Harun Achmad

This study evaluated the effect of a marine-derived mineral–polymer nanosystem, composed of nanocalcium and nanochitosan and administered systemically during growth, on mandibular bone density and osteocyte formation. Twenty-five growing male Wistar rats were randomly assigned to five groups: negative control, calcium-fortified milk, nanocalcium, nanochitosan, and a combined nanosystem. All interventions were administered orally for 30 days at a standardized dose of approximately 58.5 mg/kg body weight/day. Mandibular bone density was assessed using grayscale-based optical density (OD) analysis from standardized digital radiographs, where lower grayscale values correspond to increased radiopacity and higher mineral density. Osteocyte formation was evaluated histologically. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA followed by post-hoc multiple comparison tests. A p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant. The mineral–polymer nanosystem group demonstrated significantly lower OD values (0.47 ± 0.03; p < 0.001), suggesting higher radiopacity and mineralization, and higher osteocyte counts (137.8 ± 15.7; p <0.05) compared with control and single-component groups. Histological observations revealed denser trabecular structures, preserved lacunar integrity, and more organized bone architecture in the mineral–polymer nanosystem group. Within the limitations of this in vivo model, the findings suggest that systemic administration of a marine-derived mineral–polymer nanosystem may be associated with enhanced mandibular bone development during growth. The combined presence of mineral and polymer phases may contribute to improved mineralization and cellular organization. These results support the potential of functional nanosystems as biologically active biomaterial platforms for craniofacial bone modulation during skeletal development.

Oral mucositis is a common complication of chemotherapy that significantly impacts quality of life and may reduce treatment efficacy. While oral cryotherapy has been widely studied as a preventive intervention due to its cost-effectiveness, safety, and ease of use, most research focused on clinical outcomes without incorporating objective cytological assessments of mucosal changes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of oral cryotherapy in managing chemotherapy-induced mucositis using exfoliative cytology to monitor oral mucosal changes. A single-blinded, randomized controlled trial was conducted involving 50 cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, who were randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group. The control group (n=25) received standard oral hygiene care, while the intervention group (n=25) received oral cryotherapy in addition to routine oral hygiene. A 20-minute oral cryotherapy was administered twice daily after breakfast (09:00 A.M.) and lunch (01:00 P.M.) for 14 days. This study found a significant reduction in mucositis scores was observed in both groups (p<0.05). However, post-hoc analysis indicated that mucositis severity declined earlier in the cryotherapy group, whereas improvement in the control group was noted only after 14 days. Serial oral mucosal smears analyzed via exfoliative cytology revealed a reduction in inflammatory cells and the absence of coccus microorganisms by days 7 and 14 in the intervention group. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that oral cryotherapy effectively reduces the severity and duration of mucositis and accelerates recovery in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Oral cryotherapy can be applied as a viable alternative to mitigate the severity of oral mucositis in this patient population.

This study aims to analyze dentoalveolar changes and transverse discrepancies in the treatment of class II division 1 dentoskeletal malocclusion before and after treatment using a functional twin block device. This study used a comparative analytical study to compare dentoalveolar changes and maxillary transverse discrepancies. The research sample was a study model of patients aged 7–15 years with 23 study models with class II division 1 dentoskeletal malocclusion cases at the clinic of the Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Hasanuddin University Educational Oral and Dental Hospital (RSGMP UNHAS). A sampling of the study model was carried out by purposive sampling. The measurement data was tested using the chi-squared normality test and then the statistical test was the paired t test. Based on the statistical analysis of paired t-test there is a change in the distance between the mandibular canines, there is a change in the distance between the first premolars or between the mandibular first primary molars, there is a change in the distance between the second premolars or between the maxillary second primary molars, and there is a change in the distance between the maxillary molars after treatment using a twin block device. There were substantial dentoalveolar alterations in overjet, overbite, molar relation, and distance between premolars and molars after using the twin block device. Key words:Malocclusion, twin block, dentoalveolar, jaw discrepancy.

This study aims to detect early class I, II, and III malocclusions through the muscle strength of the lips, tongue, masseter, and temporalis.The study subjects were 30 pediatric patients with predetermined criteria. The subjects were divided into class I, II, and III malocclusions where each classification of malocclusion amounted to 10 people. Subjects were differentiated according to gender and age. Tongue pressure during swallowing was recorded by a palatal measurement sensor system. The strength of the activity was assessed when the lip muscles resisted as hard as possible the traction plate placed between the teeth and the lips, then the force was connected to an electromyograph (EMG) to be measured. Temporal and masseter muscle contractions were assessed when the muscles performed swallowing, chewing, mouth opening, resting, mouth closing, and biting movements.Data analysis using the SPSS application was performed with the ANOVA test if the data distribution was normal, and if the data distribution was not normal, then the Kruskal–Wallis test was used. Significant data were evaluated by post-hoc tests using least significant difference if the data distribution was normal or the Mann–Whitney test if the data distribution was not normal.It was found that there was a significant difference in the left masseter muscle and left temporalis muscle.EMG can be considered as a tool to detect class I, II, and III malocclusions through muscle contraction. Biting and chewing positions have satisfactory EMG examination results for malocclusion detection. Age and gender of the child may affect the results of EMG examination in certain conditions.

Background: Currently, 30 million children are experiencing acute malnutrition, and 8 million children are severely underweight. Objective: This study aimed to develop a stunting super app, a one-stop app designed to prevent and manage stunting in Indonesia. Methods: This study consisted of three stages. Stage 1 used a 3-round Delphi study involving 12 experts. In stage 2, 4 experts and a parent of children with stunted growth created an Android app containing stunting educational materials. In stage 3, a pilot study involving a control group was conducted to evaluate parents’ knowledge about stunting prevention through the app and standard interventions. Results: In the Delphi study, 11 consensus statements were extracted; arranged in three major themes, including maternal health education, child health education, and environmental education; and applied in the form of the Sistem Evaluasi Kesehatan Anak Tumbuh Ideal (SEHATI) app. This app was assessed using a content validity index, with a cumulative agreement of ≥80% among the 5 individuals. The pilot study showed an increase in the knowledge of mothers of toddlers with stunted growth before and after the educational intervention (P=.001). Conclusions: The SEHATI app provides educational content on stunting prevention that can increase the knowledge of mothers of toddlers with stunted growth.

Background: Anchovy (Stolephorus sp.) is a commonly used food ingredient due to its high calcium content, which supports craniofacial growth. Calcium stimulates the formation of osteoblasts, which produce osteoprotegerin (OPG). OPG binds to RANKL, blocking RANKL–RANK bonding and limiting osteoclast development. Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze OPG expression in mandibular bones to assess the potential calcium content of anchovies. Methods: Three groups of 27 male Wistar rats were created: control, anchovy, and milk. After 40 days, the rats were decapitated, and their mandibular bones were surgically extracted, decalcified, and prepared for microscopic examination. The results showed a significant difference in OPG expression of rat mandibles between control, anchovy, and milk groups (P < 0.05), as determined by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Tukey’s HSD test revealed a significant difference in the average quantity of rat mandibular OPG expression between the control group and each of the anchovy and milk groups, with probability values of 0.00 and 0.003 (P < 0.05), respectively. However, the average level of OPG expression in anchovy and milk groups did not differ significantly, as indicated by the probability value of 0.064 (P > 0.05). Conclusion: The mandibular development increases after feeding anchovies compared to the control group. Anchovy is not statistically superior to milk in terms of increasing mandibular development. However, as a high-calcium food, anchovy is well-suited to support children’s craniofacial development and growth.

BACKGROUND Currently, >30 million children suffer from acute malnutrition, and 8 million are severely underweight. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to develop a stunting superapp, a one-stop app designed to prevent and manage stunting in Indonesia. METHODS This cross-sectional study consisted of three stages. Stage I used a three-round Delphi study involving 12 experts. In stage II, an Android app containing stunting educational materials was made by four experts. In stage III, a pilot study involving a control group was conducted to evaluate parents’ knowledge about stunting prevention through the app and standard interventions. RESULTS In the Delphi study, 11 consensus statements were extracted and arranged in three major themes, including maternal health education, child health education, and environmental education applied in the form of the Sistem Evaluasi Kesehatan Anak Tumbuh Ideal (SEHATI) app. This app was assessed using the content validity index, resulting in a cumulative percentage of agreement from five experts of >80%. The pilot study showed an increase in the knowledge of mothers with stunted toddlers before and after education intervention (p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS The SEHATI app provides educational contents on stunting prevention that can increase the knowledge of mothers of toddlers with stunted growth.

Background: Bad oral habits are common in children aged less than six years and can stop spontaneously. If these bad habits continue after the age of six years, it can cause malocclusion. In the world of pediatric dentistry, one of the treatments for malocclusion is Oral Myofunctional Therapy (OMT). One of the myofunctional tools that can be used to correct malocclusion as well as bad habits in children is the Myobrace Appliance - an intraoral device system used in interceptive orthodontics. The purpose of this systematic review is to explore the management of malocclusion in children using the Myobrace Appliance. Methods: The data was collected by a literature search on Google Scholar, including articles published from 2016 to 2020. The data search was carried out systematically using the keywords Malocclusion in Children and Myobrace Appliance. After eliminating duplicate articles, the titles and abstracts of each article were analyzed across 108 articles, resulting in 51 articles. There were 36 articles not in line with topic and 6 articles which could not be freely accessed, so that 42 articles were excluded. The full text articles in the other nine articles were reanalyzed; three articles were excluded with reason and six articles were produced which were then included in the analysis. Results: There are six articles that discuss the management of malocclusion in children using the Myobrace appliance. All of these explain that Myobrace appliance is effective in handling cases of malocclusion especially to correct class II malocclusion and class III malocclusion. Conclusion: Myobrace appliance can be used as an alternative treatment for malocclusion in children, especially to correct class II and III malocclusion (mandibular prognathy and maxillary retrognathy). Additionally, this tool is capable of correcting overbite, overjet, crowding of upper and lower anterior teeth, sagittal molar relationships, lip seals, and facial asymmetry.

Background: Caries is one of the oral diseases that is often experienced by children around the world by 60%-90%, especially in low socioeconomic groups. The causes of caries are multifactorial, including socioeconomic level, age, gender, diet and oral hygiene. Sucrose or sugar commonly consumed is an important factor causing caries. Elementary school children are an age group that is very vulnerable to caries because they have poor behavior in maintaining oral and dental health. Aim: Knowing the protection factors and risk of caries in children aged 10-13 years. Method: The study was conducted in September 2022 - March 2023 on elementary school students aged 10-13 years in 3 (three) elementary schools in Ujung Tanah District, Makassar City, South Sulawesi Provision. The number of samples at SD Hang Tuah was 64 people, SDN Ujung Tanah 54 people, and SDN Cambaya 49 people with a total sample of 167 people with quantitative research methods using questionnaires. Results: The average value of protection factor against caries in SD Hang Tuah was 66.8%, SDN Ujung Tanah 72.5%, and SDN Cambaya 64.2%. The protection factor against caries in the three schools still needs to be improved. The average value of risk factors for caries in SD Hang Tuah was 33%, SDN Ujung Tanah 29.3%, and SDN Cambaya 32.7%. Risk factors for caries in the three schools still need to be reduced. Conclusion: The protection factor still needs to be improved while the risk factor still needs to be lowered by the three elementary schools. In addition, this study also found caries rates in the three schools in the very high category with a caries index of >6.6.