PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

S Ciancio

Publications and source records attributed to S Ciancio.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Improving oral health: current considerations.

The high incidence of periodontal disease among adults in the Western world indicates that in most cases, routine dental care could be considerably improved. The progressive effect of the disease suggests that improvements in oral cleanliness are mandatory if large numbers of adults are to retain their teeth into old age. Data show that periodontal disease can be minimized through effective plaque control, and that a combination of brushing, interdental cleaning, and chemotherapeutic agents (e.g. mouthwash) is beneficial to patients with plaque control problems. The vast majority of adults do not follow an adequate home-care routine. Average brushing times are low, and only a minority of patients regularly floss. In addition, in those patients who do regularly brush and floss, a deterioration of plaque control occurs over time, suggesting that compliance is a major issue. The principal challenge for dental professionals is to identify how best to elicit an improvement.

Adult↗

Serendipitous diagnosis of protein S deficiency.

A 46-year-old male sought periodontal care for a swelling on his right mandibular gingiva. An excisional biopsy revealed a well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma. Surgical treatment consisted of a right segmental mandibulectomy with ipsilateral right neck dissection and fibular free flap reconstruction. Two days after the surgical procedure, a weakened Doppler signal suggested vascular compromise of the graft. The patient was returned to the operating room where complete thrombosis of the internal jugular vein (recipient vessel) was observed. This event prompted a complete hematological evaluation that disclosed low serum levels of protein S. The patient was started on systemic heparin and local medicinal leeches. A week later, systemic warfarin sodium was added and successfully resolved the vascular compromise of the graft. Two years later, the patient is active and lives a full life with occasional adjustments of warfarin sodium. This case represents the first report on the treatment of gingival carcinoma that led to the serendipitous discovery of an unrelated and unusual systemic condition, protein S deficiency.

Anticoagulants↗

Doxycycline dosing.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Safety and efficacy of sub-antimicrobial-dose doxycycline therapy in patients with adult periodontitis.

The objectives of the studies presented here were to assess the safety and efficacy of the adjunctive administration of sub-antimicrobial-dose doxycycline (SDD) for the treatment of adult periodontitis and to confirm the optimal dosing regimen. The studies summarized included four double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trials, conducted over a period of 9 to 12 months. Analysis of efficacy data demonstrated that adjunctive SDD treatment resulted in: (1) increases in clinical attachment levels; (2) decreases in probing pocket depths; and (3) reductions in bleeding on probing in patients with adult periodontitis. There were no significant adverse events or unwanted long-term antimicrobial effects associated with orally administered SDD. The results of these clinical trials indicate that the adjunctive use of SDD 20 mg BID is an effective and well-tolerated regimen which can significantly improve several indices of periodontal health.

Adult↗

The influence of end abutment and cantilever fixed partial dentures on periodontal health.

The influence of end abutment and cantilever fixed partial dentures on periodontal health was examined in 12 patients with periodontally reduced residual dentition. The prosthetic appliances had been integrated for 4 to 6 years before the first follow-up examination and had no technical defects at baseline. Two follow-up examinations were performed at a 12-month interval to record clinical and microbiologic parameters of 62 abutment teeth, 45 of which were fitted with end abutment fixed partial dentures and 17 with cantilever fixed partial dentures. Both types of fixed partial dentures were represented in all patients. The patients were on a 6 to 8-week recall schedule throughout the study period and had good oral hygiene. At both examinations, subgingival plaque samples were taken at all proximal surfaces and evaluated by dark-field microscopy. The clinical parameters used were Gingival Index, Plaque Index, pocket probing depth, and attachment level. The results showed that both types of fixed partial dentures were compatible with periodontal health subject to optimal oral hygiene. The clinical parameters recorded remained stable at a very low level throughout the study period and were almost identical in both groups. A slight gain in clinical attachment level, with a mean value of 0.19 mm for abutment teeth fitted with cantilever fixed partial dentures and of 0.32 for end abutment fixed partial dentures, was registered during the study period. The composition of the subgingival plaque showed a microflora reflecting virtually health periodontal conditions. The proportion of motile rods and spirochetes was slightly elevated in both groups. In conclusion, it can be stated that both fixed partial denture types display identical characteristics in the periodontally damaged dentition and do not lead to deterioration of the periodontal situation if oral hygiene is closely monitored.

Adult↗

Thomas Berdmore, dentist of His Majesty, George III, and dental calculus.

Thomas Berdmore's book, Disorders of Deformities of the Teeth and Gums, presents examples of early concepts of preventive dentistry and treatment of periodontal diseases. Various aspects of dental calculus formation and composition are analyzed. Also the effects of periodontal disease as seen by Berdmore are discussed, and ways of treatment in 1770 summarized.

Dental Calculus↗

Doxycycline inhibits neutrophil (PMN)-type matrix metalloproteinases in human adult periodontitis gingiva.

We previously reported that low-dose doxycycline (DOXY) therapy reduces host-derived collagenase activity in gingival tissue of adult periodontitis (AP) patients. However, it was not clear whether this in vivo effect was direct or indirect. In the present study, inflamed human gingival tissue, obtained from AP patients during periodontal surgery, was extracted and the extracts partially purified by (NH4)2SO4 precipitation. The extracts were then analyzed for collagenase activity using SDS-PAGE/fluorography/laser densitometry, and for gelatinase activity using type I gelatin zymography as well as a new quantitative assay using biotinylated type I gelatin as substrate. DOXY was added to the incubation mixture at a final concentration of 0-1000 microM. The concentration of DOXY required to inhibit 50% of the gingival tissue collagenase (IC50) was found to be 16-18 microM in the presence or absence of 1.2 mM APMA (an optimal organomercurial activator of latent procollagenases); this IC50 for DOXY was similar to that exhibited for collagenase or matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-8 from polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) and from gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) of AP patients. Of interest, Porphyromonas gingivalis collagenase was also inhibited by similar DOXY levels (IC50 = 15 microM), however the collagenase activity observed in the gingival tissue extracts was found to be of mammalian not bacterial origin based on the production of the specific alpha A (3/4) and alpha B (1/4) collagen degradation fragments. In contrast, the inhibition of collagenase purified from culture media of human gingival fibroblasts (MMP-1) required much greater DOXY levels (IC50 = 280 microM). The predominant molecular forms of gelatinolytic activity presented in the AP patients gingival tissue extracts were found to closely correspond to the 92 kD PMN-type gelatinase (MMP-9) although small quantities of 72 kD fibroblast-type gelatinase (MMP-2), and some other low molecular weight gelatinases, were also detected. The IC50 of DOXY versus gingival tissue gelatinolytic activity was estimated at 30-50 microM measure using either type I gelatin zymography or the biotinylated type I gelatin assay. We conclude that MMPS in inflamed gingival tissue of AP patients, like those in GCF, originate primarily from infiltrating PMNs rather than resident gingival cells (fibroblasts and epithelial cells) or monocyte/macrophages, and that their pathologically-elevated tissue-degrading activities can be directly inhibited by pharmacologic levels of doxycycline.

Adult↗

Expanded and future uses of mouthrinses.

The use of antimicrobial mouthrinses is important to dental professionals and their patients. Listerine Antiseptic was found to greatly decrease the anaerobic and aerobic bacteria associated with bacteremia, when used as a subgingival irrigant prior to scaling. Furthermore, preprocedural rinsing with either Listerine or chlorhexidine gluconate (Peridex) can greatly decrease the number of bacteria aerosolized during many dental procedures. Studies have shown that both Listerine and chlorhexidine have anti-Candida properties and therefore are helpful to patients who are immunosuppressed and subject to the opportunistic infection of candidiasis. Chlorhexidine has also been shown to decrease the incidence and severity of mucositis during cancer chemotherapy. Healing of the wounds and aiding in plaque control following periodontal surgery are further benefits of chlorhexidine and Listerine. Finally, each of these antimicrobials can be adjuncts to implant maintenance.

Aerosols↗

Low-dose doxycycline therapy: effect on gingival and crevicular fluid collagenase activity in humans.

Tetracyclines are now recognized to have non-antimicrobial properties with therapeutic potential--for example, these agents can inhibit pathologic collagenolysis by blocking mammalian collagenases and other matrix-degrading metalloproteinases. In the current study, adult human subjects with moderate chronic periodontitis were administered specially formulated capsules of doxycycline, containing lower-than-usual amounts of this semi-synthetic tetracycline, on a daily basis for 2 weeks prior to a full-thickness flap procedure; control subjects were administered placebo capsules. The gingiva excised during this surgical procedure were extracted, the extracts partially purified and analyzed for collagenase activity using [3H-methyl] collagen as substrate and the techniques of SDS-PAGE/fluorography or liquid scintillation spectrometry. In the absence of any drug pre-treatment, or after a 2-wk regimen of placebo capsules, the gingival extracts exhibited pathologically-excessive mammalian collagenase activity. The 2-wk regimen of low-dose doxycycline capsules reduced this activity by approximately 60-80% (p less than 0.05 and less than 0.01, respectively); in vitro exposure of the gingival extract to doxycycline also inhibited its collagenase activity. Collagenase activity in the crevicular fluid of periodontal pockets of an additional group of subjects was also significantly reduced, as was the severity of inflammation at the same gingival sites. The results suggest that a regimen of low-dose doxycycline capsules may provide a safe (other studies indicate that this regimen may not induce tetracycline resistance in the subgingival plaque) and effective adjunct to instrumentation therapy in the management of pathologic collagenolysis in the periodontal patient. However, further studies are necessary to confirm this hypothesis.

Adult↗

A survey of drug prescribing practices of dentists.

A survey of drug prescribing habits of 357 dentists practicing in five counties in Western New York was conducted in 1986. Respondents represented both general practitioners and specialists who were graduates of 25 different dental schools. From this study it can be concluded that dentists prescribe a wide range of drugs representing over 13 drug categories. The most frequently prescribed drug categories were antibiotics, narcotic analgesics, non-steroidal inflammatory agents, non-narcotic analgesics, and fluorides. The most frequent prescribers of drugs were oral surgeons, endodontists and periodontists.

Dentists↗

Bacterial antibody titers in ligature-induced periodontitis in beagle dogs.

Serum antibodies to indigenous bacteria in ten beagle dogs were examined over a 7-month period during the development of ligature-induced periodontitis. Gram-negative strains comprised approximately 75% of the cultivable periodontitis microflora with a predominance of black-pigmented Bacteroides species. A total of 44 bacterial strains representing the predominant cultivable subgingival beagle dog microflora was selected for antibody determination. The IgG and, in some cases, IgM serum antibody titers to these organisms were determined by indirect immunofluorescence. The antibody titers to most test strains remained unchanged during the experimental period. Gram-negative bacteria generally exhibited lower titers than the Gram-positive bacteria. Especially low titers were found for the black-pigmented Bacteroides. Four dogs that developed the most severe periodontitis showed about 2-fold higher IgG titers to some Gram-negative anaerobic rods in the pre-ligation period than dogs that developed a more moderate periodontitis. These data suggested a possible diagnostic value of such antibody determinations. However, the overall finding of the present study was that serum antibody titers to key periodontopathic organisms remained low throughout the experiment. This result may suggest that the rapid periodontal destruction in ligature-induced periodontitis is due in part to an inadequate antibody response against the infecting microorganisms and their pathogenic products.

Animals↗