Objective: To assess some habits and practices related to denture wearing among subjects reporting to Watim Teaching Dental Hospital, Rawalpindi. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted at Watim Dental College, Rawalpindi, from December 2018 to August 2019. Using a pre-structured questionnaire, data were collected from 155 subjects having used complete dentures for a minimum of 6-months. The questionnaire consisted of information including the type of dentures, duration and frequency of denture wearing, and denture cleaning habits. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results: Out of 155 participants, 80 (51.6%) were male and 75 (48.4%) were females. 89 (57.4%) patients use toothbrushes and soap for denture cleaning. 139 (89.7%) participants didn’t wear dentures while sleeping and soaked them in water. 98 (63.2%) respondents were not using antiseptic oral rinse and were casual in mouth-cleaning. Conclusion: From this study, it is concluded that 65 (41.9%) subjects were cleaning their dentures once a day. The study also reveals that 65 (41.9%) edentulous participants were not able to clean their oral cavity. Dentists should emphasize the importance of recall visits to evaluate the status of denture hygiene along with mucosal surface examination. Patient motivation to follow hygiene instructions and informing them about the harmful effects of overnight wearing of dentures should be part of delivering the prostheses to them.

A sample size of 285 subjects (95 cases and 190 controls) was enrolled in the study. Anamnestic questionnaire was administered to the patients fulfilling the criteria. Based on the score attained, patients were grouped as TMD patients (case) or TMD free patients (control). A pre-designed performa was used to record the data. SPSS v.17.0 was used for descriptive and inferential analysis. RESULTS: The mean age of the participants was 33.3±11.2 years with male to female ratio of with 1.26:1. Maximum of the participants (72%) were of 41 years or less. Overall mean number of missing teeth in all participants was 3.41±3.08. Mean number of missing teeth in cases and controls was 4.46±3.65 and 2.89±2.60 respectively (p< 0.001). Tooth loss of <5 teeth & ≥5 teeth was observed in 53 & 42 cases as compared to 128 & 62 controls respectively (OR=0.61; 95% CI: 0.36 to 1.01; p-vale 0.056). The relationship for number of quadrants with number of missing teeth in cases and control groups was significant (p-value=<0.001). CONCLUSION: Present study indicates that there is significant correlation between the numbers of quadrants with tooth loss and TMD. Increasing the number of quadrants with tooth loss will increase the risk of TMD. However, the number of teeth lost itself has no association with TMD.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the abutments in subjects requesting for fixed dental prosthesis (FDP) and to determine the frequency of compromised coronal conditions and their severity levels. Study Design: Descriptive, Cross-sectional Study. Setting: Department of Prosthodontics at Watim Dental Hospital, Rawalpindi. Period: August 2019 to March 2020. Material & Methods: Conducted on 163 subjects. Abutments were evaluated in terms of clinical crown length, crown inclination, caries and/or fracture, type and quality of restoration. Abutments were categorized on the basis of complexity of the procedure required to make the abutment usable for fixed dental prosthesis. Arch-wise distribution of the abutment with compromised conditions and their proportion was also calculated. Results: The mean age of the participants was 39.42 + 11.56 years with male to female ratio of with 2.2:1. Maximum number of the patients had edentulous spaces located in the mandibular posterior region. Tooth no. 46 displayed the highest frequency of use as abutment while tooth no. 18, 28,31,32,42 displayed the least frequency of use as FDP abutment. About half of the abutments (47%) had compromised restoration quality. On the basis of the degree of compromise, 41.1% of the abutments were usable without further treatment or required a simple corrective procedure, 45.4% required a relatively complex procedure to make them useable while 11% had sufficient compromise to preclude their use for FPD support. Only 2.5% of abutments were classified as adequate. Conclusion: About half of the studied abutments in subjects reporting for replacement of missing teeth with FDP were found to be compromised and a substantial proportion required complex restorative treatment/re-treatment prior to be used as FDP abutments.

Objective: To determine the mean satisfaction score for patients with complete dentures and to compare the mean satisfaction score of patients with complete dentures and without past denture experience. Study design and Setting; It was a cross-sectional study conducted at Watim Dental College, Rawalpindi, from March to August 2018. Methodology: A total of 98 patients were selected and were asked regarding previous history of denture usage and their experience with the new set of dentures; in terms of function, comfort, appearance and total satisfaction. As a protocol all patients presenting to outpatient department and those patients who fulfilled the criteria were referred to Prosthodontic department for provision of complete dentures by specialist prosthodontist. Data was analysed using SPSS version 20. Descriptive statistics were calculated for both qualitative and quantitative variables. For qualitative variables like gender frequency and percentages was calculated. For Quantitative variables like age, score of function, comfort, appearance and total satisfaction mean and standard deviation were calculated. Mean± SD was calculated for satisfaction score among patients with and without past experience of denture usage. Independent sample t-test was used to compare quantitative variables. P values of less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Mean score of function, comfort, appearance and total satisfaction was greater among the patients with past denture experience as compared to new denture wearers with no past experience of denture wearing. Conclusion: Past denture experience has significant effect on patient satisfaction with their new complete dentures

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy of Halstead and Vasirani Akinosi block techniques in achieving mandibular anesthesia during exodontia among subjects reporting to Watim Teaching Hospital. STUDY DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: This study was conducted in the department of Maxillofacial Surgery, Watim Dental Hospital, Rawalpindi from July 2019 to January2020. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a randomized control trail of 60 patients. Duration of onset of anesthesia, pain during injection, incidence of aspiration, success and failure of Halstead and Vasirani Akinosi techniques and their mean doses were analyzed and compared by using SPSS version 17.Comparison of categorical variables was done by Chi-square test. Comparison of non-categorical variables was done by independent sample t-test. p value of less than 0.05 was considered significant. RESULTS: 28(93.3%) experienced moderate while 2(6.7%) experienced severe pain in Halstead group, while 30(100%) experienced mild pain in Vasirani Akinosi group. Halstead technique was successful in 22(73.3%) while unsuccessful in 8(26.7%) patients. Vasirani Akinosi technique was successful in 29(96.7%) and unsuccessful in 1(3.3%) patients. CONCLUSION: It may be concluded from analysis in the present study that Vasirani Akinosi technique was statistically superior in all parameters such as duration of onset, pain during injection, aspiration and success rate as compared to the conventional Halstead block technique. KEY WORDS: Extraction tooth, local anesthesia, Vasirani-Akinosi technique, nerve block.