The objective of this study was to examine the association between sleep bruxism and psychological stress. The subjects consisted of 76 volunteers, who were divided into those with and without bruxism according to the diagnostic criteria for sleep bruxism outlined by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM). Stress sensitivity was evaluated before and after an experimental stress task, which involved simple mathematical calculations. It was assessed objectively by measuring the subjects' salivary chromogranin A (CgA) levels and subjectively using a ten-division visual analog scale (VAS). Compared with those observed before the stress task, the mean salivary CgA levels of the non-bruxism group (n = 54) were not significantly increased after the stress task. Conversely, the mean salivary CgA levels of the bruxism group (n = 22) were significantly increased after the stress task (P < 0.01). The mean VAS scores of the groups without (n = 54) and with (n = 22) bruxism were significantly (P < 0.01) increased after the stress task compared with those observed before the stress task, but no differences were detected between the two groups in the stress task. These findings suggest that there is an association between sleep bruxism and psychological stress sensitivity.Oral habits such as bruxism are thought to affect temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and might have a relatively strong effect on the durability of prosthetic appliances (20,30). Bruxism, which is defined as clenching or grinding of the teeth, or a combination of both, is a diurnal or nocturnal parafunctional activity and has long been regarded as requiring treatment (5). It is thought that bruxism is associated with psychological stress (1,2,8,10,22). On the other hand, some studies did not find any association between bruxism and stress (15,19). The following reasons might explain this disagreement. In most of the above studies, diurnal bruxism and sleep bruxism were not distinguished from each other, and there were variations in the methods used to evaluate oral habits. In addition, differing definitions of stress and various methods for assessing stress were employed in these studies (17). Also, in these studies, stress was evaluated subjectively, such as by self-reporting, questionnaires, etc. Thus, the relationship between bruxism and stress is much more complex than previously imagined and involves many psychosocial factors (17). When humans are exposed to psychological stressors, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathoadrenal medullary (SAM) system are activated (9,13,26). This results in changes of biomarkers, e.g., cortisol and/or chromogranin, etc., being secreted into the serum or saliva. Therefore, stress can be objectively evaluated by analyz-

307 probands with febrile convulsions classed as the simple type (131 children) and the complicated type (176 children) were genetically analyzed. There was a tendency toward familial aggregation of febrile convulsions, and genetic involvement was suggested. The multifactorial mode of inheritance best agreed with the observations. (1) The ratio of incidence of febrile convulsions in siblings of probands in the present study (19.9%) to the incidence in the general population (2.9%), i.e., 6.85, was rather close to the expected ratio of 5.87 from the multifactorial inheritance system. (2) The incidence in siblings tended to be higher when either or both of their parents had a history of febrile convulsions. In 2-child families where the first child was affected, the incidence in the second child tended to increase in parallel with the increasing incidence in parents. (3) The incidence in siblings was higher if probands were males. (4) The heritability, when estimated by Falconer’s procedure, was as high as 76%, showing that febrile convulsions are strongly genetically predisposed. These findings were more distinctly observed in the simple type than in the complicated type.

Maxillofacial prostheses are prosthetic appliances for replacing areas of the maxilla, mandible, and face that may be missing as a result of malignant disease, trauma, or congenital deformities [1,2]. Somatic prostheses include fingers, thumbs, partial hands, hands, breasts, tracheostomies, toes, partial feet, and other areas of the body, but exclude prosthetic devices for weight-bearing anatomy [3]. Among the various prosthetic materials, silicone is the most commonly used material because of its good physical properties over an appropriate temperature range, ease of manipulation, high degree of chemical inertness, low degree of toxicity, and high degree of thermal and oxidative stability [4]. However, silicone has some problems with regard to physical property degradation, discoloration, and adhesive deterioration over time under daily environmental conditions [5,6]. These problems occur in the thin margins of prostheses. Although prostheses can be attached to skin adhesives, bone-anchored implants, or anatomical features, medical skin adhesives are the most common retentive method. Skin adhesives have the disadvantage of being compromised by irritation, perspiration, and movement at the bond site [7][8][9]. Moreover, prostheses are generally colonized by complex microbial biofilms, which can cause material degradation and skin irritation. Colonization by Candida spp. and Staphylococcus aureus was reported to be significantly higher on prosthesis-covered skin than on healthy skin [10]. Thus, novel adhesive materials for prosthetics are required. Moreover, it is desirable for such materials to have antimicrobial function.Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC)-loaded montmorillonite (Mont) (hereafter denoted as CPC-Mont) was introduced as a new antimicrobial formulation for the controlled release of CPC, which is associated with sustained antimicrobial activity [11]. CPC is a cationic

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