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.
African countries are among the countries in the world that suffer from the phenomenon of child recruitment in wars and conflicts. There are many reasons behind it, including the nature of the human formation of children, the societal violence to which they are exposed, lack of access to education, economic hardships, as well as the role of African wars and conflicts and other reasons that compelled children to join armed groups and participate in military operations. The recruitment of children is divided into two types, compulsory and voluntary, and this leads to many humanitarian and security repercussions that are not limited to a specific period of time but extend to subsequent generations, and due to its seriousness, t
... Show MoreBackground: Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a rare congenital condition that results in bone fragility, recurrent fractures, and various extra-skeletal manifestations. Currently, intravenous bisphosphonate is the mainstay of medical treatment in OI. Objective: To identify the effect of current management strategies on Iraqi children diagnosed with OI. Methods: A retrospective study enrolled OI patients who were registered in Central Child Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq, from January 2015 to December 2022. We enrolled confirmed OI cases (either clinically and/or radiologically) who received cyclic pamidronate therapy for at least 3 cycles. They neither received other types of bisphosphonates nor underwent surgical intervention. Res
... Show MoreFifty-four Sprague-Dawley albino adult male rats were classified into three main groups each of 18 rats treated for a particular duration (1,2, and 4) weeks respectively. Each group was subdivided into three subgroups each of six rats treated as follows; group (1) serve as normal control, group (2, and 3) intra-peritoneal treated with TiO2NPs (50,200) mg/kg respectively, body *weight of all rats was measured before and after the experiment, then rats were dissected at the end of each experiment and the weights of the thyroid was measured. The result showed a highly significant decrease (p<0.01) in thyroid gland weight, a highly significant increase (p<0.01) in body weights and TSH, while a highly significant decrease (p&
... Show MoreThe research deals with the concept of rationalization of consumption, which is legitimately legitimized, by indicating the permissibility of consumption and its limits in Islam, the legitimate aspects of spending and its controls, and the concept of development in the Islamic economy. The researcher followed the descriptive method by presenting the legal texts and jurisprudential opinions and linking them to contemporary economic problems.The research has reached several conclusions, the most important of which is that the goal of Islam in relation to consumption is to inform the Muslim of the amount of economic maturity, and the truth of alms is good in money and religion. It is necessary for achieving maturity that both means
... Show MoreAbstract: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease with severe acute respiratory syndrome and first recognized in Wuhan, China, and it has since spread to the world, resulting in the coronavirus pandemic to 2020. The present study aimed to evaluate Molecular study of some types of vaginal fungi isolated from recovered women from Covid-19 in Baghdad governorate. The study was conducted on 213 samples collected between December 2021 and March 2022, where the number of positive samples reached 188 with percentage 88.26%, while the number of negative samples reached 25 with percentage 11.73% by taking vaginal swabs from various female patients in Al- Kadhimiya Teaching Hospital. Three of Candida spp. were isolated: Candida a
... Show MoreBackground: Inhalation therapy has been employed as the mainstay of the treatment in chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, Patients who taking asthma medication may be at risk of many health problems including oral health .The purpose of this study was to assess the local effect of ICS on oral tissue by measuring Candida albicans count colonies in saliva among12 years old asthmatic children who were collected from AL- Zahra Center Advisory for Allergy and Asthma, and compares them with non asthmatic children of the same age and gender. Material and Methods: The total sample involved sixty children of 12 years old, thirty asthmatic children who received medium dose of ICS/day (200-400 microgram/day) for 2 years and 30 non-asthmatic ch
... Show MoreAbstract Study aim: to assess the influence of care burden for children with leukemia on their mothers` psychosocial status. Methodology: A Descriptive study, conducted at two pediatric hospitals in Baghdad city. A purposive sample of (60) mothers was participated in the study after obtaining their consent form. The instrument of the study was used to assess mothers` psychosocial status in addition to their sociodemographic characteristics. The data was processed and statistically analysed by SPSS program version 23. Result: the result of the study showed mothers have (81%) in self esteem, (77%) in psychosocial distress, (80%) for social interaction, and (76%) for social isolation. There were association between mothers` psychosocial status
... Show MoreBackground: Hormonal changes during pregnancy have been suggested to predispose women to gingivitis. Furthermore, advance periodontal infection in pregnant women may pose a threat to the placenta and uterus and may increase the like hood of preterm delivery. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of salivary interleukin -6 (IL-6) level and periodontal health among preterm postpartum women. Materials and Methods: Salivary samples were taken from 33 preterm postpartum women (study group) and 33 full term postpartum women (control group). The supernatant salivary samples were assayed using atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Plaque, calculus and gingival indices were used for recording the oral hygiene and gingivitis also probing
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