Introduction: Salivary melatonin is a critical antioxidant that contributes to oral health by mitigating oxidative stress. Psychological stress linked to thumb sucking may disrupt oral homeostasis, leading to conditions such as dental caries and fungal infections. Aim: This study explores the relationships between thumb sucking, salivary melatonin levels, dental caries, and the presence of Candida albicans (CA) in children. Materials and methods: A case-control study was conducted with 60 children aged 4-5 years at the University of Baghdad’s College of Dentistry. Participants were divided into thumb-sucking (n=30) and non-thumb-sucking (n=30) groups. Salivary melatonin levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), dental caries were assessed via the dmfs index, and CA counts were quantified on Sabouraud dextrose agar (SDA). Statistical analyses were performed, including t-tests, ANOVA, and correlation assessments. Results: Thumb-sucking children exhibited significantly lower salivary melatonin levels (28.620±2.278 pg/mL) compared to controls (34.525±2.142 pg/mL; p=0.044). The thumb-sucking group also had higher dmfs scores (15.033±1.449 vs. 8.667±0.899; p=0.000) and greater CA counts (18.900±1.048 vs. 13.583±0.549; p=0.000). Negative correlations were observed between salivary melatonin levels and the severity of dental caries, while positive correlations linked CA with dental caries. Conclusions: Thumb sucking adversely affects pediatric oral health by reducing salivary melatonin, increasing dental caries risk, and promoting fungal overgrowth. Early intervention to curb thumb-sucking behaviors may mitigate these risks and improve oral health outcomes.
This study was conducted in the Department of Employment and Loans at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs to indicate the importance and impact of both the empowerment and the functional flexibility in evaluating the performance of the employees. To achieve the objectives of the study, the data was collected through a questionnaire form designed for this purpose based on previous studies. Data obtained for a significant evaluation of the relationship between the components of both the empowerment and the functional flexibility with the components of the evaluation and determining the degree of importance of each component of both the empowerment and functional flexibility for the components of the evaluation by the extractio
... Show MoreRasheed Street has had great importance by the nature of what was seen as being of vital events of a key facility in the Iraqi capital Baghdad since ancient times until now .
And such as cultural and historical memory-rich street for Iraq, pulsating nerve since the beginning of the last century thanks to the commercial and intellectual stature, as well as being a tourist landmark frequented alleys most of the tourists coming to Iraq , which counted for them a source of tourist attraction, given the religious diversity of fungal who excelled by the street, as we find in exchange for his Church of the Virgin Mary, the time which was built in the middle of the Caliphs Mosque towering minarets and promised that the oldest and largest of t
The research discusses two variables are important, orientation marketing and quality of service, and that the purpose of the research is to see whether the telecom companies applied orientation marketing or not and to what extent is keen to apply it to suit the Iraqi environment as it has been applied research in kork Telecom company and Asia Cell Telecom are sectors service job in the business sector in Iraq, The information was obtained through the design of the questionnaire compatible runway Likert, and distribution (92) questionnaire, which (50) for the company Korek Telecom and (42) of the Asia-Cell, research population sample included a number of staff in the departments and units in the two companies, it has been support
... Show MoreThe external shocks are one of the phenomena that the Iraqi economy is exposed to over a period of time. It is referred to as changes and events that come from outside the economic system and extends to many economic variables. However, foreign direct investment may be severely affected due to the extreme sensitivity to changes and local and international developments. This type of trauma and its characteristics to help manage and cope with external shocks, and in order to avoid the standard problems experienced by some models of simple linear regression, multi-linear regression models were used with variables Scientific and other dummy variables .
The study foun
... Show MoreThis research aims to introduce the importance of electronic marketing and the extent of its impact on the quality of the insurance service in general, and the national insurance company in particular, and the advantages it can achieve, an increase in its competitiveness, as well as contributing to increasing the efficiency of the performance of the insurance company.
The research relied on the questionnaire form as a main tool for obtaining data and information by the 70 questionnaire questionnaires required for the field side of the research, as they were distributed and retrieved in full, and all of them are suitable for analysis. The sample .The questionnaire was designed with three axes, the first wa
... Show MoreObjective(s): The aim of this study was to assess the severity of anemia among children under 5 years and to find
out relationship between severity of anemia in children with socio-demographic variables such as: child gender,
age, supplement diet, hookworm, pica, parent's education level, father's and mother's occupation, and family
monthly income with severity of anemia
Methodology: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted at the primary health care centers in Alsadr city
for the period of 1
st July 2011 to the 1st November 2011.Non probability (purposive) sample of (630) children who
aged under 5 years and who attended to primary health care centers of Alsadr city. The data were collected
through using
In 2005 Falluga city had an humanitarian crisis situation, characterized by armed conflict. Larg population displaced. To assess the nutritional status of under five children, a check of 678 child in five places of Internal Displaced Peoples . was achieved The results indicated that 19.6%, 48.5% of the children had diarrhea and acute respiratory infection. Twenty percent of the children had achronic malnutrition while 4.1% & 0.5% had a general and acute malnutrition.