Background: Saliva has been recently proposed as an alternative to classic biofluid analyses due to both availability and reliability regarding the evaluation of various biomarkers. Biosensors have been designed for the assessment of a wide spectrum of compounds, aiding in the screening, diagnosis, and monitoring of pathologies and treatment efficiency. This literature review aims to present the development in the biosensors research and their utility using salivary assessment. Methods: a comprehensive literature search has been conducted in the PubMed database, using the keywords “saliva” and “sensor”. A two-step paper selection algorithm was devised and applied. Results: The 49 papers selected for the present review focused on assessing the salivary biomarkers used in general diseases, oral pathologies, and pharmacology. The biosensors proved to be reliable tools for measuring the salivary levels of biochemical metabolic compounds such as glucose, proteinases and proteins, heavy metals and various chemical compounds, microorganisms, oncology markers, drugs, and neurotransmitters. Conclusions: Saliva is a biofluid with a significant clinical applicability for the evaluation and monitoring of a patient’s general health. Biosensors designed for assessing a wide range of salivary biomarkers are emerging as promising diagnostic or screening tools for improving the patients’ quality of life.

Introduction: Pregnancy is a physiological condition characterized by multiple changes in the entire woman's body, including the oral cavity. Gingival hyperplasia, gingivitis, pyogenic granulomas and some salivary changes are common conditions in pregnant women.Purpose: To assess the dental practitioner's medical knowledge regarding the dental maneuvers allowed during pregnancy and the drug prescriptions for these patients in the dental office. Methodology:In the present study, 128 active dentists with professional experience of one to 30 years were included. An online questionnaire was applied using the www. isondaje.ro platform. The questionnaire was intended to be anonymous, with responses being collected online. The first set of questions assessed the socio-demographic data, the specialization, and the professional experience. The second set of questions referred to the therapeutic approach of the pregnant women: the type of treatment and the period during pregnancy when they chose to perform the dental treatments. The third set of questions referred to the dental X-rays recommendation in pregnant women. The last category of questions addressed to the medication prescribed or administered to pregnant patients. Results:The data were quantified by calculating the arithmetic averages. Most participants had experience in the medical dental practice, therefore the answers were relevant for this study. More than half of the doctors surveyed stated that they would only treat a pregnant woman in emergency situations. Less than half would treat a pulp pathology only in emergency, but a pulp gangrene at any time during pregnancy. Regarding the extractions, the majority of the dentists would prefer to delay the treatment. Conclusion:An important number of dentists have insufficient knowledge related to the dental treatments that can be performed in a pregnant woman. Therefore, post-graduate courses are required in order to up-date the knowledge of dentists.

There is insufficient data on the use of NOACs during bleeding procedures in the dental office versus old oral anticoagulants. The current therapeutic indications are mostly based on the pharmacodynamics or on small cohort studies. Data from the literature has been reviewed in this respect. A 62-year-old patient under treatment with Rivaroxaban complained of transitory pain in the posterior upper-right jaw. The extraction of second upper right molar was performed, followed by the suture of the socket. According to the therapeutic indications and the available literature on the subject, the administration of the anticoagulant was not ceased. In the following days, repeated bleeding episodes were reported in direct correlation with the timing of Rivaroxaban administration and dose reduction was required to stop post-operative bleeding.Thus, the effect of NOACs could be unpredictable, as shown in the present case report. Therefore, further clinical research on the subject is needed.