Yuniardini Septorini Wimardhani

Saliva-Based Screening of High-Risk Human Papillomavirus Strains: Detection in Female Indonesian and Thai Dental Students.

BACKGROUND Currently it is believed that human papillomaviruses (HPV) are associated with the development of some oral/oropharyngeal cancers. It has been suggested that these viruses influence carcinogenesis in both smokers and non-smokers. Data on the prevalence of HPV in healthy adults are thus needed to estimate the risk of oral/oropharyngeal cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of oral HPV in healthy female adults in Indonesia and Thailand. MATERIALS AND METHODS Healthy female students from the Faculties of Dentistry of Universitas Indonesia and Chiang Mai University were asked to participate in this pilot study. DNA was extracted from saliva specimens and screened for HPV16 and HPV18 using PCR. RESULTS The age, marital status and sexual experience of the subjects between the two countries were not significantly different. Eight (4%) and 4 (2%) samples were positive for HPV16 and HPV18, respectively. Fishers Exact test found a significant difference between HPV16 positivity in subjects who were married and had sexual intercourse but not for HPV18. CONCLUSIONS This study successfully detected presence of HPV16 and HPV18 DNA in a number of saliva samples from female dental school students. Marital status, experience of sexual intercourse and safe sexual practice are related to the possibility of finding HPV DNA finding in saliva. Dentists, physicians and other health care professionals may gain significant value from the findings of this study, which provide an understanding of the nature of HPV infection and its risk to patient health and disease.

Oral Mucosal Ulceration Caused by the Topical Application of a Concentrated Propolis Extract

Propolis is a resinous mixture that is collected by honey bees from tree buds, sap flow, and other botanical sources. Propolis has been extensively used in medicine, dentistry, and cosmetics; however, unwanted effects have been reported. This paper reports a case of oral mucosal burn in a 50-year-old patient, who used an overnight application of concentrated propolis to overcome a throbbing pain in the right upper posterior mucosa. The patient was otherwise healthy and was not receiving any medication. She presented with painful shallow multiple irregular ulcers measuring 0.3–1 cm in diameter that were located on the right buccal mucosa and hard palate mucosa, in addition to the gingival mucosa surrounding tooth 17. Propolis-induced oral mucosal burn was diagnosed. The ulcer cleared after the prescription of tetracycline mouthwash, accompanied with Doloneurobion. The patient was further treated with carbamazepine to address the persistent throbbing pain in the affected area, which was suspected to be trigeminal neuralgia. This report provides another alert to clinicians about the potential adverse effects of propolis use for the treatment of oral diseases, despite its natural origin.