Objectives: A single-blinded randomized controlled trial was designed to compare and evaluate the effectiveness of the periotome and piezotome as aids for atraumatic extraction and its sequalae. Materials and Methods:The study sample comprised 48 teeth, equally allotted to the piezotome or periotome groups by random allocation, in participants aged 19-62 years. All samples in both groups had either complete tooth structure or intact roots without crowns and had mobility ≤grade II. Clinical parameters of operative duration, presence or absence of gingival laceration, reported operative and postoperative pain, and intake of analgesics following extraction were recorded. IBM SPSS software package version 22 was used for data entry and analysis. Results: The mean operation time was significantly (P≤0.05) longer in the piezotome group than in the periotome group. However, fewer gingival lacerations were observed with use of a piezotome than with a periotome, although no significant difference was observed. The piezotome group reported significantly (P≤0.05) higher visual analog scale (VAS) pain scores during the procedure and non-significantly higher scores thereafter until the third postoperative day. In the piezotome group, the dosage of analgesic was higher, although the periotome group had a higher percentage of participants who used analgesics postoperatively; however, these differences were not statistically significant. Conclusion:The present clinical trial favors the use of periotome over piezotome for atraumatic extraction due to shorter operating time, lower postoperative VAS pain scores, and lower dosage of analgesics despite the superior ability of the piezotome to prevent gingival laceration.

Dental practice has evolved over time and has adapted to the challenges that it has faced. The risk of infection spread via droplet and airborne routes poses a significant risk to the dentist who works close to patients. The risk of cross-infection between dental health-care personnel and patients can be very high due to the peculiar arrangements of dental settings. Dental clinics should have air purification systems with high volume excavators and negative pressure rooms for COVID-19 screening. Mucormycosis is a fungal disease that mostly occurs in immunocompromised individuals and those with uncontrolled diabetes. Dental extraction can trigger the occurrence. Increased occurrence of mucormycosis is seen in COVID-affected patients. This article gives a review on the dentistry-related transmission of COVID 19, the relation of COVID and mucormycosis.

Estimates show that the prevalence of mandibular dental anterior crowding is high and might be up to 40%. The etiology of the condition has been multifactorial and evidence regarding the impact of mandibular third molars is still controversial. We discussed the potential role that impacted teeth (particularly mandibular third molars) might have in developing dental arch crowding. Evidence from different original studies and reviews regarding the impact of lower third molars on dental crowding was controversial. However, most of these studies showed that the correlation between these events was insignificant and additional studies might be needed for further validation. We have also identified many factors that can lead to dental arch crowding among the relevant studies in the literature. These factors might include general factors (including gender and age), skeletal factors (including malocclusion and growth of jaws) and dental factors (including primary tooth loss and tooth crown size), all of which were extensively discussed in the current study. Accordingly, further attention should also be paid to studying these factors.