Fixed orthodontic treatment requires the use of orthodontic brackets and archwires in order to correct malocclusions. The objective of this study was to evaluate the pattern of orthodontic material usages i.e. bracket and archwire among Malaysian orthodontists. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to members of the Malaysian Association of Orthodontist. Data entry and statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 15.0. Descriptive statistics were used for analysis. Means and standard deviations were calculated for continuous variables, frequency and percentages for categorical variables. Thirty-four orthodontists responded to the survey, with 76% (n=26) were female and the mean age was 43.31 years (SD 8.76). Most respondents used conventional metal brackets (60%, n=60) and most bracket prescription used was MBT (56%, n=19). At levelling stage, most respondents used nickel titanium archwire (84.5%, n=47). Stainless steel archwire was the most favourable choice for retraction/space closure stage (73.9%, n=34). At finishing, most respondents (60.4%, n=29) preferred to use stainless steel wire in their cases. As a conclusion, specific types of orthodontic materials were preferred and used by Malaysian orthodontists in delivering orthodontic treatment.
This research aimed to evaluate the oral hygiene status in fixed orthodontic appliance patients when using two different slim bristles toothbrushes and to assess patients’ toothbrush perception.Twenty six fixed orthodontic appliance patients participated in the six weeks prospective, crossover clinical trial. All patients used two different slim bristles toothbrushes (Toothbrush A and Toothbrush B) for two weeks each with a washout period in between. Gingival health and plaque value were assessed based on Löe & Silness Gingival Index and Silness & Löe Plaque Index at baseline, week 2, week 4 (washout) and week 6. At the end of the trial, patients’ toothbrush perception was assessed through questionnaire. All data were analysed using SPSS version 22.The mean age of the patients was 21.5 ± 4.3 years, with female predominant (n = 17, 65.4%). More than half were Malay (n = 15, 57.7%) and had tertiary education (n = 14, 53.8%). Patients could achieve good oral hygiene when using Toothbrush A (65.4%) and Toothbrush B (69.2%). However, the occurrence of gingivitis was significantly higher when using Toothbrush A (OR = 1.889, 95% CI = 1.207-2.957, p value < 0.05). Toothbrush B was felt to clean better (n = 14, 53.8%) while Toothbrush A was perceived to be easier to use (n = 14, 53.8%). Both toothbrushes maintained patients’ oral hygiene status. However, when using Toothbrush B, oral health status was better as it significantly reduced gingivitis occurrence compared to Toothbrush A. As for the toothbrush perception, most patients preferred Toothbrush A to be taken home.
Introduction: Delivering oral hygiene instruction is one of the integral parts of orthodontic treatment. However, there is scarce information regarding the impact of audiovisual method on knowledge retention among orthodontic patients. This study aimed to assess knowledge retention of the patient after instruction delivered in audiovisual (AV) method and compare it to the standard written and verbal (WV) method. Methods: This prospective clinical trial was conducted on 60 patients aged 13 to 40 years. They were randomized into the audiovisual group (n=30) and written & verbal group (n=30). Patients’ knowledge retention was measured using a self-administered questionnaire in Google form, immediately after instruction given as short-term retention and long-term retention for three time- point, i.e., 1-month, 3-month, and 6-month. Results: There was a significant improvement in knowledge for both AV and WV methods at immediate and 1-month assessment and the knowledge retained until 6-month follow up. The AV method demonstrated a significantly higher increase in knowledge retention at immediate and 1-month than the WV method. Conclusion: The AV method was significantly more effective in improving patient's knowledge reten- tion compared to the written & verbal methods. Repetition of instruction also influence the retention of knowledge.
Early treatment of orthodontic problems is important to ensure the best outcome and to avoid social stigmatization. Treatment is often prioritized based on scales such as the Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need (IOTN). Unfortunately, the conventional aesthetic component of IOTN measurement is slanted towards Caucasian malocclusions. Thus, Asian children find it particularly difficult to rate their appearance on this scale and therefore treatment may be wrongly prioritized. This study aimed to assess the use of a newly modified aesthetic scale in assessing orthodontic treatment need in adolescent. A total of 522 16-year old children were recruited. The subjects as well as the examiner rated the subject’s own dentition according to the conventional scale of aesthetic component of IOTN and the newly modified aesthetic scale. Questionnaire was given to assess the practicality of the two scales. When conventional scale was used, subjects and examiner tends to rate more to the no/slight treatment need category. However, when the newly modified scale was applied, the rating has skewed to the moderate/great need treatment category in both subjects and examiner. Moderate inter-agreement between examiner and subjects were detected when using the modified scale while poor agreement was found when using the conventional scale. Moreover, subjects found the modified scale to be easier and faster to use and more relevant to their own dentition. In conclusion, the newly modified aesthetic scale can be suggested as a better tool in assessing level of orthodontic treatment need in adolescent.
Bone formation has been associated with the presence of an enzyme called alkaline phosphatase (ALP). This longitudinal study was carried out to observe its activity in gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) during leveling and alignment stage of orthodontic fixed appliance treatment. Fourteen patients between the ages of 15 and 27 years old with moderate upper labial segment crowding were recruited from postgraduate orthodontic clinic. GCF from mesial and distal sites of upper canines were collected using endodontic paper point before the fixed appliance placement (week 0). The baseline level of ALP (week 0) acted as a control. Samplings of GCF were repeated at 1st, 2nd and 3rd week during orthodontic treatment. The activities of ALP were measured using spectrophotometer (405 nm). Paired sample t-test was used to assess the significance of difference over the 3 weeks. Although the results showed patterns of ALP activities on the test teeth throughout the 3 weeks of leveling and alignment stage, however the results were not significant (p >0.05) when compared to control. Therefore, it has been shown that there was no significant pattern of ALP activities in GCF in patients undergoing leveling and alignment stage of orthodontic treatment.
Oral candidiasis is an opportunistic infection of the oral cavity. This study aimed to determine prevalence of oral candidiasis in patients with palatal coverage orthodontic appliances and prostheses and its risk factors. Three groups of patients were recruited after an informed consent. The two tested groups were the denture and the upper removable orthodontic appliance (URA) groups while patients with no prosthesis/appliance acted as control. The assessments included demographic profile, denture/URA age, night-time wearing and duration of wearing. Signs and symptoms of candidiasis were examined intra-orally. Unstimulated salivary flow rate test was also performed. Smears samples were taken from palatal mucosa and impression surfaces of denture/URA and stained with Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS). The data were analysed using descriptive and chi-square tests. A total of 86 patients were recruited; denture (n=30), URA (n=22), control (n=34). Denture and URA groups had significantly more positive cases of candidal infection (56.7 and 72.7% respectively) as compared to control group (20.6%). Among the subjects with oral candidiasis, denture patients were detected to have more severe amount of candidal hyphae (20%) than URA (13.6%) group. The relationships between oral candidiasis and these risk factors i.e. age, night-time wearing, daily total hours of wearing and denture/URA hygiene were statistically significant (p
Objectives: This study aimed to measure depression, anxiety and stress (DAS) among undergraduate dental students during the COVID-19 pandemic, identify key contributing factors of stress and explore the association of emotional intelligence to DAS. Methods: A multi-centre, cross-sectional study was conducted across four universities in Malaysia. The study administered a questionnaire consisting of the validated Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), Dental Environment Stress (DES), Emotional Intelligence Scale (EI) and 10 statements assessing COVID-19 specific potential stressor factors. Results: Participants included 791 students across four universities. Abnormal levels of DAS were identified in 60.6%, 66.8% and 42.6% of the study participants, respectively. "Pressure of performance," "Faculty administration" and "Self-efficacy belief" were the highest rated stressors. On-time graduation was the main COVID-19 specific stressor factor. EI was negatively correlated with DAS scores (p < 0.001). Conclusion: The levels of DAS during COVID-19 pandemic in this population is high. However, participants with higher EI presented with lower DAS suggesting that EI may be a form of coping resource and should be enhanced in this population.