There is a paucity of information concerning vital pulp treatment outcomes in the undergraduate teaching setting. This study aimed to determine which type of deciduous molar, arch location, type of vital pulp therapy, and the number of carious surfaces involved had a better prognosis when carried out by undergraduate dental students. The method used was the review of clinical records of 590 patients with 600 deciduous molars, that visited the outpatient undergraduate dental clinics for vital pulp therapy. Statistical analysis used to determine the associations of tooth type, arch location, treatment type, and the number of carious surfaces involved in successful outcomes was logistic regression analysis with significance set at p < 0.05. According to the regression analysis model results, there was a significant association based on tooth type (p < 0.05) and arch location (p = 0.003). In addition, there was a significant association based on the type of treatment performed (p = 0.036). However, there was no significant association in success rates based on the number of carious surfaces involved (p = 0.873). In conclusion, second deciduous molars and maxillary deciduous molars had a better overall prognosis, and indirect pulp therapy was revealed to be more highly associated with successful treatment outcomes in comparison to ferric sulfate pulpotomy in our setting.

Mothers play a very significant role in influencing the oral health status of the family. Many studies have highlighted the importance of good oral health during pregnancy. This study aimed to assess knowledge, self-perceived oral health status, and practices of antenatal mothers in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, Malaysia. A total of 76 antenatal mothers visiting Obstetrics & Gynaecology specialist clinic at Hospital USM were involved in this cross-sectional survey study. The questionnaires contained items related to oral health knowledge, self-perceived dental problems, barriers to seeking dental care, oral hygiene habits, perceptions of oral health, and access to dental care. Majority (98.7%) agreed that their oral health was important as part of general health. About 58% of them had answered correctly regarding oral health knowledge. Most respondents had self-perceptions of having dental problems during pregnancy, including cavitated teeth (34.4%) and sensitive teeth (20.5%). Regarding practice, only 35.3% visited a dentist in the last six months. Time constraints (52.4%) and safety concerns regarding dental treatment (26.2%) were the main barriers to seek dental care. Many (90%) brushed their teeth at least twice daily with adult fluoridated toothpaste, while some used mouthwash daily (36.8%) and flossed their teeth (11.8%). Antenatal mothers had an average level of knowledge regarding oral health, experienced dental problems during pregnancy and lacked awareness of a regular dental visit. Hence, there is a need for more vigorous oral health promotion, which also include antenatal care providers, to improve oral health awareness among antenatal mothers.

Oral health and dental aesthetics have become increasingly important in contemporary society. However, the public faces a wide range of choices among oral care services and facilities provided by the government and private sectors, which occasionally involve unregistered dental operators. This study aims to evaluate the public's preferences towards the selection of oral healthcare providers in Malaysia. A cross-sectional, online self-administered questionnaire was distributed to the workers in government agencies in Kota Bharu, aged between 18-60 years old from July to October 2017. Questions were primarily close-ended and consisted of 17 questions on demographics, questions on factors associated with the selection of dental service providers in Likert-scale format. Out of the 575 sent individual emails, 236 voluntarily responses were retrieved, of which 45.8% were male and 54.2% were female. The highest percentage of the respondents belongs to the age group of 31 to 40 years. The most important factors that affect the respondents’ selection of dental care providers are facilities and equipment in a dental clinic (86%), followed by dentist reputation and working experience (85.1%), and technical competency of a dentist (83.9%). Overall, the respondents demonstrated a positive response towards the selection of oral healthcare providers and dental professions. Addressing the valuable factors in promoting dental services by the registered government and private sectors are essential to developing a secure and efficient oral healthcare system for the public

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic illness that results in abnormally high blood sugar levels. It can result in a range of complications. Objective: The purpose of this study is to present an ideal variable selection strategy utilizing proven Multiple Linear Regression (MLR) models and to validate the variable using Multilayer Perceptron Neural Network (MLP) models. This will validate a factor linked with body mass index (BMI) status in individuals with dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes mellitus. Materials and Methods: Thirty-nine patients were selected from Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). Many variables, including BMI, gender, age, race, coronary heart disease status, waist circumference, alanine transferase, triglycerides, and dyslipidemia, were assessed in this retrospective analysis using advanced computational statistical modelling approaches. This study uses R-Studio software and syntax. Each sample's statistics were generated using a hybrid model combining bootstrap and multiple linear regression. Results: R's statistical approach demonstrates that regression modelling is superior to R-squared performance. The hybrid model may better predict the outcome by separating the datasets into a training and testing set. The well-known bootstrap-integrated MLR technique was used to determine the validity of the variables. The eight variables examined in this case are gender ( : -2.329; p < 0.25), age ( : -0.151; p < 0.25), race ( : 2.504; p < 0.25), coronary heart disease status ( : -0.481; p < 0.25), waist circumference ( : 0.572; p < 0.25), alanine transferase ( : 0.002; p < 0.25), triglycerides ( : 0.046; p < 0.25), and dyslipidemia ( : 30.769; p < 0.25). There is a linear model that has a 9.019188 MSE.lm in this case. Conclusion: This study will develop and extensively evaluate a novel hybrid approach combining bootstrapping and multiple linear regression. The R syntax for this procedure was chosen to ensure that the researcher comprehends the example completely. The statistical methods used to conduct this research study using R show that regression modelling is better than R-squared values for the predicted mean squared error. Thus, the study's conclusion shows that the hybrid model technique is superior. This vital conclusion helps us better understand the hybrid method's relative contribution to the result in this case.

Children undergoing anesthesia, including dental treatment under general anesthesia (DGA), tend to develop severe preoperative anxiety. Oral Midazolam is one of the many premedications used in controlling behavior and reducing anxiety in children before general anesthesia. This study is aimed to evaluate the effect of oral midazolam premedication on recovery behavior and physiologic effects of children undergoing DGA. It involved thirty uncooperative children aged from 2 to 11 years old. Group I (n = 15): children received 0.5 mg/kg midazolam orally, while Group II (n = 15): children who did not receive any premedication. Their peripheral capillary oxygen saturation, respiratory rate, and heart rate were measured upon arrival at the post-anesthesia care unit. The recovery behavior was evaluated using the Modified Houpt Behavior Rating Scale. Fisher's Exact test and Mann-Whitney test were used for data analysis. There are no significant differences in both groups' post-behavior and physiologic parameters (p>0.05). However, children in Group II reported tachycardia (13.3%, n= 2), hypoxemia (13.3%, n= 2), and bradypnea (13.3%, n= 2), compared to one case of bradypnea (6.7%) in Group I at 30 minutes. Although there were no significant differences between both groups (p>0.05), Group I showed less movement and no crying reaction but was more awake—no significant association of premedication oral midazolam with successful recovery behavior (p=0.381). One child in Group II had an episode of vomiting. An interesting pattern of improved recovery behavior and physiology was identified among children receiving oral midazolam premedication. More research with a bigger sample size is needed to investigate the effect of oral Midazolam in pediatric DGA and to determine the optimal effect of premedication.