Introduction:Stevia (S. rebaudiana) a herb which has medicinal value and was used in ancient times as a remedy for a great diversity of ailments and sweetener. Leaves of Stevia contain a high concentration of Stevioside and Rebaudioside which are supposed to be sweetening agents.Aim:To compare the efficacy of aqueous and alcoholic S. rebaudiana extract against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus in comparison to chlorhexidine.Materials and Methods:In the first part of the study, various concentrations of aqueous and ethanolic Stevia extract were prepared in the laboratory of Pharmacy College. It was then subjected to microbiological assay to determine its zone of inhibition using Agar disk diffusion test and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) using serial broth dilution method against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus. Chlorhexidine was used as a positive control. One way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) test was used for multiple group comparisons followed by Tukey post hoc for group wise comparisons.Results:Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of aqueous and ethnolic Stevia extract against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus were 25% and 12.5% respectively. Mean zone of inhibition of the aqueous and alcoholic Stevia extracts against Streptococcus mutans at 48 hours were 22.8 mm and 26.7 mm respectively. Mean zone of inhibition of the aqueous and alcoholic Stevia extracts against Lactobacillus acidophilus at 48 hours were 14.4 mm and 15.1 mm respectively. Mean zone of inhibition of the chlorhexidine against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus at 48 hours was 20.5 and 13.2 respectively.Conclusion:The inhibitory effect shown by alcoholic Stevia extract against Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus acidophilus was superior when compared with that of aqueous form and was inferior when compared with Chlorhexidine.

Objectives:Traumatic dento-alveolar injuries are frequent in children and adolescents, affecting teeth, their supporting structures, and adjacent soft tissues. Because school teachers are likely to be in contact with the child soon after injury, it is important to ascertain their knowledge and attitude about this.Aim:The study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitude of school teachers in Coorg with regard to immediate management of avulsed teeth.Materials and Methods:This cross-sectional study was conducted among school teachers in Coorg district. A self-administered questionnaire containing 16 questions was given to a sample of 600 school teachers.Results:Descriptive statistics and independent sample t-test were used for analysis. Only 24.7% teachers thought the tooth was important and wanted to search for the avulsed tooth. Regarding the knowledge about replantation of tooth, 25.7% teachers knew that a fallen tooth can be placed back in the socket. Extraoral time for replantation of the tooth that was opted by 44 teachers (30.3%) was ≤30 min.Conclusion:This survey reflected the lack of experience and inadequate knowledge regarding dental trauma management among school teachers in Coorg. The implications of this study are directed toward education of these school teachers who are involved in the supervision of children in schools.

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Objective:The objective of this study is to assess the impact of caries prevalence on oral health-related quality of life among police personnel in Virajpet, South India.Materials and Methods:Police personnel were randomly selected from the 296 police staff working in Virajpet, India. They were invited for a dental examination and a questionnaire survey. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect their demographic information, and to determine the oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Caries experiences of the participants were recorded as per the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria (1997). The analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to compare within-group differences of the selected sociodemographic factors and the Chi-square analysis was used to explore the association between the variables.Results:All the 172 invited participants joined this study. Their mean age was 38.02 ± 9.08 years. There was no significant difference in oral health-related quality of life scores according to gender and age. The prevalence of dental caries was found to be 78% in the current study. Data analysis showed that there was no statistically significant association between the oral health-related quality of life scores and caries prevalence.Conclusion:The present study showed that there was no association between the oral health-related quality of life and caries prevalence among the police personnel in Virajpet.

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