Supernumerarypremolars have been reported to occur in 0.29% of the general populationand to represent about 9.1% of all supernumerary teeth. Most of the supernumerary teeth reported in the literature were detected by radiographsas most of them were unerupted or impacted.Asearch of the literature revealed not many cases of fully erupted and well aligned supernumerary premolars being reported. A case of a unilateral transposed supernumery premolarthat had erupted into alignment is presented here. The remarkable featureof this case is that the supernumery premolar is transposed between the first and second permanent maxillary molars. The etiology of supernumeraryteeth is also reviewed.
Ludwig's angina is a rare type of facial infection usually reported in adults. This paper presents a case of Ludwig's angina infection occurring in a 3 year-old Malay boy. The dentists must be able to detect such presentation early. Hospitalization for monitoring of airway is essential.
Surgery done around gingival margin may eventually result in loss of attachment and recession of the gingiva. Root hypersensitivity is another possible complication when coupled with overzealous tooth brushing by the patients. This paper presents an alternative method to remove a lesion located at the lateral cervical third of a root. Its advantage is that the gingival margin is kept intact.
The primary obligation and ultimate responsibility of a dental surgeon is not only to restore aesthetic and function, but also to relieve pain which originates from dental pathology or surgical procedures performed. Post operative dental pain is mainly of inflammatory origin. Common traditional oral analgesics, namely salicylates, paracetamol and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been the drugs of choice, but are increasingly being superseded by newer designer analgesics, the cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitors. This article reviews the advantages and disadvantages of prescribing common traditional oral analgesics as well as exploring the potential use of COX-2 inhibitors as an alternative to these analgesics for the control of post operative pain in dentistry.
This paper revisits the prescription of drugs for pregnant patients and the dental and oral changes during pregnancy. The management of these patients is also outlined. Emphasis should be placed on prevention of dental problem during pregnancy.
A retrospective study was carried out to review the records of 47 patients who had had in total 80 supernumerary teeth (ST) removed under general anaesthesia between 1975 and 2002. Malays made up 38.30%, Chinese 51.06%, and Indians 10.64% of the patients. The predominant age group was 6-10 year-old. The mean age was 12.96 ± 9.49 years. The male and female ratio was 1.35:1. Most of the patients had either one ST (n=31; 65.96%) or two ST (n=11; 23.40%). Five cases of multiple supernumeraries were recorded. Two patients experienced late formation of subsequent ST after the first surgery, thus requiring a second surgery. The majority of ST were conical in shape (n=35; 43.75%). Most of the ST were located in the premaxilla (n=55; 68.8%). Almost a quarter (23.75%) of ST were inclined towards the oral cavity. Some of the effects on the dentition were diastema, cystic changes, rotation, displacement, and retention of the permanent teeth and these were the indications for removal of ST. The most common surgical approach for maxillary ST was from the labial, buccal or labio-buccal approach.
Formalin is a clear solution of 37% formaldehyde in water. It is used in dentistry as a disinfectant, antiseptic and mainly as tissue fixative for preserving biologic specimens for histopathologic examination. The human knowledge on systemic formaldehyde intoxication is inadequate as only few cases of formalin ingestion have been reported. This paper presents a brief communication of the adverse effect of formalin to the human tissue.
The paradental cyst is an odontogenic cyst occurring near to the cervical margin of the lateral aspect of a root as a consequence of an inflammatory process in a periodontal pocket. A distinct form of the paradental cyst occurs not infrequently on the buccal aspects of erupted mandibular third molar, where there is an associated history of pericoronitis. A search of the literature revealed that these cysts had all been reported in relation to partially, newly or fully erupted molars. This report presents one case in which the cyst was noticed to be associated with an unerupted third molar. The histological appearance of the cyst and the gross relationship to the cemento-enamel junction is similar to those typical of paradental cysts reported in the literature. However, the radiographic and clinical appearance of the tooth being unerupted do not tally with paradental cyst and yet exclude the diagnosis of dentigerous cyst. The diagnosis of dental follicular tissue was excluded based on the histopathological presentation. The authors suggested that this case may represent an early form of paradental cyst which in the past may have been dismissed as dental follicular residues and thus, the prevalence of paradental cyst may have been under reported in the literature.
The objective of this survey was to understand the current trend of readership of professional dental journals among Malaysian dentists. A total of 225 questionnaires were sent out to Malaysian dentists who attended various dental related conferences throughout Peninsular Malaysia from February 2006 to July 2006. Questionnaires comprised of questions relating to dentists’ socio-demographic status and a list of journal(s) read by them. Malaysian dentists’ view on the content and quality of a particular dental journal, i.e. the Malaysian Dental Journal (MDJ) was also enquired. The details of this finding are highlighted in Part II of this study. A total of 156 questionnaires were returned; the respondents were made up of 61 male and 91 female dentists. Almost 80% of the respondents aged between 20-49 year-old and most respondents (n= 132; 84.62%) only had a basic Bachelor of Dental Surgery or equivalent degree while another 19 (12.18%) had in addition, a post-graduate degree. Almost equal numbers of respondents were working in the Ministry of Health (MOH) or Armed Force (n=73; 46.8%) and private practice (n=74; 47.4%). Also, equal number of respondents (n=67; 42.95%) were found to be working as single-handed practitioner and in a partnership/assistant/working-with-other specialties type of practice Almost two-thirds (n=103; 66%) of the respondents read more than one professional journal, and a majority of them worked in the private sector. The percentage of readers reading more than one journal from the private practice (n=67, 60.0%) was close to twice of that from the MOH (n=36, 35.0%). No specific age-group pattern was present but the least number of subscribers were from those 60 year-old and above (n=3), whereby none of them subscribed to any professional dental journal/magazine. The highest percentage of subscribers were from those in the age group of 40-49 year-old, whereby 86.49% (n=32) of dentists in this age-group subscribed to at least one professional dental journal/magazine. Out of the list of journals/magazines provided, it was found that the MDJ has the most number of readers. The MDJ was most read by dentists in the private practice while the Annals of Dentistry of the University of Malaya was most read by dentists in the MOH. In conclusion, it was found that almost two-third of the respondents read more than one professional journal, with the MDJ receiving the most number of readers. More dentists in the private practice read professional dental journals than dentists in the MOH.
The objective of this part of the study was to understand the current trend on readership of the Malaysian Dental Journal (MDJ) among Malaysian dentists. Their views on the contents and quality of the Malaysian Dental Journal were enquired. We also enquired the reasons they chose-to/chose-not-to read the MDJ. Of the 225 dentists surveyed, the number of MDJ readers was 101; with only 24.75% reading all issues published. The editorial section was rated as “useful” by 70.3% of readers, while 79.2%, 87.1%, 87.1% and 80.2% of readers rated the research article section, the review article section, the case reports section and book recommendation section similarly respectively. Feedback from readers indicated that they wanted more case reports, more review articles on “how to do it” and on medical problems in dentistry. More than half (55.45%) of the MDJ readers preferred to receive the journal in both hard and soft copies. For the non-readers, the most common reasons cited for not reading the MDJ was not being able to access to the journal, followed by not having time to read. Our finding suggested that the respondents preferred to learn from colleagues’ experience and to read article that can improve their clinical knowledge and skill.
The controversy on malignant transformation of oral lichen planus has always intrigued researchers. We present a case of lichenoid lesion and squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, occurring in a middle aged Indian lady. The diagnosis and timing of these lesions is discussed.
Medical emergencies or unexpected events are situations that all dental practitioners are trained to face, yet none hope they become a reality. Although they occasionally happen, the prevalence is rather low. This special article will touch on three aspects: before, during and after an unexpected event happening in a general dental practice. Emphasis will be given on the ‘during and after’ phases, which includes the activation of basic life support when necessary, and the documentation that a dental practitioner needs to prepare in the event of adverse outcome despite of efforts made to prevent and manage it.