OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to assess coronal discoloration induced by the following intracanal medicaments: calcium hydroxide (CH), a mixture of CH paste and chlorhexidine gel (CH/CHX), and triple antibiotic paste (3Mix). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seventy extracted single-canal teeth were selected. Access cavities were prepared and each canal was instrumented with a rotary ProTaper system. The specimens were randomly assigned to CH, CH/CHX, and 3Mix paste experimental groups (n = 20 each) or a control group (n = 10). Each experimental group was randomly divided into 2 subgroups (A and B). In subgroup A, medicaments were only applied to the root canals, while in subgroup B, the root canals were completely filled with medicaments and a cotton pellet dipped in medicament was also placed in the pulp chamber. Spectrophotometric readings were obtained from the mid-buccal surface of the tooth crowns immediately after placing the medicaments (T1) and at 1 week (T2), 1 month (T3), and 3 months (T4) after filling. The ∆E was then calculated. Data were analyzed using 2-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), 3-way ANOVA, and the Scheffé post hoc test. RESULTS: The greatest color change (ΔE) was observed at 3 months (p < 0.0001) and in 3Mix subgroup B (p = 0.0057). No significant color change occurred in the CH (p = 0.7865) or CH/CHX (p = 0.1367) groups over time, but the 3Mix group showed a significant ΔE (p = 0.0164). CONCLUSION: Intracanal medicaments may induce tooth discoloration. Use of 3Mix must be short and it must be carefully applied only to the root canals; the access cavity should be thoroughly cleaned afterwards.
Calcium Hydroxide ; Chlorhexidine ; Dental Pulp Cavity ; Reading ; Tooth Crown ; Tooth Discoloration ; Tooth

Objective: To assess the color stability and translucency of full cubic stabilized zirconia (FSZ) following orthodontic bonding with different surface treatments and coffee thermocycling (CTC). Methods: This in vitro study was conducted on 120 disc-shaped specimens of FSZ. Thirty specimens were selected as the control group and remained intact. The remaining specimens were randomly divided into three groups based on the type of surface treatment (n = 30): airborne particle abrasion (APA), silica-coating (CoJet), and carbon dioxide (CO2) laser. After metal bracket bonding in the test groups, debonding and polishing were performed. Subsequently, all specimens underwent CTC (10,000 cycles). Color parameters, color difference (ΔE00), and translucency parameter (TP) were measured three times at baseline (t0), after debonding and polishing (t1), and after CTC (t2). Data were statistically analyzed (α = 0.05). Results: Significant difference existed among the groups regarding ΔE00t0t2 (p < 0.001). The APA group showed minimum (ΔE00 = 1.15 ± 0.53) and the control group showed maximum (ΔE00 = 0.19 ± 0.02) color stability, with no significant difference between the laser and CoJet groups (p = 0.511). The four groups were significantly different regarding ΔTPt0t2 (p < 0.001). Maximal increases in TP were noted in the CoJet (1.00 ± 0.18) and APA (1.04 ± 0.38) groups while minimal increase was recorded in the control group (0.1 ± 0.02). Conclusions Orthodontic treatment makes zirconia restorations susceptible to discoloration and increased translucency. Nonetheless, the recorded ΔE00 and ΔTP did not exceed the acceptability threshold.

PURPOSE: To design software with a novel algorithm, which analyzes the tortuosity and vascular dilatation in fundal images of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) patients with an acceptable accuracy for detecting plus disease. METHODS: Eighty-seven well-focused fundal images taken with RetCam were classified to three groups of plus, non-plus, and pre-plus by agreement between three ROP experts. Automated algorithms in this study were designed based on two methods: the curvature measure and distance transform for assessment of tortuosity and vascular dilatation, respectively as two major parameters of plus disease detection. RESULTS: Thirty-eight plus, 12 pre-plus, and 37 non-plus images, which were classified by three experts, were tested by an automated algorithm and software evaluated the correct grouping of images in comparison to expert voting with three different classifiers, k-nearest neighbor, support vector machine and multilayer perceptron network. The plus, pre-plus, and non-plus images were analyzed with 72.3%, 83.7%, and 84.4% accuracy, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The new automated algorithm used in this pilot scheme for diagnosis and screening of patients with plus ROP has acceptable accuracy. With more improvements, it may become particularly useful, especially in centers without a skilled person in the ROP field.
Diagnosis ; Dilatation ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Neural Networks (Computer) ; Politics ; Retinopathy of Prematurity ; Support Vector Machine ; Telemedicine

To investigate Phlebotomus (P.) sergenti Parrot, 1917 (Diptera: Psychodidae) salivary gland antigens and their immune response in human. Methods: Human volunteers were exposed to sand flies' bites in the laboratory, and following each exposure the size of induration was recorded. The mean protein concentration of salivary gland lysate and specific anti-P. sergenti saliva IgG was measured. Sand fly salivary proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE and their immunoreactivity was examined by Western blotting assays. Results: Individuals exposed to P. sergenti salivary gland lysate for 8 months showed both antibody and delayed type hypersensitivity responses, although exposure for one month did not provoke any immune responses. The trend of antibody fluctuated during the exposure time and dropped by the end of antigen loading. The mean protein content was (0.36?0.08) ug in each pair salivary glands. Salivary gland lysate showed 11 to 12 major protein bands and 3 to 6 of them were immunoreactive. Conclusions: Our study showed that the salivary gland components of P. sergenti provoked both cellular and humoral immune responses in human. Furthermore, there are some immunogenic proteins in P. sergenti saliva which could be subjected for further investigation as vector-based vaccine candidate/s against anthroponotic cutaneous leishmaniasis.