Faculty Bibliography

INTRODUCTION: Numerous studies have demonstrated an association between oral health status and systemic diseases. However, reports examining apical periodontitis (AP) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) are few. This study investigates whether an association exists between AP and CVD. METHODS: The present study was a pair-matched, cross-sectional design that used medical and dental chart review. The AP group (n = 182) was defined as subjects with radiographic AP, and the non-AP group (n = 182) was defined as subjects without any radiographic AP. Samples for both groups were pair-matched by age and gender. Diagnosis for CVD, hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, and diabetes were identified by using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification and collected from electronic medical records. Documentation of alcohol use, smoking, race, and body mass index within the electronic medical records was also collected. Presence or absence of AP, missing teeth, teeth with root canal treatment, caries experience, and history of periodontal disease were collected from the electronic dental records. Analysis was performed by using Pearson chi2, the paired t test, and conditional multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: AP was significantly associated with CVD, hypercholesterolemia, race, missing teeth, caries experience, and number of root canal treatments in our bivariate analysis. Our final adjusted conditional logistic regression model showed statistically significant positive associations between AP and CVD (odds ratio, 5.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.5-18.4). CONCLUSIONS: Subjects with AP were more likely to have CVD than subjects without AP by 5.3-fold. However, further research is needed to elucidate temporality and reinforce association between CVD and AP.

INTRODUCTION: Subcutaneous emphysema (SCE) rarely occurs from endodontic treatment. Most reported cases of iatrogenic SCE occur in the cervicofacial region. Only a few cases have been reported of SCE extending into the mediastinum or orbital spaces. In the present report, we describe a concomitant occurrence of orbital, mediastinal, and cervicofacial SCE immediately after endodontic retreatment. METHODS: A 33-year-old woman presented to the hospital with acute swelling of the right side of her face and neck. Earlier in the day, she began experiencing rapid swelling while undergoing endodontic retreatment of a mandibular right first premolar by her general dentist. The dentist immediately referred the case to an oral surgeon who then ordered additional tests and radiographic studies at the hospital. From there, the patient received consultation and comprehensive treatment by a multidisciplinary team of medical and dental staff. RESULTS: Physical examination, laboratory tests, and computed tomographic studies confirmed a diagnosis of SCE. Extensive air pockets were detected within the orbital, mediastinum, and cervicofacial spaces. The patient was admitted to the hospital and underwent treatment and observation for massive SCE with likely secondary infection. On the fifth day, she was discharged after showing dramatic improvement. CONCLUSIONS: SCE may go undetected or misdiagnosed. Complications may be fatal. Therefore, clinicians should apply preventive measures and know how to identify and manage SCE. We review reports of SCE in the last century, discuss etiology and differential diagnosis, and present recommendations for prevention and management of SCE.

The Department of Dental Medicine of Lutheran Medical Center has developed an asynchronous online curriculum consisting of prerecorded PowerPoint presentations with audio explanations. The focus of this study was to evaluate if the new asynchronous format satisfied the educational needs of the residents compared to traditional lecture (face-to-face) and synchronous (distance learning) formats. Lectures were delivered to 219 dental residents employing face-to-face and synchronous formats, as well as the new asynchronous format; 169 (77 percent) participated in the study. Outcomes were assessed with pretests, posttests, and individual lecture surveys. Results found the residents preferred face-to-face and asynchronous formats to the synchronous format in terms of effectiveness and clarity of presentations. This preference was directly related to the residents' perception of how well the technology worked in each format. The residents also rated the quality of student-instructor and student-student interactions in the synchronous and asynchronous formats significantly higher after taking the lecture series than they did before taking it. However, they rated the face-to-face format as significantly more conducive to student-instructor and student-student interaction. While the study found technology had a major impact on the efficacy of this curricular model, the results suggest that the asynchronous format can be an effective way to teach a postgraduate course.