Introduction and Objectives: There have been concerns with the level of misinformation regarding coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its treatment, drug shortages, as well as increased use and prices of anti-malarials, antibiotics and hygiene products during the recent pandemic. Community pharmacists can play a significant role in disease prevention and treatment in the fight against COVID-19 including providing hygiene information and medicine availability across Africa and generally. Consequently, there is a need to review the role of community pharmacists in preventing unintended consequences during any pandemic as well as the impact of COVID-19 on the demand, availability and prices of suggested medicines for its management. Materials and Methods: Multiple approaches involving a qualitative review of the management of COVID-19 across countries coupled with a pilot study in Ghana among six purposely selected community pharmacists during the early stages of the pandemic assessing patterns of demand, availability and prices of medicines suggested for the management of COVID-19. Alongside this, pharmacists' future role enhancing appropriate medicine use in Ghana and wider combined with the help of senior level co-authors. Results: The majority (five out of six) of pharmacists in Ghana reported increased demand for hydroxychloroquine, antibiotics and vitamins as immune boosters resulting in shortages with price increases particularly for anti-malarials. Conclusion: The global lockdown had impacted on the supply and prices of medicines in Ghana similar to other countries. Community pharmacists can play a key role with encouraging safe medicine use, reducing self-purchasing of medicines and planning workflows during future pandemics including vaccinations. They can also help address potential misinformation and its consequences as well as the unintended consequences of pandemics including better management of non-communicable diseases.

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Introduction: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a declared public health emergency of international concern. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) classified health-care professionals and exposure risk to coronavirus (COVID-19), identifying dental professionals in the very high-risk group due to the specificity of dental procedures and instrumentations used. Guidelines from relevant authorities suggested providing only emergency and urgent dental treatment during the pandemic which has led majority of dental practice to stop, thus instilling anxiety in the dental professionals. A study to assess the attitude, practice and experience of dental professionals from Gujarat state during the COVID-19 pandemic was planned. Materials and Methods: An online questionnaire consisting of 32 questions using Google Form was distributed to 315 dental professionals. Data obtained were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 22.0. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to describe variables. Chi-square test was used to find a significant association between parameters, and P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Overall, 194 dental professionals (104 general dentists and 90 specialists) filled the questionnaire. Nearly half of the participants (49.5%) said that personal protective equipment (PPE) is uncomfortable while performing dental procedures. The majority of them (86.6%) insisted on increasing the cost of dental treatments. Regarding new practices adapted during the pandemic, 53 dental professionals (27.3%) did not find teledentistry effective in resolving the patient's problem. Only 75 dental professionals (38.7%) followed all the screening criteria for patients. Fifty-nine participants (30.4%) got the COVID-19 test for patients requiring the aerosol-generating procedure. While 125 participants (64.4%) performed aerosol-generating procedures either in urgent/emergency cases or elective cases, only 115 (59.3%) used full PPE with an appropriate mask. One hundred and thirty-seven (70.6%) of them reported a decrease in income during the pandemic, while 74 (38.1%) suffered from anxiety and depression. Conclusion: Dental health-care providers are at the highest risk of contracting COVID-19. Thus, they should execute proposed precautionary measures more diligently. Regular training and screening of dental professionals should be undertaken by state regulatory bodies. Adapting and adhering to change in work protocols by dental professionals will ensure not only their safety but also their patients. The emergence of COVID-19 has been great learning for the field of dentistry, and the dental practice is going to change for the better.

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Introduction: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic disorder and the most common form of arthritis. OA leads to the breakdown of tissues and cartilage and the loss of combined function, causing symptoms of pain, stiffness, reduced physical function and limited movement. Incidence rates vary according to region and ethnicity. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study involving the general population of Sudair was conducted to assess the awareness and knowledge levels of OA from June to December 2020. In all, 387 residents participated, and data were collected using a pre-tested questionnaire. Data were analysed by SPSS, and appropriate statistical tests such as One-sample t-test, Chi-squared and Fisher's exact tests were applied for quantitative and qualitative variables. Results: Almost 80% of the sample belonged to the age group of 18–50 years. More than 50% were men. Overall, 199 (51.42%) participants had moderate knowledge of OA, 134 (34.63%) had poor knowledge, and only 14% had adequate knowledge. Men had significantly poorer knowledge than women (P = 0.018). Participants with a previous history and family history of OA had significantly more knowledge than the healthy participants with previous experience of OA (P < 0.001). Conclusion: The majority of the participants who lived in Sudair had moderate knowledge of OA. Previous knowledge of OA because of previous diagnosis or family history of OA led to improved awareness of OA.

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Introduction: A newly identified viral infection, a global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019, that began in Wuhan, China, and spread around the world, causing an epidemic of pneumonia (COVlD-19), has infected millions of population, causing social anxiety and panic amongst healthcare professionals and the general public. This study aimed to measure the dentists' anxiety and apprehension of being infected while operating during the latest coronavirus disease (COVlD-19) epidemic through a web-based questionnaire. Materials and Methods: An online survey was used to perform a cross-sectional analysis. The well-constructed questionnaire, which consisted of closed-ended questions, was prepared and submitted to dentists of India. A total of 396 people from all over India took part in the survey. Results: The debilitating consequences of COVlD-19 caused anxiety and fear in a total of 55.8% of general dental practitioners in India. There were 373 dentists (94.2%) who were mindful of recent developments in care procedures. The majority of dentists, 316 (79.8%), are fearful of contracting COVID-19 from a patient or co-worker, and 309 (78%) dentists are nervous when treating a patient with COVID-19. Conclusion: Indian dentists revealed good information regarding COVID-19. However, dentists were comprehensive about the extra precautionary measures that protect them about the virus. A considerable percentage of dentists reflected their anxiety and worries about dental profession due to which they have either changed their services to comply with the rules or shut down their practices for an indefinite time.

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Introduction: Transmission of diseases has become very common in modern dentistry. This happens mainly due to aerosol production by handpieces and ultrasonic scalers. Aerosol and splatter are terms typically used in dentistry in relation to the microbiological risk of nosocomial transmission. Hence, in order to prevent this, we can use certain chemical agents in the water supply line to prevent the spread of diseases. The objective of this study is to assess the effect of chlorhexidine (CHX) and povidone-iodine (PVI) on the microorganisms in dental aerosols in comparison with distilled water. Materials and Methods: A total of thirty patients were included in this study. They were randomly assigned into three groups of 10 each. Group 1 (Control group): ultrasonic scaling with distilled water, Group 2 (test group): ultrasonic scaling with 2% povidone-iodine, and Group 3 (test group): ultrasonic scaling with 0.12% CHX. Three blood agar plates were kept at a distance of 0.4 m away on either side of the patient and 2 m behind the patient's mouth during ultrasonic scaling. On the patient, ultrasonic scaling is executed for 20 min with a universal tip. Blood agar plates were used to collect the gravitometric settling of dental aerosols, followed by a colony-counting procedure with the help of a microbiologist. Results: The results demonstrated no significant number of colony-forming unit (CFU) were detected at baseline. It is found that Group 3 (CHX gluconate) showed effective CFU reduction (29.2 ± 1.47 CFU) compared to distilled water (126.5 ± 24.02CFU) and povidone-iodine (70.1 ± 2.13 CFU). More CFU was found on blood agar plates which were kept on the right side in all the groups. The results obtained were statistically significant (P < 0.001). Conclusion: CHX is more effective in reducing dental aerosols compared to povidone-iodine, and distilled water in this povidone-iodine is also better than distilled water.

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Introduction: The continued explosive spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 worldwide is a crucial problem for all countries. Even though it is becoming increasingly difficult to stop the spread of the virus according to the World Health Organisation, countries need to enforce strict measures to minimise its effects. This study attempts to assess the awareness and compliance of the local population for following the precautionary measures against. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at different districts of Majmaah city, Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional survey study was carried out at different districts of Majmaah city, Saudi Arabia, and 502 individual's respondents were included in the study. Data were collected using a self-↱administered questionnaire for noting compliance towards protective measures. All participants were informed about the nature of the study and given an informed consent form. Data were collected and analysed using [email protected] 25 (SPSS Version 25.0. Armonk, Newyork: IBM Corp). Categorical variables were expressed as frequencies and percentages. t-test was applied to compare mean scores.Results: There were 502 people who participated in this study, among them 260 (51.8%) were males and 242 (48.2%) females. This study highlighted that the population awareness was good and residents showed strong commitment towards coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) precautionary measures. The overall mean scores for awareness and commitment levels were 6.68 ± 1.04 and 4.00 ± 1.13. Conclusions: Most participants in the study had a positive perception of COVID-19 prevention and control. Residents of Saudi Arabia responded well to the threat imposed by COVID-19 and are following their government and health regulatory body's instructions. It is therefore suggested that this would also be a valuable resource for policymakers of Saudi Arabia

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Introduction: The current study was commended with the aim of assessing the incidence of latex allergy in orthodontic patients. Materials and Methods: Silver-coloured orthodontic elastomeric ligatures (modular) from six different manufacturers were selected for the cytotoxicity study, being one of natural latex, two of latex-free and three containing polyurethane. The samples were divided into 6 groups of 15 elastics each. The cytotoxicity of these orthodontic elastics was determined through the dye-uptake technique, which is based on the neutral red absorption by living cells. Different periods of time were considered: 1, 2, 3, 7 and 28 days. Results: Among all the respondents to the survey, 7.5% showed positive change after wearing elastics. Most of the positive changes were seen in females Conclusion: Safe orthodontics practice is dependent upon recognising patients with allergy along with awareness of etiologic materials.

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Introduction: The varying pneumatisation patterns of the frontal sinus (FS) can be utilised in the forensic identification of human remains. This study aimed at determining the pneumatisation patterns of the FS of adult Nigerians. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional retrospective study was carried out at the radiology department of a tertiary hospital in Nigeria following ethical approval. Brain computed tomography images of 336 patients (199 males and 137 females) aged ≥20 years were utilised. Images with facial and sinonasal pathologies were excluded from this study. The FS was evaluated and classified as either absent, bilateral or triple. The existence of complete or partial septa was noted, and the roof was categorised as either smooth or scalloped. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 23. The frequencies of each variant were presented in percentages. A Chi-square test was used to evaluate gender differences. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Bilateral FS was seen in 244 (72.6%) patients. This was followed by triple FS (48, 14.3%) and aplasia (44, 13.1%). The prevalence of partial septa was 197 (58.6%), with a significantly higher prevalence in males (149, 74.9%) than in females (48, 35.0%) (P = 0.017). The scalloped roof of the FS was more frequent (226, 67.3%) than the smooth FS roof (110, 32.7%), although both showed statistically significant gender differences (P = 0.021, 0.028). Conclusion: The scalloped roof and partial septa of the FS showed sexual dimorphism. Hence, their accuracy in sex prediction may be explored in our population.

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Introduction: Dermatoglyphics is studying the patterns of the ridged skin of the palms, fingers, soles and toes. The patterns are formed early in the foetus. This study was designed to observe dermatoglyphic changes amongst the Down syndrome patients and compare the change with the typical healthy research participants. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional observational analytical study was conducted in the Department of Anatomy, Chittagong Medical College (CMC), Chattogram, from January 2018 to January 2019. A total of 200 participants were included by convenient sampling according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. One hundred Down syndrome patients were recruited in the study group from different Down syndrome society organisations in Bangladesh. One hundred other medical science and dental background students studying at CMC were selected as controls irrespective of sex. Dermatoglyphic print was taken by the ink and paper method. The detailed dermatoglyphic analysis was done by using a magnifying glass, calculator and scale. A two-sample proportion test has been conducted to compare the proportion of fingerprint patterns of whorls, ulnar loops, radial loops and arches of both hands in the Down syndrome patient and control groups. Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the prediction of fingerprint pattern from the presence of Down syndrome and gender. Results: It is observed that the ulnar loop is more prominent in both hands of Down syndrome patients than in the control group irrespective of sex (P < 0.001), while arch and whorl patterns are more prominent in controls than in Down syndrome patients (P < 0.001). Conclusion: It is revealed that there were significant differences in fingertip print patterns between Down syndrome patients and healthy controls. Hence, it can be used as a diagnostic aid for the Down syndrome patient.

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Introduction: Cervical spine injuries were the most common problem nowadays that many people experiencing due to high-intensity trauma. In contrast, substantial heterogeneity and lack of data exist among clinical spine trauma epidemiological studies limiting the ability to compare and pool data. The most common mechanism of injury is usually motor vehicle accidents. However, its patient-centered characterisation and quantification are lacking. Materials and Methods: Incidence and characteristics of cervical spine injury were identified in the tertiary care hospital of Delhi. Fifty-six cervical spine injuries admitted patients among all 228 spinal trauma patients who presented in the orthopaedic trauma emergency registry were recruited in this study. Results: There were 56 subjects identified (8.53%) with cervical spine injury admitted per further evaluation. Among these, 85.7% were male. Mainly age group involve is 20–40 year (median age – 24 year), mostly injured by road traffic accident (RTA) (35.7%). The cervical injury commonly has upper, and subaxial vertebrae fractures and anterolisthesis are much common than retrolisthesis. The hospital stay of listhesis patient is usually more than disc bulge patients. Halovent application is more common in the upper cervical (c1–c2), like anterior cervical plating with dissectomy is common in disc bulge cervical patients. Conclusion: Cervical spinal injury is associated with RTA in the young age group. A head injury like trauma should take into consideration in every cervical patient. Early management with better operative techniques can decrease hospital stay and increase the recovery rate of patients.

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The proportion of the remaining tooth structure is crucial for the deliberation of whether or not to preserve a damaged tooth among adults. It has been stated in previous studies that in order to assure long-term care, restoration of a badly damaged tooth with a full crown will more frequently than not be needed. There are numerous methods for maintaining compromised permanent teeth. Apical surgery, root resection, crown resection, autotransplantation, orthodontic extrusion and intentional replantation are the methods that have remarkably high success and survival rates when cases are carefully planned and managed appropriately. These methods have greater importance in adolescence compared to adults, as implants should be preferably delayed until the completion of alveolar bone growth. The present review is aimed to discuss case selection and the techniques involved in the different methods used for maintaining compromised teeth, as well as their success rates. Based on the studies covered in this literature review, a survival rate of at least 80% can be expected for compromised teeth that have undergone treatment with these methods.

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