Oral health status in patients with moderate-severe and terminal renal failure.
Aims. To evaluate the oral health status of patients with moderate-severe chronic renal failure (CRF) and with terminal renal failure (TRF). Design. The study group was formed of 50 patients: 22 (44%) with moderate-severe CRF and 28 (56%) with TRF included in a haemodialysis programme. The controls (n=64) presented similar characteristics with regard to sex, age, weight and educational level. A single dentist performed an intraoral examination on all the subjects, gathering information on: number of decayed, missing or filled teeth; supragingival plaque accumulation; calculus deposits; periodontal pockets in the Ramfjord teeth; and loss of insertion. Results. No significant differences were…
Oral Health Scales: Design of an Oral Health Scale of Infectious Potential
Objectives: In this paper we propose a new Global Oral Health Scale that will allow the infectious potential of the oral cavity, clinically manifest as local and focal infections, to be condensed into a single parameter. Study Design: Based on a number of oral health scales previously designed by our group, we designed a final version that incorporates dental and periodontal variables (some of them evaluated using corroborated objective indices) that reflect the presence of caries and periodontal disease. Results: The application of the proposed oral health scale requires the examination of 6 sites per tooth (mesio- buccal, medio-buccal, disto-buccal, disto-lingual, medio-lingual and mesio-…
Control of drooling using transdermal scopolamine skin patches. A case report.
Transdermal scopolamine has been shown to be very useful in the management of drooling, particularly in patients with neurological or neuropsychiatric disturbances or severe developmental disorders. In this paper, we present the case of a 24-year-old patient with a diagnosis of cerebral palsy and a severe problem of drooling, exacerbated by marked mandibular prognathism. After exclusion of other therapeutic alternatives, it was decided to use sustainedrelease transdermal scopolamine patches (Scopoderm TTS). This technique consists of the application every three days of a patch with 1.5 mg of scopolamine in the area of the mastoid apophysis; the patch releases a dose of 0.5 mg of the active …