A recent study has shown that pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) therapy is successful in pain management after third molar (M3) surgery. This study's findings were published in the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.

A randomized, controlled, double-blinded trial was conducted with 90 patients suffering from impacted mandibular M3. The predictor variable examined was postoperative pain management, with subjects randomly allocated to receive either PEMF or standard therapy. Pain intensity was assessed using a 100 mm visual analog scale, along with monitoring the number of analgesics taken. Each patient documented their pain levels and analgesic consumption in a daily clinical diary over a 7-day period. Student's t test was used and the statistical significance for P value < .05 was established. The primary planned analysis included a 2-group, continuity-corrected, chi-square (χ²) test of equality of proportions.

The use of PEMF demonstrated a significant correlation with enhanced pain relief (2.08 versus 5.04; P value = .0002) and a decrease in the intake of painkillers when compared to the control  cohort (2.6 versus 5.8; P value = .0062).

The above study demonstrated that PEMF therapy is effective in managing pain after third molar (M3) surgery.

In a recent study, it was found that the utilization of the experimental desensitizing gel, which includes ibuprofen/arginine, successfully decreased the likelihood and severity of tooth sensitivity (TS) while maintaining the efficacy of bleaching. This study’s findings were published in the Journal of Dentistry.

A total of 62 participants with top canine shades A2 or darker were randomized to either the placebo cohort or ibuprofen-arginine desensitizing cohort. The desensitizing gel was applied for 15 minutes prior to in-office bleaching using 35% hydrogen peroxide gel for a total of 50 minutes (2 sessions). The absolute risk and intensity of TS were evaluated using visual (0-10) and numeric rating (0-5) scales, and group comparisons were conducted using the Wilcoxon test, McNemar test, and paired Student t-test (α = 0.05). Teeth colour change was evaluated using Vita Bleachedguide (ΔSGU), Vita Classical, and Vita EasyShade (ΔE_ab, ΔE₀₀, and ΔW_ID) before and 1 month after the bleaching procedure, with group comparisons for colour change analyzed using a paired t-test (α = 0.05).

A lower odds ratio for TS of 0.14 [95 % confidence interval 0.02 to 0.6] was observed with the desensitizing gel. The experimental cohort also exhibited decreased intensity of teeth sensitivity up to 48 hours after bleaching process (p < 0.005). Additionally, all colour evaluation tools showed effective and similar whitening for both cohorts (p > 0.05).

Thus, it can be concluded that the desensitizing gel containing ibuprofen and arginine reduced the occurrence and intensity of TS while also preserving the whitening results.

A recent study suggests that neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) along with TPF (docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5FU) shows higher survival benefit over TP (docetaxel and cisplatin) in treating borderline resectable oral cancers. The study findings were published in the European Journal of Cancer.

This phase 3, randomized, superiority study included 495 adult patients with borderline resectable locally advanced oral cancers. These participants were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either TP (N=248) or TPF (N=247). The primary endpoint of the study was overall survival (OS) while the secondary endpoints were adverse events and progression-free survival (PFS).

At the end of 5 years, the OS in TP and TPF arms were 18.5% and 23.9%, respectively. Post NACT, 43.8% of the patients were deemed resectable, but only 34.5% underwent surgery. The 5-year OS was found to be 50.7% in the surgically resected cohort while it was 5% in the unresected cohort following NACT. Adverse events of Grade 3 or above were seen in 97 patients in the TP arm and 179 patients in the TPF arm.

Based on the above results, it can be concluded that NACT with TPF may show greater survival benefit over TP in case of patients with borderline resectable oral cancers and those who can undergo surgery may achieve a relatively good and sustained survival.

A recent study found that propolis mouthwash positively improves clinical parameters and is significantly more effective in improving bleeding on probing among perimenopausal women. This study was published in the journal, BMC Oral Health.

This was a double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial that included 144 subjects with mild to moderate chronic periodontitis. Post scaling and root planning, the subjects were randomized into two treatment groups: 20% propolis mouthwash and 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash, twice daily for six weeks. At baseline, six weeks, and 12 weeks, clinical parameters such as clinical attachment loss (CAL), bleeding on probing (BOP), and pocket probing depth (PPD) were analyzed.

At the end of the study, it was found that mean value of PPD which was 4.67 at baseline in the propolis group, was reduced to 4.01 at six weeks and 3.59 at 12 weeks. In the chlorhexidine group, the baseline value of 4.65 was reduced to 4.44 and 4.25 at 6 weeks and twelve weeks, respectively. In the propolis group, the baseline value of the mean CAL was reduced from 4.45 to 4.15 at 6 weeks and 3.77 at twelve weeks. In the chlorhexidine group, the CAL value at baseline was reduced from 4.80 to 4.50 and 4.19 at 6 and 12 weeks, respectively. The mean value of BOP in the propolis group decreased from 77.20 to 46.30 at 6 weeks and 14.60 at the final visit (12 weeks). In the chlorhexidine group, BOP (mean value) of 77.30 was reduced to 49.60 and 22.80 at subsequent visits.

Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that both propolis and chlorhexidine mouthwash positively may improve clinical parameters and propolis may be significantly more effective in improving BOP.