After RME therapy, voice quality differences were found to be associated with increases in nasal width.

No abstract

The aim of this study was to compare femtosecond and Er:YAG laser systems with regard to enamel demineralization and bracket bond strength. Human-extracted premolars were randomized to three groups (n = 17) depending on the conditioning treatment used for the buccal surfaces: 37 % orthophosphoric acid, Er:YAG laser etching (MSP mode 120 mJ, 10 Hz, 1.2 W), and femtosecond laser etching (0.4 W, 800 nm, 90 fs/pulse, 1 kHz). Metal brackets were bonded with Transbond XT to the conditioned surfaces and light cured for 20 s. The samples were thermocycled (5000 cycles, 5-55 °C) and subjected to shear bond strength (SBS) testing using a universal testing machine. Failure types were analyzed under an optical stereomicroscope and SEM. The adhesive remnant index (ARI) was evaluated to assess residual adhesive on the enamel surface. The results revealed no significant differences in SBS between the Er:YAG laser (7.2 ± 3.3 MPa) and acid etching groups (7.3 ± 2.7 MPa; p < 0.05), whereas a significant difference was observed between the femtosecond laser etching group (3.3 ± 1.2 MPa) and the other two groups (p < 0.01). ARI scores were significantly different among the three groups. The results of our study suggest that laser conditioning with an Er:YAG system results in successful etching, similar to that obtained with acid. The sole use of a femtosecond laser system may not provide an adequate bond strength at the bracket-enamel interface.

No abstract

Background: Age-related legal problems are particularly common in underdeveloped parts of Turkey. Age determination is important in terms of both laws and penalties in the legal process. Objectives: The aim of the present study was to compare the validity of the Demirjian and Willems methods in southern Turkish children. Methods: In this retrospective study, panoramic radiographs of 745 southern Turkish children (382 boys and 363 girls) aged between 4 and 15.99 years were examined by one investigator. According to Demirjian and Willems method, the mean difference between chronological and dental age was calculated for each sex and age group. The Wilcoxon test was used to compare all data. Statistical analysis was performed to test the validity of Demirjian and Willems methods by comparing the mean estimated and chronological age. Results: The Demirjian's method overestimated age with a mean accuracy of 0.832 in females and by 0.923 in males, while Willems method overestimated it by 0.202 in females and 0.434 in males. Conclusions: The dental age estimation by Willems method was found to be more accurate than Demirjian method in contemporary Turkish pediatric population.