Ohasa Journal 4th Quarter 2023 - Vol 24 Issue 4

Introduction

Creating Patients: How technology and measurement approaches are misused in diagnosis and convert healthy individuals into TMD patients

Although based on fundamental mechanisms of interoception (i.e., the sense of oneself) people vary in their self-detection of medical problems, with some individuals reporting alterations in bodily processes before any doctor or diagnostic instrument could possibly detect change, whereas other individuals may ignore warning signals until very late in a disease process. Consequently, respect for patient autonomy drives a major theme: the patient’s “complaint” is central to how any disease process should be appraised by the health care provider, yet the examiner must be vigilant for new onset disease processes. Within this framework, the classical approach utilizes a symptom history and a physical examination; further tests are ordered only based on the principle of effective prescription, viz., only when the outcomes of such testing are expected to impact the diagnostic hypothesis. The latter point is underscored by observations of expert clinicians and their decision-making for when to order tests, and how infrequently tests actually change the diagnosis.

Role of mutans streptococci, acid tolerant bacteria and oral candida species in predicting the onset of early childhood caries

Early childhood caries (ECC) impacts more children in the United States than any other chronic infectious disease. As a contributing factor to overall health and quality of life, poor oral health in children has far reaching impact. Early childhood caries is a multifactorial disease involving the complex interaction of factors such as environmental influences, socio-economic status, oral hygiene practices, host susceptibility, diet and host microbiome composition, especially the acquisition of cariogenic bacterial species.

Mechanisms of e-cigarette vape-induced epithelial cell damage

E-cigs were initially marketed as a smoking cessation aid for addicted adults, but the promise of a safer product and flavored cartridges heavily attracted adolescent users. Product sales initially doubled nearly every year, and continue to show an annual increase in usage, particularly among the underage demographics. E-cigs are primarily composed of a solution cartridge, a vaporization chamber, a coil (the heating element), and a battery.