Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Novel Protective Salivary Peptides And The Chitosan Nanoparticles Delivery System, Flavia Zaidan Cardoso Salina

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

As a result of its protein composition, saliva performs many essential functions that contribute to oral homeostasis. However, salivary proteins suffer quick degradation in the oral cavity, which decreases the protective potential of that fluid (Chapter 2). Using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), we evaluated the effect of our novel salivary peptides DR9, DR9-DR9, DR9-RR14 and RR14 on the crystallization of calcium oxalate (CaOx). All peptides containing DR9 showed significant inhibitory effect on the crystallization of CaOx, whereas RR14 showed no effect (Chapter 3). Next, we tested the adsorption behavior of our chitosan nanoparticles (CHNP) delivery system to hydroxyapatite (HA) surface …

Retrospective Evaluation Of Oral Health Services For Underserved Children In Clark County, Nevada, Earl Taylor Spader

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Disparities in utilization of oral health services have been shown to exist through epidemiological investigations and data analysis. Specifically, disparities exist for utilization of preventative dental care (PDC) and unmet dental need (UDN). The disparities in utilization of PDC and UDN are associated with demographic and insurance variables.

To address the oral health disparities, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas-School of Dental Medicine (UNLV-SDM) was created to improve the health of the citizens of Nevada through innovative programs of oral healthcare services to the community. More recently, UNLV-SDM opened a pediatric dental residency training program to provide care directly to …

Bisphenol A Blood And Saliva Levels Prior To And After Dental Sealant Placement In Adults, Joyce Marie Downs

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

Placement of pit and fissure dental sealants is an effective therapy for tooth decay prevention and is widely accepted as a standard of care throughout the United States. Pit and fissure dental sealants (sealants) are manufactured using the resin component of composite dental materials, formed by reacting glycidyl methacrylate with bisphenol A. Bisphenol A (BPA) is a hormonally active, synthetic chemical that is part of a broad group of chemicals known as endocrine disrupting compounds, xenoestrogens, which mimic bioactivity of estrogen. This study measured BP A in saliva and blood after the placement of a widely used, pit and fissure …

Preventative Oral Health Services Provided By Nurses' Aides To Nursing Home Residents, Deborah Lewis Hardy

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

The purposes of this investigation were to identify: 1) what preventive oral health services were provided by nurses' aides to nursing home residents, 2) how frequent preventive oral health services were performed by nurses' aides, 3) who nurses' aides reported abnormal or suspicious findings detected in the resident's mouth, 4) what factors discouraged and encouraged nurses' aides performance of oral health services, and 5) how nurses' aides rated their oral health knowledge of services they performed. The study population was comprised of a random sample of 40 percent of nursing home facilities in southeastern Virginia. A 14-item questionnaire was administered …

Pedodontists' Attitudes Toward Pit And Fissure Sealants As A Preventative Oral Service, Kathern Rheanice Hamlin

Dental Hygiene Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this survey was to assess periodontists' attitudes toward pit and fissure sealants as an oral health service. A self-designed, 43-item questionnaire and a letter of transmittal were mailed to a random sample of periodontists belonging to the American Academy of Periodontics (N=S00). Data were obtained from 288 returned questionnaires (58 percent).

Data analysis suggested that periodontists' attitudes have changed over the past nine years in that: (1) more periodontists are assigning a high value of pit and fissure sealants in preventing dental caries, (2) more periodontists are using pit and fissure sealants to prevent dental caries, and …

Increasing Children's Self-Initiated Compliance To Their Dental Regimens, Susan Claerhout

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined the separate effects of an educational program, feedback, and a token economy on the rate of brushing and flossing in the home environment.