Manual therapy for temporomandibular disorders

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This review included 8 RCTs with some evidence to show that manual therapy improves pain and maximum mouth opening in patients with TMD. However, the limited number of studies and the heterogeneity of the interventions require further studies with standardised evaluations and better study designs.

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Sleep bruxism: little evidence for management

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The review of sleep bruxism was only able to identify 12 small low quality RCTs covering a range of treatments. Most evidence was available for oral appliances but there is no sufficient evidence to state that the occlusal splint is effective for treating sleep bruxism.

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Sialendoscopy for treating obstructive salivary disorders

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49 observational studies were included in this review of sialendoscopy for obstructive salivary disease. The findings suggest a successful resolution for sialendoscopy alone of 76% (95% CI; 71 to 82%) and 91% (95% CI; 88 to 94%) for sialendoscopy and surgery.

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Dental implants: failure rates higher in males?

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This review of dental implants failure in males and females included 91 studies. The majority were retrospective with only 4 RCTs. While suggesting higher failure rates in males than females, the study quality and confounders mean that the results should be treated with caution.

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CAD-CAM-fabricated implant-supported restorations

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Only 12 small studies of limited quality were available for this review on CAD-CAM-fabricated implant-supported restorations. While they showed promising short-term outcomes, they should be interpreted with caution.

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Oral care with antiseptics reduced ventilator associated pneumonia

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17 RCTs were included in this review of oral care to reduce ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP). Evidence suggests it can reduce prevalence but not ICU mortality, length of ICU stay or duration of mechanical ventilation.

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Periodontal surgery for localised gingival recessions

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This review of periodontal surgery for localised gingival recession included 51 RCTs and provides evidence to support the use of coronally advanced flap procedures alone or with connective tissue grafts.

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Antibiotic prophylaxis and dental implant failure

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This review of antibiotic prophylaxis during dental implant placement considered both systematic reviews and RCTs. Evidence from the 10 included RCTs suggests a small reduction (2%) in the risk of implant loss. These results are similar to a recent Cochrane review.

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Water fluoridation effective at reducing caries

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This Cochrane review identified 155 studies with 107 contributing to the quantitative analysis. There was a 35% reduction in dmft and a 26% reduction in DMFT. There was an approximately 15% increase in the percentage of caries-free children after water fluoridation. At a fluoride level of 0.7 ppm, the percentage of participants with fluorosis of aesthetic concern was approximately 12%.

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Lingual orthodontic retainers – a lack of evidence

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This review focused on lingual orthodontic retention including 27 studies (9 RCTs; 6 prospective and 12 retrospective studies). However, the quality of evidence was low, providing little evidence for the best treatment protocols.

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