Background: A variety of approaches have been developed for the control of dental caries, a pathology
with high incidence and prevalence worldwide. The use of probiotic strains for the modulation of dental
biofilm in the prevention of caries has been studied, but the available evidence shows varied methodologies;
and the strains tested differ from one study to another.
Objective: To analyse through a systematic review of clinical trials, the efficacy of using probiotic strains
to prevent dental caries.
Methods: A search was made in the scientific bases PubMed, Cochrane and Science Direct, prioritizing
randomized double and triple-blind clinical trials from 2010 to 2020, including a total of 20 studies to be
analysed. The selection criteria were consistent with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews
protocol.
Results: Within the studies, different types of probiotic bacteria were analysed, dominating Lactobacillus
Paracasei. While most clinical trials show a favorable response in terms of a significant reduction of
Streptococcus mutans in the oral microbiota, very few studies evaluated salivary pH and sIgA levels.
Conclusion: The heterogeneity of the studies analysed and the multifactorial nature of dental caries do not
allow us to ensure that probiotic therapy is completely effective in preventing this pathology. Although
probiotic therapy can help by regulating the microbiological factor, there are other determinants that can
favor the development of caries and that are barely approached in their relationship with bacteriotherapy.
Future studies that homogeneously evaluate the use of probiotics could give us a clearer idea of their
effectiveness.
Introduction: Ameloblastoma is a benign odontogenic tumor that is aggressive and localised in nature,
listed as the first or second most prevalent odontogenic tumor and rarely tends to metastasis, but when it
does, it receives the definition adopted by the WHO in 2017 of metastasizing ameloblastoma.
Materials and Methods: This systematic review of clinical case reports of metastasizing ameloblastoma
from the last 10 years, collected from PubMed, ScienceDirect and Cochrane digital databases, aims to search
for association between clinical/pathological and/or molecular parameters of ameloblastoma and its
metastatic potential.
Results: The targeted search yielded 14 publications with a total of 18 clinical cases, which showed a mean
age for diagnosis of metastasizing ameloblastoma of 46 years, with no gender predilection and a high
probability of occurrence in the yellow Asian race, favouring a pattern of distant dissemination. The highest
frequency of metastasis was associated with mandibular primary lesions diagnosed in young patients, and
the most frequently found variant was the multicystic solid type, follicular subtype; distant metastasis was
the predominant form of presentation, with the lungs being the main target.
Conclusion: At the moment, there is nothing that can predict metastatic potential in ameloblastoma. More
standardised studies exploring the molecular terrain are needed, as this is a key and understudied factor.
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