Lingual Cyst with Respiratory Epithelium: An Update of Scientific Literature

Tongue (lingual) cysts occurring on the dorsal or ventral surfaces present as swellings. These swellings could cause difficulty in eating, drinking, speaking or breathing. Lingual cyst with respiratory epithelium (LCRE) is a rare developmental cyst of which about 23 case reports exist in the literature. This report aimed to document a case of LCRE from our centre to update the literature and to distinguish it from other cysts of the tongue with or without respiratory epithelium in addition to other content. We present a case of lingual cyst in a 4-year-old boy of 4 years; histopathologic features revealed a cystic lesion lined by columnar ciliated epithelium with goblet cells, focal areas of squamous epithelium and areas of inflammation in the connective tissue. This confirms a diagnosis of LCRE. A discussion on the clinical and microscopic features that distinguishes it from the other tongue cyst is presented, and the need for an appropriate nomenclature is highlighted

Bibliometric analysis of trends in dental management of the children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

This study aimed to present a complete overview of the trends, difficulties, and improvements in dental treatment for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder through rigorous bibliometric analysis. The dimensional database field was chosen to enable the inclusion and recall of the greatest number of relevant entries. All peer-reviewed international journals published between 2004 and 2023 were included in this study. The sophisticated search keywords\u27 Autistic Disorder OR Autism Spectrum Disorder AND Dental management were used. Studies that examined patterns and difficulties in the dental care of children with ASD were included in the inclusion and exclusion criteria for this analysis. Among the listed countries, The United States had the highest number of documents and citations. Barbara Sheller is the most cited author, followed closely by Arthur H.Friedlander, Michael E.Mahler, and John A.Yagiela. This study also revealed that most articles involved multinational collaborations, highlighting the global scope of dental research. The United States leads in terms of research output and citations, followed by India and China. Research on autism spectrum disorder has grown substantially over the past few years, and the authors recommend that future research concentrate on creating effective behavioral techniques that will assist children with autism spectrum disorder in coping with dental treatment

Myofascial Pain Syndromes: Controversies and Suggestions for Improving Diagnosis and Treatment

Myofascial pain syndromes (MPSs) affect a significant portion of the population. However, they remain controversial because their etiology, diagnostics, and effect mechanisms rely on theoretical frameworks with limited scientific rigor. This Viewpoint highlights 3 main challenges and proposes solutions: First, diagnosis lacks consistent criteria and is at risk of verification and incorporation biases. Tightened diagnostic criteria and differentiating myofascial pain syndrome from competing conditions will improve accuracy in research and clinical practice. Second, the etiology/pain mechanisms are poorly understood, with symptoms overlapping other conditions. We recommend recording of standardized assessments in national registries including psychological stress and systemic factors to identify distinct phenotypes. Third, the mechanisms behind treatments such as myofascial release and acupuncture are unclear. We advocate for mechanistic clinical trials to uncover how these treatments exert effects. Addressing these challenges will enhance understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of MPS and guide policymakers to fund appropriate research

Examining the Alignment of Pharmacists\u27 Daily Tasks, Employer-advertised Skills, and the Entrustable Professional Activities

Objective: To understand alignment of pharmacist jobs’ daily tasks, employer-advertised skills, and pharmacy education of entrustable professional activities (EPAs). Methods: The study team compiled the top 20 tasks pharmacists reported performing at least daily from the Occupational Information Network survey (2022), the top 50 employer-advertised skills from 89,819 pharmacist job postings in 2022 from Lightcast and the 13 EPAs from accreditation standards that define a practice-ready pharmacist. Two experienced faculty and licensed pharmacists mapped employer-advertised skills, each task performed at least daily, and the EPAs. Trends in alignment between what pharmacists report doing daily with these other stakeholder expectations were described. Results: Of the top 20 daily pharmacist tasks from the Occupational Information Network, 55% were categorized as product-centric. Legal compliance (30%) and prescription review (25%) were the employer-advertised skills most frequently mapped to these daily tasks. EPA 13 (pharmacy administration and operations) was the EPA most frequently mapped to daily tasks (45%). EPA 8 (education of the patient and others on medications) was the second most frequently mapped EPA to 30% of daily tasks. Conclusion: Prescription processing, legal compliance, and operational pharmacy management are the most essential daily functions of today\u27s pharmacists, contrasting with the person-centered nature of the EPAs. Amid the curricular evolution that has occurred to meet the future vision of pharmacy practice, programs must, nonetheless, continue to teach the skills required for the existing marketplace to ensure that graduates are practice-ready for today\u27s positions

Strengthening the Multiple-Choice Assessment: Improving Item-Writing Skills of Physician Assistant Educators

Abstract Physician assistant (PA) educators are tasked with the challenging privilege of ensuring future PAs are knowledgeable and competent to practice medicine. Most enter academia without formal education in providing education. They learn as they go—a treacherous and steep learning curve. This study provides PA educators literature and skills to bolster the strength and validity of multiple-choice examination items to measure learner progress and identify knowledge gaps. Skills can be improved at the level of the individual educator and program or institution. Approaching item writing and item revision in a stepwise, evidence-based manner can improve the quality of the items, strengthening multiple-choice examinations. This process can yield improved assessments of students\u27 medical knowledge and competence. This study aims to provide the PA educator with techniques to improve their item-writing skills

Use of a dual-purpose implant scan body to obtain both digital and analog records for complete arch fixed implant restorations

A technique is described for capturing relative dental implant positions for an implant-supported fixed prosthesis in a completely edentulous arch with a novel implant indexing apparatus that also functions as a scannable verification device. A series of intraoral scans are made to record the contours and occlusal records of the existing prosthetics and soft tissue. The individual scans are aligned by using a dental software program to design either an interim or definitive prosthesis. The technique reduces the time needed to gather the records dental laboratory technicians require to fabricate a complete arch implant-supported prosthesis

Confidence and Preparedness of Wisconsin Speech-Language Pathologists and Graduate Students in Serving Bilingual Children

This study examined the self-perceived confidence and preparedness of 128 certified speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and 26 SLP graduate students in Wisconsin when serving bilingual children. Participants, monolingual or bilingual, completed an online survey. The relationship between confidence, preparedness, academic coursework, and continuing education was investigated. Results indicated that bilingual SLPs show higher confidence and preparedness levels than monolingual SLPs when working with bilingual children. However, both groups exhibited significantly higher confidence and preparedness when working with monolingual children. A regression analysis revealed that the number of continuing education courses (CEUs) significantly predicts confidence and preparedness levels for working with bilingual children. In contrast, the number of academic coursework topics covered did not significantly correlate with confidence or preparedness. The results highlight the need for specialized learning opportunities that focus on the complexities of bilingual service provision in improving the readiness of both monolingual and bilingual SLPs, and graduate students to serve bilingual populations effectively

Evaluation of Nutraceutical Potential of Carduus marianus: Antioxidant and Hepatoprotective Effects in Paracetamol-Induced Hepatotoxicity and GC–MS Analysis

This study evaluates the hepatoprotective effects of Carduus marianus in a paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity model using Wistar rats. Wistar rats were divided into six groups and treated with varying doses (100, 200, and 300 mg/kg) of C. marianus 12× aqueous solution after hepatotoxicity induction. Serum biomarkers for liver function (ALT and AST), lipid profiles, renal indicators, oxidative stress markers, and inflammatory mediators were measured. Phytochemical screening revealed alkaloids, glycosides, carbohydrates, saponins, phenols, and flavonoids, with oleic acid as the major component. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) identified oleic acid as the predominant constituent (62.96%). Treatment significantly improved liver biomarkers, lipid profiles, and renal function (p \u3c 0.001) across all doses, alongside notable reductions in oxidative stress markers and inflammatory mediators (p \u3c 0.001). These results highlight the potential of C. marianus as a promising therapeutic agent for managing liver health

Consistency of Value Detection for Shade Matching Using Multiple Scanners

Objective: Digital shade-matching systems allow for the selection of value, hue, chroma accurately to match the shade of the surrounding natural teeth. Significant variation exists during shade selection using different digital scanners. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the trueness and repeatability of shade value using multiple digital systems as compared to spectrophotometer (SPM) as a gold standard. Methods: VITA Toothguide 3D-MASTER® tabs were scanned for their Value only (1M1, 2M1, 3m1, 4M1and 5M1) five times using a spectrophotometer and three different scanning systems: Trios3 Shape Scanner, Vita Easy Shade V and Prime Scan. Next, we conducted tests on human subjects by scanning sound teeth #8 or #9. Value was collected from the middle third of each tooth. Reliability analysis was performed to compare the consistency of detected values with each scanner against values detected with SPM by weighted Kappa values. Results: None of the scanned values were the same as values detected with SPM. The measurements obtained from the Vita Easyshade demonstrated a strong agreement with a Kappa value of 1, followed by the Prima Scan, which showed a Kappa value of 0.763. In contrast, the Kappa values for the human subjects were all below 0.3.Conclusion: Different scanners produced variable results as compared to spectrophotometer which may impact patient satisfaction with the appearance of a final restoration