A statistically significant association was found between tobacco consumption and dental caries ( P = 0.026). The awareness about good and bad dental practices was found to be low among the study participants. One-fifth of the individuals with dental problems relied on home remedies. CONCLUSION The prevalence of dental caries among adults is high in this population. There is a need to generate awareness about oral health and the prevention of dental caries and to institute measures for the provision of dental care services at the primary level.

Effect of occlusal splint therapy on maximum bite force in individuals with moderate to severe attrition of teeth

OBJECTIVE The purpose of the pilot study was to determine the effect of restoring lost occlusal vertical dimension (OVD) due to attrition on maximum bite force in humans. METHODOLOGY A total of 124 subjects in age range of 25-40 years, with moderate to severe attrition, having full complement of teeth were screened according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. After consent, occlusal vertical dimension was assessed by employing mechanical and physiological methods in the experimental group and a maxillary canine guided hard splint was fabricated for each subjects fulfilling inclusion criteria and with positive consent (78). Bite force in experimental group was measured before, immediately after delivery of splint and subsequently at an interval of four, eight, and twelve weeks. Due loss during follow up, only 50 subjects could be available for bite force recording till 12 weeks. Bite force of age, gender, height and weight matched controls with no signs of attrition was also measured for comparison. RESULTS Bite force of the experimental group was found to be significantly less than the matched controls (P=0.000) initially. After delivery of splint, bite force values increased progressively till twelve weeks. However comparison of bite force values of experimental group with control group showed no significant difference at end of eight (P=0.008) and twelve weeks (P=0.162). CONCLUSION It was concluded that maximum bite force increases with restoration of lost vertical using splint therapy. A time period of 8-12 weeks is required to restore the maximum bite force value approximately similar to matched controls.

Effect of bleaching on color change and surface topography of composite restorations.

This study was conducted to determine the effect of 15% carbamide peroxide bleaching agent on color change and surface topography of different composite veneering materials (Filtek Z350 (3M ESPE), Esthet X (Dentsply India), and Admira (Voco, Germany). Methods. 30 samples were fabricated for evaluation of color change using CIELAB color system and Gonioreflectometer (GK 311/M, ZEISS). 45 disc-shaped specimens were made for evaluation of surface topography after bleaching (Nupro White Gold; Dentsply) using SEM. Statistical analysis. One way ANOVA and Multiple comparison tests were used to analyze the data. Statistical significance was declared if the P value was .05 or less. Results and conclusion. All the specimens showed significant discoloration (ΔE > 3.3) after their immersion in solutions representing food and beverages. The total color change after bleaching as compared to baseline color was significant in Filtek Z350 (P = .000) and Esthet X (P = .002), while it was insignificant for Admira (P = .18). Esthet X showed maximum surface roughness followed by Admira and Filtek Z350. Bleaching was effective in reducing the discoloration to a clinically acceptable value in all the three groups (ΔE < 3.3).

A preliminary study to find a possible association between occlusal wear and maximum bite force in humans

OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to investigate whether moderate-to-severe attrition is associated with maximum bite force in the first molar region. METHODOLOGY Maximum bite force in the first molar region was measured for a total of 60 subjects having moderate-to-severe attrition of occlusal surface (experimental group) using a specially-designed piezoelectric sensor based bite force measuring device. An equal number of age, gender, height and weight matched controls (control group) were also subjected to bite force measurement for comparison. RESULTS The maximum bite force was found to be significantly lower (p < 0.05) in the experimental group [480.32 (153.40)] as compared to the controls [640.63 (148.90)]. While analyzing the possible etiology for occlusal wear mainly two reasons were elicited, i.e. history of parafunctional habits like use of known abrasive tooth powder (sub-group A) and Bruxism (sub-group B). However, there were many subjects in which no known definite etiological factors be attributed to occlusal wear (sub-group C). On analysing further with respect to the possibly correlated etiological factors with maximum bite force, no significant difference was found within the experimental sub-group. However, all three experimental sub-groups had significantly lower maximum bite force as compared to age, gender and BMI matched controls. CONCLUSION A significantly lower maximum bite force was found to be associated with moderate-to-severe attrition as compared to subjects without attrition. However, no specific relation could be found between bite force and possible etiological factors like history of parafunctional habits, history of use of known abrasive tooth powder, etc.

Oral health in children with leukemia

Leukemia is one of the most common malignancies affecting children in India. These children usually suffer from various oral complications, which may be due to the leukemia or due to the chemotherapeutic agents and/or radiotherapy. The complications may include some of the opportunistic infections like candidiasis, herpes simplex; hemorrhage, mucositis, taste alterations and increased incidence of dental caries etc. These complications can cause significant morbidity and mortality in the patients. The aim of this review is to summarize the various oral complications in these children and the methods of prevention and management.

High burden of dental caries in geriatric population of India: A systematic review

Oral health is an essential component of health throughout life. Poor oral health and untreated oral diseases can have a significant impact on the quality of life of the elderly. The objective of this study was to estimate the burden of dental caries among the elderly persons in India in the past two decades. A systematic review from available literature was carried out. Six community-based articles were included in this review. The selected studies were screened by using STROBE checklist for observational studies. All studies were found to contain the required essentials of observational studies. Weighted prevalence of dental caries experience was calculated. Trend was generated using Microsoft Excel program. The prevalence of dental caries experience ranged from 31.5 to 100%. Weighted prevalence of dental caries experience was 83.6% and 82.3% for 2000-2004 and 2005-2009, respectively. There is a high burden of dental caries in the elderly population. Treatment and restorative services need to be provided to alleviate this problem.

A preliminary study to find out maximum occlusal bite force in Indian individuals

PURPOSE This preliminary hospital based study was designed to measure the mean maximum bite force (MMBF) in healthy Indian individuals. An attempt was made to correlate MMBF with body mass index (BMI) and some of the anthropometric features. METHODOLOGY A total of 358 healthy subjects in the age range of 18-47 years (mean age = 26.66 ± 6.83) were selected following the selection criteria. Demographic details along with general physical and facial parameters such as height, weight, facial form, facial profile, arch form, and palatal contour were recorded in a predesigned proforma. The maximum bite force was recorded on both (right and left) sides using a specially designed piezoelectric transducer based device. RESULTS The MMBF in Indian individuals was found to be 372.39 ± 175.93 Newton (N). Males had significantly higher (P = 0.000) MMBF (448.47 ± 191.82 N) as compared to females (296.31 ± 116.79 N). Facial form (P = 0.001) and palatal contour (P = 0.000) showed a significant relationship with MMBF. Subjects having square facial form (421.34 ± 187.32 N) showed significantly higher MMBF as compared to other facial forms, that is, square tapered (358.86 ± 143.56 N; P = 0.038), ovoid (338.40 ± 163.02 N; P = 0.000) and tapered (349.22 ± 184.82 N; P = 0.028). Subjects with flat palatal contour showed significantly higher MMBF when compared to high (P = 0.002) and medium palatal (P = 0.002) contour. Though facial profile was not significantly related to MMBF, it was significantly higher in subjects having concave facial profile when compared to convex (P = 0.045) and straight (P = 0.039) facial profile. BMI and arch form showed no significant relationship with MMBF. CONCLUSION The MMBF is found to be affected by gender and some of the anthropometric features like facial form and palatal contour.

Refractory epilepsy and the ketogenic diet: Pathophysiological aspects and possible implications in dental practice

Epilepsy denotes any disorder characterized by recurrent seizures due to abnormal paroxysmal neuronal discharge in the brain. Symptoms range from sensory absences to convulsive movements and loss of consciousness. Antiepileptic drugs are the first line of treatment. However, 20% individuals with epilepsy have drug-resistant seizures despite optimal treatment. For those with refractory epilepsy, the ketogenic diet is an effective alternative therapeutic approach. The ketogenic diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate, and adequate-protein diet that mimics the biochemical effects of fasting. There are many disparate mechanistic theories of how this diet protects against seizures. Key insights indicate that it has effects on intermediary metabolism that influence the dynamics of the major inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitter systems in brain. This paper discusses the implicitly significant and diverse biochemical changes affected by this unique therapeutic approach that may have a bearing on oral health and the delivery of dental care to individuals with refractory epilepsy.

Evaluation of indirect pulp capping using three different materials: A randomized control trial using cone-beam computed tomography

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the most suitable material for indirect pulp treatment (IPT) clinically and to determine the thickness (in mm) and type of tissue in terms of radiodensity (in Hounsfield units [HU]) formed after pulp capping using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) scan. Materials and Methods: A longitudinal interventional single-blind randomized clinical trial was conducted on 94 children (7–12 years) with a deep carious lesion in one or more primary second molar and permanent first molar without the history of spontaneous pain indicated for indirect pulp capping (IPC) procedure. About 109 teeth were treated using three materials, namely, calcium hydroxide (setting type), glass ionomer cement (Type VII), and mineral trioxide aggregate randomly. The teeth were followed up at an interval of 8 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year for success of IPT as per the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry clinical criteria. For determining the thickness and type of dentin tissue formed, a CBCT scan was done immediately postoperative and another scan at an interval of 6 months. The scans were compared to evaluate the average thickness of the dentin bridge formed. Results and Conclusions: Success rate for IPC was 96.85%. A significant difference was obtained in the average thickness of reparative dentin at immediate postoperative and 6-month postoperative values in all three groups suggesting distinct barrier formation. Similar significant findings were obtained in radiodensity of barrier formed (in HU). All three materials were found to be equally suitable as IPC agents suggesting mineral gain.