Purpose: Exact knowledge of the location and dimension of the pulp chamber help to maintain the pulp healthy during operative procedure and also reduces the risk of perforation of pulp chamber during root canal treatment. This in-vivo study was carried out to measure critical morphology of pulp chamber of mandibular molar using intra-oral periapical radiograph. Materials and Methods: Mandibular molar teeth of 56 patients were evaluated. The mandibular molar teeth whose pulp chamber was not violated by caries, restoration, fracture crown and those having closed apex were included in the study. The intraoral periapical radiographs were taken with paralleling angle technique using radio-opaque grid with 1 mm space. This grid was placed directly on the film. Results: In 94% of the mandibular first molars specimens the pulp chamber ceiling was at the level of the cemento-enamel junction. The measurements showing the lowest percentage variance were buccal cusp to furcation (approximately 11%) and buccal cusp to pulp chamber ceiling (approximately 15%). The distance from the cusp tip to pulp chamber ceiling height was approximately 6.0 mm, the distance from the pulpal floor to the furcation was approximately 3.0 mm, and the average height of a pulp chamber was 1.5 to 2.0 mm. Conclusion: The exact knowledge of distances of pulp chamber from various anatomical landmarks helps in proper assessment of root canals and ultimately avoids the failure of root canal treatment.

Purpose: Craniosynostosis (CS), one of the most common congenital craniofacial deformities, is the premature closure of cranial sutures. NELL-1 is a novel molecule overexpressed during premature cranial suture closure in human CS. From a functional perspective, NELL-1 has been reported to accelerate chondrocyte maturation and modulate calvarial osteoblast differentiation and apoptosis pathways. The mechanism through which NELL-1 induces these phenomena, however, remains unclear. The purpose of this study is to identify the NELL-1 binding protein(s) through which the biologic mechanism of NELL-1 can be further investigated. Materials and Methods: Far-Western and Immunoprecipitation (IP) assays were performed, independently and in sequence, followed by mass spectrometry to identify the NELL-1 binding proteins. Reverse IP was used to verify and confirm candidate binding protein. Results: The only confirmative protein from current experimentation was vimentin. Vimentin is the major structural component of the intermediate filaments. Conclusion: The present study identified and confirmed vimentin as a NELL-1 binding protein, which opened up a new window to mechanistically facilitate studies on this CS-associated molecule.

Purpose: The aim of our study was to evaluate natural recovery of neurologic injury after minor dental surgery based on subjective neurologic evaluation. Materials and Methods: From December 2005 through July 2009, 30 patients from Seoul National University Bundang Hospital were identified as having been treated with minor dental surgery. The patients were composed of 12 men and 18 women, with a mean age of 50.6 years. The median duration of this study was 62 weeks. Results: The patients were treated by implants (17 cases), tooth extractions (6 cases), bone grafts (4 cases), inferior alveolar nerve transpositions (2 cases) and periodontal surgery (1 case) prior to the occurrence of altered sensation. Areas of altered sensation after minor surgery included the lip (36.7%), chin (30.0%) and tooth (21.7%), and at final follow-up, there was no change of ranking. Altered sensations expressed by patients included numbness (33.3%), discomfort (22.9%), relieving sense (14.6%), tingling (14.6%) and itching (14.6%). There was no change of ranking of altered sensation at the last follow-up. Patients experienced the altered sensation always (47.8%), during tactile stimulation (26.1%), when chewing food (13.0%), and talking (13.0%). Mean visual analogue scale (VAS) was $3.43{\pm}2.84$ for pain and $6.64{\pm}2.72$ for paresthesia. VAS of pain was decreased significantly between the first visit and the end of follow-up, and paresthesia also showed a significant difference. Conclusion: Altered sensations may occur at any time after minor dental surgery, but we observed that natural recovery of altered sensation occurred as time went on.

Purpose: To describe the newly developed Film image transfer system (FITS) for proper positioning of the orthodontic mini-implant in the narrow interdental space and considerations for better application. Materials and Methods: A patient who was planning to have orthodontic mini-implant treatment on the posterior maxilla was recruited to assess the feasibility of FITS. Dental radiographic film and bite record was taken. And then the film image was transferred on the photographic emulsion coated model using transfer light through film projector (enlarger). After exposing the photo emulsion coating on the model, the image was developed with a working solution for a paper developer and fixed. The surgical guide for the mini-implant was fabricated from the transported FITS data. Results: The completed surgical guide was easily placed intraorally, and allowed a simple and rapid placement of the mini-implant. The site of the implant placement was accurate as planned position. Conclusion: In the reported case, The FITS technique represents an effort to minimize risk to the patient and produce consistently good results based upon accurate information about the anatomy of the implant site.

Purpose: The quality of implant surface is one of the factors that influence wound healing of implant site and subsequently affect osseointegration. The objective of modification of the surface properties of an implant is to affect the biological consequence. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the biologic response of osseous tissue to anodized implants. Materials and Methods: Two machined titanium implants for control group were installed in a tibia of each rabbit and two anodized implants for test group were installed in the other tibia of each rabbit. At the moment the implants were installed, resonance frequency analysis (RFA) values were measured. After healing periods of 1, 2, 3, and 7 weeks, the implants were uncovered and RFA values were measured again. Removal torque was measured for one implant in the test group and one implant in the control group. Histological evaluation was executed in the other implants. Results: Both of test group and control group have the tendency of greater RFA change rate and removal torque value as healing periods became longer, but were statistically insignificant (P>0.05). However, in the case of the same healing period, the test group tended to have greater RFA change rate and removal torque than the control group (P<0.05). More active new bone formation from endosteal surface was noted on the anodized surface than machined surface in specimen after 1 week. There were no significant differences between the test group and control group in histological evaluations. Conclusion: In summary, the anodized surface showed slightly favorable results and it is postulated that it may facilitate improved stability in bone.

Gorlin-Goltz syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder with a high degree of penetrance. It is characterized by basal cell carcinomas, odontogenic keratocysts, palmar and plantar pits and ectopic calcifications of falx cerebri. The presence of two major and one minor criteria or one major and three minor criteria are necessary to establish a diagnosis. Early diagnosis and treatment of Gorlin-Goltz syndrome, as well as family screening and genetic counseling are essential as it may be associated in 10% of patients with aggressive basal cell carcinoma and malignant neoplasias. We report here a patient with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome.