Objectives: The current study was intended to compare and to evaluate in vitro the antimicrobial efficacy of Morinda citrifolia juice (MCJ) with chlorhexidine (CHX) as endodontic irrigants and their effect on micro-hardness of root canal dentin. Methodology: The study was divided into two parts. Part I for antibacterial testing consisted of preparing 60 dentin blocks of 4 mm height. All the dentin blocks were infected with Enterococcus fecalis for a period of 21 days. The experimental groups were Group I: 0.2% CHX; Group II: 6% MCJ; Group III: 6% MCJ + 0.2% CHX; Group IV: Saline. After 28 days of medication with the irrigants, the dentin shavings from root canal dentin was harvested and colony forming units counted. Part II for micro-hardness testing consisted of preparing 32 root halves and mounting them on blocks of acrylic resin. 8 samples per group were randomly divided into the experimental groups. The samples were then medicated with the irrigants for a period of 15 min and micro-hardness values were recorded. Results: Data obtained was analyzed using one-way ANOVA, Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U-test and Student's paired t-test. Part I: Group I showed highest antibacterial activity followed by Group III with Group II taking the third place and were statistically significant (P < 0.001). Part II: None of the groups showed any effect on micro-hardness of root canal dentin, which was not statistically significant (P > 0.4). Conclusion: Nearly 0.2% of CHX showed the highest antimicrobial activity even after 28 days and 6% of MCJ also showed antibacterial activity, but to a lesser degree than CHX. None of the irrigants tested had any effect on the micro-hardness of root canal dentin.

Background and Aims: Cadmium adversely affects bone remodeling and is therefore possible that environmental cadmium exposure may be a risk factor for periodontal disease-related bone loss. Aim of the present study was to assess the association between environmental cadmium exposure and periodontal disease. Settings and Design: The study was conducted in the Department of Periodontics, in our institution, Mangalore and sample size consisted of 100 patients (two groups of 50 patients each). Materials and Methods: Gingival Index, periodontal probing depth and clinical attachment loss was estimated to ascertain the gingival and periodontal status of subjects. Urine samples were collected from the subjects and biochemical analysis was done to estimate urine cadmium levels. Statistical Analysis: Results obtained were then statistically analyzed using Mann-Whitney U-test and correlation was done using Karl Pearson's correlation. Results: There was an increased concentration of urinary cadmium in periodontitis patients when compared with the healthy controls and there was a positive correlation between age and cadmium concentrations. Conclusion: Although information on the oral health effects of cadmium remains limited, the results of this study suggests that cadmium exposure may be an important risk factor for periodontal disease in adults.

After tooth loss, alveolar ridge resorption is a common phenomenon, which alters the size and shape of the host bone available for the dental implant placement. In the era of prosthetic driven implant dentistry, the final prosthesis type and design dictates the number, size and the ideal implant position. In clinical practice, though patients often demand osseointegrated implants to replace their missing teeth; the deficiency of bone volume is the primary reason for avoiding such treatment options. The solution to such situations lies in the re-establishment of the ridge height consistent with prosthetic design and with suitable load-bearing lamellar bone for implant placement and long-term stability. Despite recent advances in bone grafts and bone-substitute technology, the use of autogenous bone grafts continues to represent the "gold standard" in implant site reconstructive surgery. The mandibular symphysis (chin bone in interforaminal region) is a favorable donor site as it has an excellent risk-benefit ratio. Several reconstruction procedures by using chin graft have been proposed to increase alveolar bone volume both vertically and laterally to prepare the ridge for a correct placement of oral implants. This article reviews the various aspects of chin grafts, wherein the regional surgical anatomy, various incision designs, surgical protocols for harvesting and the possible clinical and esthetic complications of chin grafts have been discussed.

Recent advances in color matching have been driven by the market demand for high-quality esthetic restorations. Improved shade guides, availability of shade-taking devices and research in the area of human color vision have improved the potential of clinicians to achieve excellent color-matched restorations. A thorough understanding of appearance attributes of natural teeth is required along with these new tools to maximize shade-matching results.

Regeneration of dental tissue is one of the highly demanding areas, in which lot of research is going on. Trauma, genetic disorders and malformations have created the need for functional, mechanical and esthetic replacement of missing teeth. Current methods of tooth replacement including dental implants, tooth transplantation and Prosthodontics are not considered permanent and significant complications exist with these methods. Ideally, the altered signaling cascade that interrupts tooth development could be treated, or an autogenous tooth replacement developed. This review discusses, so as to better understand multiple approaches and procedures of tooth regeneration.

Implant is an object or material inserted or grafted into the body for experimental, diagnostic, therapeutic or prosthetic purposes. However, there is a total uncertainty and ambiguity about the fate of these precious metal implants after the death of a person. They are either disposed off, buried, stored or sent to landfills, which is not only a financial loss but it is also detrimental to the environment in the long run. To avoid such problems, the idea of implant recycling has come as a boon. In addition, the idea of using the income obtained from this process for charity makes this program as a "cause with noble purpose." The practical possibility of this humanitarian program requires a teamwork involving Government, crematory authorities, family members, dentists, authorities of recycling company etc. Though the implant recycling is already in practice in few developed countries, its establishment in developing countries requires a lot of support and encouragement from all the concerned parties. Despite its versatile good will, the procedure has not yet recieved sufficient attention in the scientific literature. Aim of this article is to highlight the necessity of implant recycling, its influence on health field, society and our precious environment along with the description of each participant's suggestive role and pros and cons of the process are in brief.

As patients become increasingly aware of the esthetic potential through cosmetic dentistry, there is an increasing demand for smile makeovers with perioplastic surgeries. When gum tissue recedes due to periodontal disease, it pulls away from the teeth. Periodontal plastic surgery procedures can restore some coverage and dramatically improve a person's smile. Soft-tissue grafts and other root coverage procedures cover exposed roots and restore healthy gum tissue. This will reduce further bone loss and recession, make the tooth less sensitive, protect the root from root cavities and look more natural when you smile. In this paper, the scope of periodontal plastic surgery with the use of soft-tissue autografts has been outlined to aid the dental team in the proper diagnosis and treatment of the esthetic dental case.

Vascular malformations (VM) are errors of vascular morphogenesis present at lower incidence accounts approximately 7% of all benign tumors, about 1/3 ^rd of all VMs occur in the head and neck region, more than 50%. Arteriovenous malformations are present in the head and neck region. Clinicians who diagnose and treat oral conditions should be aware of these lesions and their impact on routine procedures. Proper recognition and therapeutic intervention can help avoid serious complications and potentially tragic outcomes.

Dentin dysplasia (DD) type I is an inherited autosomal dominant genetic defect affecting the dentin formation. Here, the teeth are characterized by normal appearing crowns, with absence or severe restriction of root formation, obliterated pulp chambers and periapical radiolucencies without an obvious cause. Clinically, the teeth can be poorly aligned, drifting and mobile and can prematurely exfoliate due to abnormal root formation. This condition is rarely encountered where little is known about the specific treatment of this disorder and management of patients with DD. This report documents one such rarity of DD type I in a 16-year-old female and the clinical and radiographical findings of this condition.

The mastication, phonation and esthetics: The trident factors are very important and should be given due consideration when any dental procedure is initiated to achieve the successful outcome of treatment. The prosthetic management of edentulous patient has long been a major challenge for dentistry. For well over a century, complete maxillary and mandibular denture have been the traditional standard of care. However, most of the patients report significantly more problems adapting to their mandibular denture due to a lack of comfort (e.g., they suffer from an increase in pain and soreness), retention, stability and inability to chew and eat. Recent scientific studies carried out over the past decade have determined that the benefits of a mandibular two implant over denture/coping retained are sufficient to propose the two implant over denture - rather than conventional denture - as the first treatment option. This in the prosthodontics literature has led to shift in therapeutic philosophy regarding restoration of the edentulous patient. This article presents four and two tooth supported conventional over denture - two case reports.

Solitary gingival enlargements are the commonly occurring soft-tissue tumors of the oral cavity. These lesions occur in response to local irritation or may occur as exaggerated tissue response to underlying systemic conditions. Commonly occurring solitary gingival enlargements include the pyogenic granuloma, peripheral giant cell granuloma, fibroma, peripheral ossifying fibroma, exophytic squamous cell carcinoma, abscesses, hemangioma, Kaposi's sarcoma etc., When present, they result in the diagnostic dilemma when the diagnosis is entirely based on clinical findings, in such conditions proper history and histopathological examination may aid in proper diagnosis and case management. This article is intended to address the importance of histopathological examination of various solitary enlargements that resemble clinically alike though they are different histpathologically. Biopsy results in turn will dictate the further treatment depending on the recurrence rate and the nature of the lesion. This article also focuses on few case reports of solitary gingival enlargements.