The Hazardous Effects of Dental Amalgam Fillings in Human Body: A Systematic Review

The Dental amalgam used in the dental fillings is basically an alloy of mercury (Hg). The amalgam is one of the most commonly used and versatile restorative material. Since more than 150 years this alloy of mercury, that is amalgam is used for it been economical, easy to use, durable, high strength and bacterio-static characteristics. Due to environmental pollution, detrimental health its use is decreasing in recent times. Also its not so appealing like the other materials used that resemble the tooth color. The tooth coloured restorative materials are recommended by both the doctor and the patient. Many researchers suggested that over the period of time the mercury from the filling might leach into the mouth. Thus in this study a detailed review of all the literature available online is done to understand the hazardous effects of dental amalgam fillings in the human body. The systematic literature search using Scopus, PubMed, EMBASE and Web of Science electronic databases was done using PRISMA. The experiments conducted in Sheep and monkey suggested the penetration of amalgam into the jaw bone of the patient with dental restorations. Constant exposure of mercury at lower levels can also lead to multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. Most commonly reported renal dysfunction due to the dental amalgams are Tubular and Glomerular damage of the kidneys.

A Comparative Review of Material Properties for Current and Future Dental Filling Nanomaterials

ABSTRACT Nanomaterials observe specialized properties relative to gross materials. Due to their small size, specialized nanomaterial properties include decreased reactivity, an increased surface area to volume ratio, heightened structural properties, and in some cases, antimicrobial and antibacterial effects. Current researchers are looking to use nanoparticle/nanomaterial properties to solve prevalent dental issues that cannot be addressed with traditionally used materials. This paper will serve as an extensive review of current nanomaterial applications as they pertain to dental fillings and dental filling processes. Comparative assessments of traditional materials used in dental fillings will be made as well as comparative assessments of currently used nanomaterials in dental fillings. Material comparisons are based on criteria pertaining to biocompatibility, toxicity, reactivity, cost, and antimicrobial/antibacterial properties. When comparing the three most currently used dental filling nanomaterials – Carbon-Based Nanotubes, Silica Nanoparticles and Silver-Coated Nanoparticles – it was observed that Silica Nanoparticles demonstrated the greatest material advantage and should be recommended for continued use. Issues regarding future developmental dental filling applications of graphene nanoparticles, organic nanoparticles and gold nanoparticles will also be discussed. Keywords: Nanomaterials, antibacterial, dental fillings, silica resins, biocompatibility.

Examination of Glass-Fibre Reinforced Composite Dental Fillings

In dentistry, the use of dental fillings is a routine procedure. The use of fillings is a cheap, simple and low-harm dental operation, however, the filling of deep cavities is a difficult task. During this research, three types of fillings were tested: composite fillings bonded directly to the cavity walls, fillings bonded to the cavity walls with a semi-direct method, and composite fillings bonded to the cavity lined with polyethylene fibres. In the course of our examinations, the gaps between the wall of the dental cavity and the dental filling were observed using scanning electron microscopy. The results of these measurements can be used to determine the quality of each type of filling procedure.

DMF Index among Amelogenesis Imperfecta Patients: Systematic Review of the Literature

Objectives. The aim of this study was to explore the literature in order to assess systematically the association between amelogenesis imperfecta (AI) and caries development and to evaluate the DMF index among AI patients. Basic Research Design. PubMed was used to explore the database Medline. The key words used were “Amelogenesis Imperfecta” [Mesh], “Dental Caries” [Mesh], “Tooth Loss” [Mesh], “DMF Index” [Mesh], and “Dental Restoration, Permanent” [Mesh]. Moreover, an ad hoc search was performed in order to make the study as exhaustive as possible. Results. Fifty-five articles were retained. The total number of patients gathered was 499. A percentage of 68.8% of the articles dealt with cases with a relatively low dental caries process, 20.8% dealt with cases in which the dental caries process was relatively moderate, and 10.4% dealt with cases in which the dental caries process was severe. Teeth extraction due to dental caries was mentioned in 10 articles. Eleven articles, concerning 53 patients, mentioned dental fillings. Four patients did not have dental filling due to dental caries. DMF index was very low in 2 articles and low-to-high in 3 articles. Conclusion. Low dental caries susceptibility with AI patients was noticed in this study. A possible factor could be the lack of proximal contacts and elimination of fissures through enamel loss. The lack of dental caries susceptibility was also explained by the microbacterial specificity of hypoplastic AI patients. Moreover, it was also noted that the prevalence of dental caries among AI patients depends on sociodemographic change.

Foreign body of endodontic origin in the maxillary sinus

Displacement of foreign bodies into the maxillary sinus is still a rare pathology, but the incidence is increasing continuously with the development of dental procedures. Most cases of foreign bodies are associated with dental procedures. These can be of varying natures, such as dental implants, fractured teeth roots, endodontic materials and tools, dental burs, dental impression materials or dental fillings materials. Less frequent are the foreign bodies of non-dental origin, which are related to facial injuries in accidents or assaults. The diagnosis is based on careful clinical and radiological examinations. Foreign bodies should be diagnosed and treated on time in order to prevent complications, mainly acute or chronic rhinosinusitis. In this article, we review the main characteristics regarding the incidence, etiology, diagnosis and treatment options – endoscopic and an external approach for the removal of a displaced foreign body into the maxillary sinus. Also, we present our personal experience and treatment options, highlighting the importance of pre-operative evaluation, proper imaging assessment, adequate access and visibility and adequate surgical technique, in order to prevent later sinonasal infectious complications.

Does workplace social capital predict care quality through job satisfaction and stress at the clinic? A prospective study

Background Welfare societies like Sweden face challenges in balancing the budget while meeting the demand for good quality healthcare. The aim of this study was to analyse whether care quality, operationalized as survival of dental fillings, is predicted by workplace social capital and if this effect is direct or indirect (through stress and/or job satisfaction among staff at the clinic), controlling for patient demographics. Methods The prospective design includes A) work environment data from surveys of 75 general public dental clinics (aggregated data based on 872 individual ratings), and B) register-based survival of 9381dental fillings performed during a 3-month period around the time of the survey, and C) patient demographics (age, gender, income level and birth place). Using a multi-level discrete-time proportional hazard model, we tested whether clinic-level social capital, stress, and job satisfaction could predict tooth-level filling failure, controlling for patient demographics. One direct and two indirect pathways, moderated by filling tooth, location, and filling type, were tested. Results High workplace social capital reduced the risk of early failure of fillings in molar teeth, mediated by group-perceived job satisfaction (indirect path: OR = 0.93, p < .05, direct path from job satisfaction: OR = 0.89, p < .05). Contrary to expectations, we found no support for a direct effect from social capital on care quality or for the indirect pathway via stress at the clinic level. Conclusions Workplace social capital boosted the quality of dental fillings through increased levels of job satisfaction. In addition, staff at clinics with higher social capital reported less stress and higher levels of job satisfaction. These results indicate that promotion of social capital may improve both occupational health and care quality.

Geometric and dosimetric impact of 3D generative adversarial network-based metal artifact reduction algorithm on VMAT and IMPT for the head and neck region

Background We investigated the geometric and dosimetric impact of three-dimensional (3D) generative adversarial network (GAN)-based metal artifact reduction (MAR) algorithms on volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) and intensity-modulated proton therapy (IMPT) for the head and neck region, based on artifact-free computed tomography (CT) volumes with dental fillings. Methods Thirteen metal-free CT volumes of the head and neck regions were obtained from The Cancer Imaging Archive. To simulate metal artifacts on CT volumes, we defined 3D regions of the teeth for pseudo-dental fillings from the metal-free CT volumes. HU values of 4000 HU were assigned to the selected teeth region of interest. Two different CT volumes, one with four (m4) and the other with eight (m8) pseudo-dental fillings, were generated for each case. These CT volumes were used as the Reference. CT volumes with metal artifacts were then generated from the Reference CT volumes (Artifacts). On the Artifacts CT volumes, metal artifacts were manually corrected for using the water density override method with a value of 1.0 g/cm3 (Water). By contrast, the CT volumes with reduced metal artifacts using 3D GAN model extension of CycleGAN were also generated (GAN-MAR). The structural similarity (SSIM) index within the planning target volume was calculated as quantitative error metric between the Reference CT volumes and the other volumes. After creating VMAT and IMPT plans on the Reference CT volumes, the reference plans were recalculated for the remaining CT volumes. Results The time required to generate a single GAN-MAR CT volume was approximately 30 s. The median SSIMs were lower in the m8 group than those in the m4 group, and ANOVA showed a significant difference in the SSIM for the m8 group (p < 0.05). Although the median differences in D98%, D50% and D2% were larger in the m8 group than the m4 group, those from the reference plans were within 3% for VMAT and 1% for IMPT. Conclusions The GAN-MAR CT volumes generated in a short time were closer to the Reference CT volumes than the Water and Artifacts CT volumes. The observed dosimetric differences compared to the reference plan were clinically acceptable.

An Overview of Evidence that Mercury from Dental Fillings may be an Etiological Factor in Many Health Disorders

Aim: The purpose of this paper is to summarize the research regarding the toxic health effects caused by mercury dental amalgams. Method: The study involved summarizing scientific articles in journals regarding health effects of dental amalgam mercury. Results: The science strongly suggests dental amalgam mercury may be an etiological factor in numerous health disorders. Mental health seems to be affected the most including such conditions as depression, anger, and irritability. Studies have also associated it with schizophrenia and bipolar disorders. The cardiovascular system also is affected including high blood pressure, heart rate, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and red blood cells. Subjects with amalgams have a decreased T lymphocyte percentage compared to a control, and the immunoglobins IgG, IgA, and IgE correlated with the number of amalgams. Myopia is reduced in amalgam bearing subjects but amalgam mercury is constricting the visual field. When comparing total health disorders of subjects with amalgams compared to those without, they suffered 45% more health disorders. Urine and hair mercury levels were significantly higher in subjects with amalgams compared to those without. The scientific evidence strongly suggests that amalgam mercury is associated with Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and amytrophic lateral sclerosis. Research has shown when amalgams are removed many health conditions improve. Conclusion: The evidence is overwhelming that mercury from dental amalgam is an etiological factor in many health disorders.