Network Analysis of Anxiety and Depression Symptoms in Individuals With Oral Lichen Planus and Evaluation of Salivary Biomarkers: A New Approach Alessandra Laís Pinho Valente Pires, Adriana Mendonça da Silva, Murilo Cruz, Ynara Bosco de Oliveira Lima‐Arsati, Franco Arsati, et al. Journal of Oral Pathology and Medicine, 2025 Objective To estimate the network structure of 21 symptoms of anxiety and depression in individuals diagnosed with oral lichen planus (OLP) and compare it with salivary biomarkers, cortisol and alpha‐amylase. Materials and Methods A case–control study was conducted with 21 OLP cases and 21 controls matched by sex and age. Beck Anxiety and Depression Inventories were administered, and salivary cortisol and alpha‐amylase levels were determined. Descriptive analysis used the Mann–Whitney U test to compare participants' responses and the Benjamini‐Hochberg Method to control the False Discovery Rate (FDR). Network analysis was performed using regularized partial correlation network models. Results A significant association was found between anxiety ( p = 0.001) and depression ( p = 0.004) scores and OLP. The “shaky/unsteady” symptom was most central in the anxiety network for OLP patients, while “feelings of punishment” and “self‐criticism” were central in the depression network. Weak correlations were observed between cortisol and alpha‐amylase in anxiety and depressive symptoms. Cortisol awekening response (CAR) had a negative correlation with alpha‐amylase awakening response (AAR) (−0.54), as like AAR and Faint/lightheaded (−0.57) in anxiety network. Anxiety network structures did not differ between groups ( p = 0.18), but the depression network was more connected in controls than in OLP cases (overall strength 69.29 vs. 27.35, p < 0.000). Conclusion This study reveals the distinct network structures of anxiety and depression symptoms in OLP patients, highlighting a new methodological approach to exploring symptom configurations. When exploring the relationship with cortisol and alpha‐amylase, weak relationships were found between them. The findings may prompt further network studies involving biomarkers and their interaction with anxiety and depression.
Evaluation of the use of chamomile in isolation and in association with laser photobiomodulation in the healing of rats oral mucosa Tila Fortuna, Juliana Borges Dantas, Rejane Conceição Santana, Hortência Resende Della Cella, Elisângela de Jesus Campos, et al. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 2024 Laser photobiomodulation (LPBM) has been shown to be one of the possible modulating agents of inflammation. Similarly, medicinal plants, such as chamomile (Matricaria recutita) are also used with the same purpose. To evaluate tissue repair in the dorsum of the tongue of rats under topical use of chamomile alone and in association with LPBM. Seventy‐five male Wistar rats received a standardized wound on the dorsum of the tongue and were allocated into experimental groups: Control (G1), Chamomile Fluid extract (G2), Chamomile Infusion (G3), Laser (G4), Chamomile Infusion + Laser (G5). Euthanasia was done on days 3, 7, and 14 after surgery. Ulcers were evaluated and measured with a caliper. Sections stained with hematoxylin and eosin and Picrosirius Red allowed evaluation of edema, inflammatory infiltrate, cellularity, and re‐epithelialization and characterization of total collagen. Histomorphometric analysis of the percentage of total collagen, the distance from the basal layer to the epithelial surface, and the thickness of the stratum corneum were performed. The G2 and G4 groups modulated the exudative and proliferative phases of inflammation, both clinically and histologically. The G3 and G5 groups did not show significant differences in relation to the G1 group in most of the evaluated parameters. Chamomile fluid extract and LPBM alone showed better clinical and histological responses for tissue repair than the association between these therapeutic modalities. There were differences in the parameters of clinical, histological, and histomorphometric patterns between the experimental groups of the present investigation. The LPBM proved to be superior in the performed analysis.
Oral manifestations in patients diagnosed with psoriasis: A systematic review Fernanda Veiga Rodeiro Nery, Daniel Adrian Silva Souza, Juliana Borges de Lima Dantas, Gabriela Botelho Martins, Sílvia Regina de Almeida Reis, et al. Special Care in Dentistry, 2023 AimsTo identify the main types of oral lesions associated with psoriasis.Methods and ResultsIt was a systematic review, based on a search performed in the PubMed/Medline, and Scielo databases, and an associated manual search. Descriptors were selected from DeCs/MeSH and the PICOS strategy (population, intervention, comparison, outcomes, and study design) was applied. Randomized clinical trials and retrospective and prospective studies published from 2000 to 2022 were included, according to the PRISMA parameters (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analysis), registered in the PROSPERO platform. The STROBE quality scale (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational studies in Epidemiology) was also used. One hundred fourteen articles were identified using the search strategy, and nine articles were found in the manual search. Of the sixty‐six preselected articles, seven were included in the study. Although it was not possible to identify a specific oral lesion associated with psoriasis, there was a greater occurrence of geographic tongue, fissured tongue, and Candida sp. infectionConclusionEvidence shows that although patients with psoriasis may exhibit lesions in the oral mucosa, they are not specific to this condition. Further epidemiological studies are needed to address the association of psoriasis with possible changes in the oral mucosa.
Bariatric Surgery and Oral Health: A Cohort Study Isis Henriques de Almeida Bastos, Erivaldo Santos Alves, Cláudia Daltro de Sousa, Gabriela Botelho Martins, Elisângela de Jesus Campos, et al. Bariatric Surgical Practice and Patient Care, 2022
