Chettinad Health City Medical Journal is an International, peer reviewed, quarterly medical journal. This issue of the journal has a special section focusing on Dentistry. Dentistry is the branch of medicine that is involved in the study, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of diseases, disorders and conditions of the oral cavity. There are nine specialties in dentistry namely Oral Medicine and Radiology, Oral and Maxillofacial surgery, Public Health Dentistry, Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, Pedodontics and Preventive dentistry, Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Periodontics, Prosthodontics and Crown and bridge, onservative dentistry and Endodontics.

In India, malaria is still one the main diseases causing morbidity and mortality after HIV/AIDS. This study has been done to note the changes in haematological parameters like leucopenia, relative neutropenia, lymphocytosis, eosinopenia and presence of reactive lymphocytes in cases of malaria with special reference to platelet indices. The platelet indices include plateletcrit(Pct), platelet distribution width(PDW) and mean platelet volume(MPV).

The aim of this article is to find out the malocclusion and cranio-maxillofacial deformation in patients with ectodermal dysplasia.

To assess the effects of untreated caries in school children and designing the interventional strategies with a view to attend the oral health care needs of children.

The prisoners represent a population group that is disadvantaged, socially deprived underprivileged and needs immediate attention in regards to provision of necessary oral health care, health promotion and motivation, tobacco cessation. This study makes an effort to assess the prisoners’ knowledge, attitude and practice towards oral health and barriers faced to oral health care in the jail.

Sickle beta thalassemia is a disorder which represents the double heterozygous state for the Hb-S and the beta-thalassemia genes. The clinical and hematological manifestations of sickle beta thalassemia are highly variable due to existence of two types of genes, beta0 thalassemia gene and beta+ gene. Beta0 gene leads to complete absence of Hb-A levels, whereas beta+ gene leads to production of Hb-A levels 10-30%. This disorder is diagnosed by levels of Hb-S, Hb-A2 and Hb-F in Hemoglobin Electrophoresis. We are presenting one such patient with features of Sickle Beta+ thalassemia who presented with anemia, splenomegaly and characteristic features in Hb Electrophoresis.

The mandibular premolars exhibit variations in the number of roots and root canals. This presents with diagnostic difficulty and subsequent endodontic flare ups and failure. Precise location of additional canals is the key to successful endodontic management. In this article, we report a rare case of mandibular second premolar with two root canals and three roots in which a nonsurgical endodontic treatment was completed.

Dental fluorosis is one of the major endemic diseases affecting the musculo-skeletal system and teeth. It is characterized by yellowish to brownish stains and pitting of teeth according to the severity of the disease. These intrinsic stains severely affect the confidence of the patient, making them hide their smile, which is a major expression of happiness. This case series reports, a total of five cases with mild to moderate fluorosis with aesthetic stain, treated successfully using McInnes solution. This report emphasizes that McInnes solution has to be considered in cases with fluorosis stains as an economic, effective and conservative option in relevant situation.

Warty dyskeratoma (WD) is a benign epidermal proliferation characterized by a reddish-brown or skin colored solitary papule or nodule with central follicular plugging . It is usually limited to the scalp,neck and face but has occasionally been reported on oral and vulval mucosae. Herein we report a female patient presenting with multiple verrucous papules on the scalp diagnosed clinically and histopathologically as warty dyskeratoma. The etiology of WD is unknown, but ultraviolet light, autoimmunity, viral infections, chemical carcinogens, and smoking have been postulated to play a role. Besides the characteristic histopathological features, the clinical appearance of WD is distinctive and is composed of discrete papules or nodules.

Menstruation is of unknown evolutionary significance1 . It is not clear why women are one of the very few species that menstruate1,2. In fact, menstruation may even be harmful to women’s health by causing blood loss which may in turn lead to anaemia and this is associated with morbidity and mortality3,4. Menstruation remains a gynecological or reproductive endocrinological enigma.

Piezoelectric surgery is a minimally invasive osseous surgical technique developed in recent years in response to lessen the risk of damage to surrounding soft tissues and important structures such as nerves, vessels and mucosa. Periodontitis is a multi factorial disease of tooth supporting structures. Various treatment modalities are based on removal of etiologic factors and preserving bone architecture. Recently this novel surgical approach has gained popularity in many fields of dentistry. This article reviews its treatment application in periodontics.

Increasing number of medically compromised children and adults are likely to seek orthodontic care as improved medical management creates more long-term survivors. While for majority, treatment of orthodontic problems is possible, but individual precautions like medical consultation, maintaining a current knowledge of drug therapy, and modification in chairside procedures, are needed. Since orthodontic treatment can provide positive benefits it should not be denied solely due of the presence of a serious medical problem. Fixed appliance therapy can be done for most of these patients by applying appropriate management practices. This article discusses the implications of cardiovascular, endocrinal and respiratory diseases on orthodontic treatment.

There is an increased demand for skilled professionals to treat the geriatric community who are more prone to various systemic disorders. Dentist apart from treating the oral cavity should be aware of various complications of the systemic disorders and dental management in emergencies. They should also know how these systemic disorders affect the oral cavity and about the various drug interactions. This article briefly explains the oral health management of geriatric patients with some common systemic disorders in this article.

Stem cells are pluripotent cells that can divide and multiply for an extended period of time, differentiating into specialized cell types and tissues. Dental decay which is the commonest dental disease needs proper dental treatment. Dental origin stem cells could be used for regenerative therapies. Dental tissue replacement, pulp regeneration, alveolar bone augmentation using stem cells may become the common modes of treatment in years to come.

Periodontitis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the tooth supporting structures which leads to mobility and eventual tooth loss. Periodontitis acts as a foci of infection or gate way for many systemic infections due to the dissemination of microbial products in distant body parts. Oral health and general health are not separate entities. Prevention of periodontal inflammation is of utmost importance for the over all general health. The aim of this review is to bring to light the systemic problems for which periodontitis act as a risk factor.