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Objectives: Tooth morphology plays an important role in dental anthropology& forensic odontology. This study was conducted to determine the frequencies of variationsin occlusal surface patterns in permanent mandibular second molars in a subset of Pakistanipopulation. Data Source: 500 medical and dental students of Dow University of Health Sciencesand healthy volunteers visiting the dental OPD with age range from 17 to 25 years. Design ofStudy: Cross-sectional analytical Study. Setting: Department of Oral Biology, Dr. IshratulIbadKhan Institute of Oral Health Sciences, Dow University of Health Sciences. Period: May 2017till August 2017. Materials & Methods: This analytical study was conducted in the departmentof Oral Biology at Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan Institute of Oral Health Science. Five hundred dentalcasts after interoral exam and impression taking were studied for the variations in the frequencyof of cusps and their relative groove and fissure pattern. Statistical analysis was performed byDescriptive analysis and Chi Square. Results: Out of the fivbe hundred casts that were analysed,51% were of males and 49% were of females. The four-cusped variety of mandibular molars withpresence of distal fovea and distal marginal ridge was the most frequent (95.4%) while the mostprevalent occlusal groove form was “+” shape (88.4%). Frequently present occlusal patternwas the “+4” form (85.4%). Conclusion: The occlusal configurations of mandibular molarsshowed high degree of variability. The most frequently occurring pattern of occlusal surface ofmandibular second molars in this subset of Pakistani population was determined to be “+4”form. These findings can be used for forensic, teaching & clinical purposes by providing aPakistani database for morphological characteristic of mandibular molars.

Background: Dental caries development is a complex and dynamic process which is influenced by wide array of factors, of which dietary habits and salivary physicochemical biomarkers are of most significance. Salivary markers such as flow rate, pH and buffering capacity play a major role in the development of caries. In this study the relationship between these salivary marker among caries free and caries active was measured.Methods: In this analytical cross sectional study, multistage stratified sampling technique was used, 700 private and public school children of different socioeconomic class, between six to sixteen years of age were selected. The status of dental caries was determined through dental examination using DMFT index. Unstimulated whole saliva was collected through Passive Drool Method and the selected physiochemical properties were assessed. The mean difference between caries free and caries active groups was noted and to identify significant risk factors for caries logistic regression analysis was performed.Results: Comparison of salivary parameters between the two groups (caries free, caries active) showed that, there is significant decrease in mean value for salivary flow rate and buffering capacity in caries active group i.e., p<0.001. Risk factors were found to be significantly high in caries active group with flow rate (OR=20.06; p< 0.001), pH (OR=1.82; p= 0.90) and buffer capacity (OR=8.76; p=0.79). Conclusion: Research showed that participants with active caries have lower resting salivary flow rates than caries free subjects. Caries free participants had a normal range of salivary pH and better buffering capacity than participants with active caries.