Objective: Previous studies have indicated a convergent and bidirectional relationship between metabolic syndrome (MetS) and bipolar disorder (BD). As most of these studies focused mainly on adults diagnosed with BD, our study aims to investigate and characterize metabolic disturbances in child-adolescents diagnosed with BD. Methods: We retrospectively examined the medical records of psychiatric hospitalizations with admitting diagnosis of BD in child-adolescents (age ＜ 18 years). Body mass index (BMI), lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, and blood pressure were primary variables. National Cholesterol Education Program criteria were used to define MetS. Reference group data was obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey study. Statistical analyses included t tests, chi-square tests, and Fisher’s exact tests. Results: We identified 140 child-adolescent patients with BD (mean age = 15.12 ± 1.70 years, 53% male). MetS was significantly more common in BD compared to the reference group: 14% (95% confidence interval [95% CI] 8−20) vs. 6.7% (95% CI 4.1−9.2), p = 0.001 with no significant difference by sex. MetS components were higher in the BD group, particularly BMI ≥ 95% (25% vs. 11.8%, p ＜ 0.001) and high blood pressure (17% vs. 8%, p = 0.05). Moreover, female patients had lower odds of high blood pressure (odds ratio = 0.24 [95% CI 0.08−0.69], p = 0.005). Conclusion Compared with the general child-adolescent population, the prevalence of MetS was significantly higher in patients with BD of same age. This reiterates the notion of an increased risk of MetS in patients diagnosed with BD; and thus, further exploration is warranted.

This study was undertaken to assess knowledge regarding furcation defects among dental fraternity. This is an open-ended, randomized, web-based cross-sectional multinational online survey. A total of 904 responses were gathered by sending 13 questions through a google form. Data were expressed in frequency and percentages. Chi-square test was performed to determine significant difference between gender, education level and variation between dentists of India and other countries. P value <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant. Present study had 650 dentists from India and 254 dentists from other countries. For overall knowledge regarding furcation, 90.7% (average of first and second question) of dentists had knowledge regarding furcation. There was no significant difference between males (range 54%-93%) and females (range 46%- 95%) (p>0.05) in terms of knowledge. Majority (88.7%) of post-graduates knew about the use of Nabers probe for furcation measurements and values were significant (p<0.05). Present study also revealed 65%-67% of undergraduates and post-graduates knew that Degree II furcation defects showed predictable periodontal regeneration, however values were non-significant (p>0.05). There was no statistical significance (p>0.05) between dentists of India and other countries. Dental fraternity in general had adequate knowledge regarding the furcation defects, their treatment modalities and expected complications.