14 DENTAL TRIBUNE Pakistan Edition March 2019 3.6 million smiles spread ... Continued from front page any dental or oral problem, or even visit a dentist for a routine checkup. On March 20th, Dental News, with sponsor Shield, erected kiosks at 50 dental colleges/hospitals/healthcare centers, in 16 different cities across Pakistan. Here the dental OPDs ran all day, free of cost, on WOHD, to maximize dental care benefit for the masses. The visiting patients were dealt with compassionately, they were keenly educated about their oral health by the dental professionals present at the camp, and screened for any dental or oral ailment, and were provided the needed treatment. Correct brushing techniques were demonstrated and basic oral hygiene guidelines were shared. Free samples were also be provided to the visitors. The Pakistani dental community rose as one to contribute passionately to the selfless cause of restoring the smiles of adults and children alike. An outreach programme was also carried out by Liaquatian's Welfare Society (LWS) BDS Chapter at Matyari School, in the Hyderabad district, Sindh, for underprivileged students and staff. To mark the day, poster competitions on various oral care subjects were especially conducted in dental institutes on WOHD. This academic activity was organized by institutes namely Multan Medical and Dental College, Multan; Bibi Asfa Dental College, Larkana; Liaquat College of Medicine and Dentistry, SIOHS, Jinnah University, Karachi; HBS Dental College, Islamabad; and Peshawar Dental College, Peshawar. Several institutes organized seminars for their students, trainees and faculties on this day. These seminars dealt with topics ranging from community dentistry to treatment and management. Among colleges to hold seminars were Baqai Dental College, Karachi; Bibi Asfa Dental College, Larkana; Liaquat College of Medicine and Dentistry, Karachi; HBS Dental College, Islamabad; Peshawar Dental College, Peshawar; and CMH Dental Hospital, Lahore. 'Walk a Cause' oral health awareness marches were organized by several partner institutes to amplify the effect of the campaign. Institutes to hold awareness marches included Bibi Asfa Dental College, Larkana; Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi; HBS Dental College, Islamabad; Bhatai Dental College, Mirpurkhas; Bolan Dental College, Quetta; Dental Section, Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoroo; Peshawar Dental College, Peshawar. The aforementioned activities scored a physical reach of 20,000 individuals! Dental News commenced its engagement campaign well ahead of World Oral Health Day. It kept the general public engaged; as well as involved individuals from the dental fraternity that stepped forward to passionately participate in this movement toward creating healthier smiles. Content comprising facts, tips and tricks, and general knowledge about the mouth and all that is within, was shared on social media. Posts with a dash of humour were also published to attract greater attention. These educational posts were consistently made on three different social media platform. As part of its WOHD campaign, DN invited its followers and subscribers to send in their queries in regards to their oral health. These questions were answered by a Dr Hira M. Khan in a 'Live Q&A Session' that was aired on Facebook page. Quiz posts were posted on social media platforms asking people basic oral hygiene/oral care questions with the intention of bringing their attention to oral health matters that are elementary, yet either forgotten or barely thought of. Common questions about brushing techniques, oral hygiene routine and timetable, and oral care tools are being asked to raise concern among masses. The intention is it to transform the cultivated concern and thoughts into action. To educate people about the significance of a beautiful and healthy smile, a "Smile & Win" selfie competition was also launched, wherein the participants were required to click a picture, smiling brightly, with a Shield toothbrush and toothpaste in their hands; the picture then had to be posted on the participant's social media. One winner was selected, via lucky draw, from the participants of each competition. The winners received exciting gift hampers at the end of the WOHD campaign. The dental community was also stirred to partake in the campaign via contributing motivational blogs and messages targeting the masses. Video messages of several renowned dental surgeons of Pakistan were recorded with educational content based on this year's WOHD theme. Apart from the celebrated dentists of our country, which included the President of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Dr Arif Alvi- a dentist and one of the chief architect of WOHD; President PDA; and several heads of institutions, WOHD public service messages were received from many other dental practitioners, teachers, students, and its followers on social media. The digital campaign bagged 3.6 Million impressions! Dental News, with the combined efforts of all the contributors, including DTI Pakistan, was able to realize the goals and objectives of WOHD'19 campaign, which were mainly targeted toward creating oral care awareness among masses, and ensuring their wellbeing. Our impressive scores and substantial statistics speak clearly of our success and achievement of the desired mark in 'Oral Care Awareness'. The well-tailored campaign that was as per the guidelines of the FDI received tremendous recognition and engagement. The three groups of target audiences were effectually addressed; children and adults through 'school outreach programmes' and 'awareness & e n g a g e m e n t c a m p a i g n s ' f o r parents/adults via social media and dental camps; thirdly, the government and policy makers were stimulated through 'Walk a Cause' marches. World Oral Health Day (WOHD) is a far-reaching global oral health campaign. It is a platform for the public, oral health community, and policymakers to help reduce the overall oral disease burden. Dental News and DTI Pakistan will continue to strive for the recognition of oral health as a vital part of overall wellbeing, and remain committed to working towards better oral health for all. Dental treatment service ... Continued from page 2 fatal for the patient if the case was not timely referred to a qualified dental surgeon. "It is my recommendation that if a mouth ulcer persists for more than two weeks, then it should be properly examined by a qualified dental surgeon on an urgent basis," he said. The PDA President stated that apart from oral cancer, other dental ailments were easily preventable as that required adoption of good oral hygiene practices since the days of early childhood. "Brushing of teeth is compulsory using any toothpaste containing fluoride. That is the most fundamental oral hygiene practice, which should be adopted by all on a daily basis as a norm of their routine life," he quoted. He further stated that amongst children, the most common oral health ailment was of tooth decay or dental caries whereas among the adults the common dental problem was of gum or periodontal disease. Dr Shah said that both of these common oral health issues could effectively be prevented by adopting good hygiene practices. Brushing one's teeth twice daily is a compulsory practice for everyone, he said. "Lastly I would suggest that one should not hesitate and readily visit a qualified dental surgeon if any of these common dental issues arise as proper, recommended, and timely treatment of these ailments could prevent further complications related to oral health," he concluded. Scientists find link ... Continued from page 10 widespread nature of the molecule, oral bacteria may have other profound effects on human health besides regulating blood pressure. "We know one cannot be well without an adequate amount of NO circulating throughout the body. Yet, the very first thing over 200 million Americans do each day is use an antiseptic mouthwash, which destroys the 'good bacteria' that help to create the NO. These once thought good habits may be doing more harm than Fig. 7: Gentle extraction preserving the vestibular lamina good," he said. The study, titled "Frequency of tongue cleaning impacts the human tongue m i c r o b i o m e c o m p o s i t i o n a n d enterosalivary circulation of nitrate," was published online on March 1, 2019, in Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology. - Dental Tribune International Facial transplant surgery ... Continued from page 12 and lip aperture in the vertical plane significantly increased over time for nonspeech and speech tasks. Changes in horizontal lip movements over time were minimal. Jaw and lip movement variability fluctuated over time and was greater than that of the controls by 13 months post-transplant. "The remarkable changes that we captured in this patient reflect the multiple processes involved in the reintegration of neuromuscular control and in the learning of new strategies over the recovery period. Such adaptability is a positive indicator that treatment to improve speech production can be effective post-facial transplant surgery," continued Grigos. The study, titled "Changes in articulatory control pre- and post-facial transplant: A case report," was published in the February 2019 issue of the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing R e s e a r c h . - D e n t a l Tr i b u n e International Plant-based diet could ... Continued from page 12 remained on their western diet. All participants stopped using dental floss and other interdental cleaners during the trial period. Periodontal parameters, such as subgingival plaque values and gingival bleeding, after the procedure were assessed by a blinded dentist. The findings indicated that, although there were no differences regarding the participants' plaque values, the experimental group experienced a significant reduction in gingival bleeding. Apart from the potential benefit for oral health, a substantial increase in vitamin D values and weight loss was also evident. "Study results clearly demonstrate the possibility to naturally reduce gingivitis by an optimised diet that also promotes general health. According to this, dental teams should address dietary habits and give adequate recommendations in the treatment of gingivitis, since it might be a side effect of a pro-inflammatory western diet," said lead author Dr Johan Wölber, a dentist and research assistant in the Department of Operative Dentistry and Periodontology of the Centre for Dental Medicine at the University of Freiburg Medical Centre. The study, titled "The influence of an anti-inflammatory diet on gingivitis. A randomized controlled trial", was published online on 2 April 2019 in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology ahead of inclusion in an issue. - Dental Tribune International