Introduction: Oral health is an essential component of health throughout life. India is a developing country with a huge population; and because of the diverse nature, our country faces many challenges in rendering services to the oral health needs of the population. Majority of our country's population reside in rural area and among those 40% are children. Hence, it is highly important to recognize the oral health status and needs of children. Hardly any information is available on the oral health status of children, so the present study was conducted among 5–8-year-old children in the schools of rural Thanjavur. Materials and methods: A total of 204 children were examined according to the World Health Organization (WHO) oral health assessment form 2013. Results and discussion: This study shows that an alarming rate of gingivitis and 70% of the children between 5 years and 8 years of age are affected by dental caries, which is more than the national average. Preventive approaches seem to be a viable alternative to tackle the overwhelming problem of dental caries and other oral diseases. Conclusion: The systematic implementation of preventive oral care and community-oriented health programs are needed for the continuous promotion of oral health in the rural regions of Thanjavur.

Background and aim: Down syndrome, also denominated as trisomy 21, is a genetic alteration in which the affected individual carries an extra chromosome 21. Down syndrome patients have specific orofacial features such as mouth breathing, open bite, macroglossia, hypodontia, microdontia, anodontia, fissured tongue, malocclusion, low level of dental caries, poor oral hygiene, delayed eruption, small maxilla, retained deciduous teeth. The present review is aimed to evaluate the prevalence of dental anomalies in Down syndrome individuals. Materials and methods: The primary focus of the search was review articles, case report and observational studies explaining the common dental anomalies affecting Down syndrome individuals. Results: One review article, two case reports and twelve observational studies were included to this review. Prevalence of overall dental anomalies in Down syndrome individuals is about 50.47–95.52% and individual percentage of dental anomalies, taurodontism 9.52–85.71%; anodontia 34.69%; delayed eruption 2.04%; conic teeth 14.28%; microdontia 2.04–16.19%; fusion 2.04%; hypodontia 16.19–62%; fissured tongue 78%; retained teeth 10.17%; and teeth agenesis 30–81% were noticed in Down syndrome individuals. Conclusion: Individuals with Down syndrome exhibit high prevalence of dental anomalies compared to normal individuals. The most prevalent dental anomalies among these individuals were taurodontism, anodontia, hypodontia, fissured tongue and teeth agenesis. These outcomes reinforce that dental care should be directed to prevent and/or control problems and to improve oral hygiene status of Down syndrome individuals.

Aim: The aim of this review is to summarize the pertinent literature concerning the most appropriate posterior reference point(s) to locate the hinge axis and to arrive at a classification system. Background: Numerous theories are proposed on the occurrence and the need to trace hinge axis, especially in prosthodontics, to restore lost natural teeth. There is no classification system that exists in relation to posterior reference points. Review results: Many authors have come up with various theories to locate the arbitrary hinge axis. The perplexing part in remembering these posterior reference points are eliminated by arriving at a classification system. Conclusion: Depending upon the anatomical landmark and the accuracy to the true hinge axis, a classification was formulated for ease of understanding and learning purpose. Clinical significance: Achieving a stable restoration requires the transfer of hinge axis as close to the true axis as possible. To enable this, knowledge about the posterior reference points becomes mandatory. Since there are multiple posterior reference points, a classification system would help ease in remembering them.

Antibiotics are used for therapeutic and prophylactic purposes. In the case of odontogenic infections, these drugs are commonly used as supportive measure for controlling the spread of infection. Proper understanding of the disease process, mode of action of antibiotics, and monitoring the susceptibility of the microbes to the particular drugs are very essential for a successful treatment outcome. As there is no clear guideline for the use of antibiotics in dentistry, it has been misused or overused in most of the cases. This leads to drug resistance and various other complications. Antibioma is a tough walled abscess which forms commonly as the squeal of inadequate pus drainage during infection and inappropriate use of antibiotics by the patient. Here we present a case of antibioma which was formed due to persistent odontogenic infection. Nonsurgical management was done using magnesium sulfate dressing which was changed regularly. Complete reduction of the antibioma was noticed at follow-up period.

Young children are more explorative with all the objects they encounter and they develop the habit of inserting them into their mouth. In some cases, the object can injure the child's oral cavity. And it could be associated with self-injurious behavior of the child. Hence, a proper diagnosis of it is important. There are several reports on various foreign objects embedded in the root canal, which acts as a constant source of pain and infection in the oral cavity. The case report describes a 14-year-old boy with a foreign object in his maxillary left first premolar and the conservative management of the same. The boy was diagnosed to have no such self-injurious/deliberate self-harm behavior from the detailed history taken. The paper reviews the various management strategies for the removal of foreign objects from the root canal.

Early treatment of skeletal class III becomes necessary in growing patients to prevent the future deterioration of the existing malocclusion and avoiding the complex orthognathic surgical procedures to correct the same. This case series explains two different treatment modalities for growing patients with skeletal class III malocclusion with anterior crossbite, who have differing degree of growth potential, growth pattern, facial profile, lip competency and strain, amount of skeletal discrepancy, and intra-arch relationships. The treatment goals have been achieved efficiently in each situation, due to prompt diagnosis and utilization of proper treatment mechanics.