The aim was to assess the prevalence of osteoarthrosis (OA) in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) in a sample of older people by use of contrast agent-enhanced MRI.
30 patients (73-75 years old) were ...drawn from a representative sample and were examined clinically. The shape of the condyle was assessed using gadolinium-enhanced MR images, which were evaluated by two independent raters. Statistical assessment was performed by using descriptive statistics, the chi(2) test and kappa statistics.
Agreement between raters was excellent with respect to the presence/absence of OA (kappa = 0.8). Only one subject reported pain in a TMJ. Fine and/or coarse crepitus was not heard in any subject. MRI showed that 70% displayed signs of OA in at least one TMJ. There were no gender-related differences in the prevalence of OA (P > 0.05).
Gadolinium-enhanced MRI showed that OA of the TMJ is common in older people (70%), although the prevalence of clinical signs of OA is very low.
Abstract Objective The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that jaw clenching induces co-contraction and low-level long-lasting tonic activation (LLTA) of neck muscles in the supine ...position. Design Ten healthy subjects developed various feedback-controlled submaximum bite forces in different bite-force directions in supine position. The electromyographic (EMG) activity of the semispinalis capitis, semispinalis cervicis, multifidi, splenius capitis, levator scapulae, trapezius, sternocleidomastoideus, masseter and infra/supra-hyoidal muscles was recorded. For normalization of EMG data, maximum-effort tasks of the neck muscles were performed. Results Co-contractions of the posterior neck muscles varied between 2% and 11% of their maximum voluntary contraction. Different bite forces and bite-force directions resulted in significant ( p < .05) activity differences between the co-contraction levels of the neck muscles. In addition, LLTA of specific neck muscles, provoked by the jaw clenching tasks, was observed. Conclusions This study demonstrated for the first time moderate co-contractions of jaw and neck muscles in the supine position under controlled submaximum jaw clenching forces. LLTA of most neck muscles was observed, outlasting clenching episodes and indicating an additional neuromuscular interaction between the two muscle groups.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the pattern of performance on letter and category fluency tests of individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Previous research has suggested that ...organization strategies, including "clustering" (i.e., groups of related words) and "switching" (i.e., shift from one cluster to another), are important for efficient verbal fluency performance. Participants were 25 individuals with single-domain amnestic MCI (aMCI), 49 with multidomain aMCI, 16 with non-amnestic MCI (naMCI), and 90 cognitively healthy older adults. Fluency performances were analyzed across two 30-s intervals for total words produced, cluster size, and switching. Analyses of variance (ANOVAs) with follow-up tests revealed that the single-domain aMCI group performed comparably with healthy controls on each dependent measure across both fluency tasks. In contrast, the multidomain aMCI group showed performance decrements in total words and switching production compared with healthy controls on both fluency tasks, whereas the naMCI group produced fewer words and switches on letter fluency. Each group generated more words and switches during the first 30-s on both fluency tasks, with the exception of the naMCI group, whose switching on letter fluency did not decrease as the task progressed. As indicated by the single-domain aMCI group's unimpaired performance, our findings demonstrate that verbal fluency performance decreases as domains beyond memory become impaired in MCI. Reduced switching ability, which has been linked to prefrontal executive functioning, contributed the most to the poorer performance of individuals with multidomain MCI and naMCI.
Objectives
To help the dental practitioner solve a specific clinical problem, systematic reviews (SRs) are seen as the best guide. In addition to the unmanageable quantity of SRs, however, one should ...be aware of their variable quality. The present review describes the methodological quality of SRs on postendodontic restorations to work out the value of these reviews for the dental practitioner.
Methodology
SRs were searched in April 2012, independently and in triplicate. Post survival was used as measure of outcome. The methodological quality of included SRs was assessed with the Revised Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews (R-AMSTAR) checklist. Kappa statistics were used to assess reviewer agreement.
Results
Three hundred sixty-three papers were retrieved from the initial search. Ten SRs were included. One SR achieved a high R-AMSTAR score, whereas the other nine SRs achieved scores that indicate a substantial lack of methodological quality. Especially the items “grey literature,” “combination of findings,” “likelihood of publication bias,” and conflict of interest” showed low R-AMSTAR scores. The three reviews with the highest R-AMSTAR scores tended to conclude that fewer failures occurred when using nonmetal posts. The reviewer agreement was excellent (kappa ranged from 0.79 to 0.85) in the R-AMSTAR classification.
Conclusion
The approach presented revealed a lack of SRs with high methodological quality. Thus, no decisive conclusion can be drawn with respect to this topic. It appears that there is a trend for the superiority of fiber-reinforced posts.
Clinical relevance
SRs must be of high methodological quality. This can be achieved by taking into consideration the results of this review. Improved methodological quality would make SRs more supportive for the general practitioner.
summary Previous studies on the prevalence of signs of temporomandibular disorders (TMD) in elderly people have used non‐standardized and invalidated examination protocols. The prevalence of the ...different signs of TMD in this group is therefore still unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of signs of TMD in subjects of advanced aged, using a standardized and validated examination protocol. Additionally, young subjects were examined as a control group. Fifty‐eight old peoples’ home inhabitants and 44 young subjects were examined using a standardized and validated examination protocol. Differences between the groups were assessed using Mann–Whitney U‐test or t‐test. Geriatric subjects more often exhibited objective symptoms of TMD (38% exhibited joint sounds on opening), but rarely suffered from pain (pain at rest: 0%, joint pain: 0%, muscle pain: 12%). In contrast, young subjects rarely exhibited objective symptoms (joint sounds: 7%), but suffered more frequently from pain (facial: 7%, joint pain: 16%, muscle pain: 25%). The mandibular range of motion was higher in young subjects. Differences between the groups with respect to joint sounds, muscular palpation pain and mandibular range of motion were significant. Although older subjects more frequently exhibited objective signs (joint sounds) of TMD, they rarely suffered from pain. In contrast, younger subjects rarely exhibited objective TMD signs but more frequently suffered from subjective signs (muscular pain on palpation) and facial pain.
Lactobacillus plantarum 299v Surface-Bound GAPDH: A New Insight Into Enzyme Cell Walls Location Saad, N., Laboratoire de Chimie des Substances Naturelles, EA 1069, Antenne IUT, U. Limoges, France; Urdaci, M., LMBA, UMR 5248 CNRS-U. Bordeaux 1-ENITAB, Gradignan, France; Vignoles, C., UMR 6101 CNRS, Faculte de Medecine-U. Limoges, France ...
Journal of microbiology and biotechnology,
12/2009, Volume:
19, Issue:
12
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
The aim of this study was to provide new insight into the mechanism whereby the housekeeping enzyme glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) locates to cell walls of Lactobacillus plantarum ...299v. After purification, cytosolic and cell wall GAPDH (cw-GAPDH) forms were characterized and shown to be identical homotetrameric active enzymes. GAPDH concentration on cell walls was growth-time dependent. Free GAPDH was not observed on the culture supernatant at any time during growth, and provoked cell lysis was not concomitant with any reassociation of GAPDH onto the cell surface. Hence, with the possibility of cw-GAPDH resulting from autolysis being unlikely, entrapment of intracellular GAPDH on the cell wall after a passive efflux through altered plasma membrane was investigated. Flow cytometry was used to assess L. plantarum 299v membrane permeabilization after labeling with propidium iodide (PI). By combining PI uptake and cw-GAPDH activity measurements, we demonstrate here that the increase in cw-GAPDH concentration from the early exponential phase to the late stationary phase is closely related to an increase in plasma membrane permeability during growth. Moreover, we observed that increases in both plasma membrane permeability and cw-GAPDH activity were delayed when glucose was added during L. plantarum 299v growth. Using a double labeling of L. plantarum 299v cells with anti-GAPDH antibodies and propidium iodide, we established unambiguously that cells with impaired membrane manifest five times more cw-GAPDH than unaltered cells. Our results show that plasma membrane permeability appears to be closely related to the efflux of GAPDH on the bacterial cell surface, offering new insight into the understanding of the cell wall location of this enzyme.
To assess the position of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disc in patients with TMJ pain and compare it with equivalent published data of asymptomatic volunteers.
The oblique coronal closed- and ...open-jaw MR images from 66 patients with TMJ pain were evaluated. Clinical examination followed the research diagnostic criteria for temporomandibular disorders. In all coronal images, the transverse condylar axis and the medial and lateral edges of the disc were determined using special software. Inter-rater agreement was calculated two raters; inter-rater correlation coefficient (ICC). The presence of osteoarthrosis (OA) was determined by two independent raters. The influence of OA was estimated in patients (generalized estimation equation model). The results were compared with those of healthy volunteers (t-test). Differences between closed and open jaw in patients were analysed with the Wilcoxon matched-pair test.
The ICC was good for the transverse condylar axis (0.987) and the medial edge of the disc (0.799) and fair for the lateral edge (0.355). On average, the disc projected 5.5% to the medial side; laterally, the condyle was partially uncovered by the disc (-16.6%). In the open-jaw position, both the medial and the lateral edges shifted medially (to 17.6% vs -23.6%, Wilcoxon matched-pair test, p < 0.001). OA had no significant influence (generalized estimation equation model, p = 0.952). The disc position differed significantly from asymptomatic individuals (t-test, p < 0.001) who showed a medial disc position and full coverage of the condyle.
In patients with TMJ pain, the disc seems to be smaller and located less medially than in healthy volunteers. The extent of the medial shift on opening was similar.
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