THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE PREVENTION OF HYPERESTHESIA AFTER THE TEETH WHITENING PROCEDURE

Relevance: people's need for teeth whitening is growing every year. At the same time, during various bleaching procedures, changes in the structure of the surface of the teeth may occur and as a result, there is an increased sensitivity (hyperesthesia) of the teeth, which in some cases leads to the rejection of bleaching. At the same time, there is little data in the scientific literature today about the features of hyperesthesia after teeth whitening, in particular about the ratio of hypersensitivity to various factors (chemical, thermal, mechanical). Also, the predominance of dental hyperesthesia, depending on their localization, has not been studied. Purpose: to analyze the features of hyperesthesia after teeth whitening. Methodology. In this study, using the index of the intensity and prevalence of hyperesthesia, the features of hyperesthesia after teeth whitening were analyzed in 100 patients. For the study, patients with the enamel color of the red-brown group A (Vita Classic), namely to the colors A2 and A3, were selected.All patients underwent chemical teeth whitening using the Opalescence Boost PF whitening system. Comparison and analysis of the results of the conducted study were performed in the IBM SPSS Statistics 23 program. The Student's t-test was used to assess the statistical significance of the differences between the samples. The differences were considered statistically significant at p < 0.05. Result. As a result, it was revealed that hyperesthesia after bleaching prevailed in the frontal part of the lower jaw teeth. Hyperesthesia of teeth after bleaching was characterized by a generalized form and tended to decrease in intensity after 2 weeks. At the same time, the reaction to stimuli was preserved. Conclusions. The above dictates the need for comprehensive prevention of hyperesthesia after the teeth whitening procedure.

A new, fluorescence-based method for visualizing the pseudopupil and assessing optical acuity in the dark compound eyes of honeybees and other insects

Recent interest in applying novel imaging techniques to infer optical resolution in compound eyes underscores the difficulty of obtaining direct measures of acuity. A widely used technique exploits the principal pseudopupil, a dark spot on the eye surface representing the ommatidial gaze direction and the number of detector units (ommatidia) viewing that gaze direction. However, dark-pigmented eyes, like those of honeybees, lack a visible pseudopupil. Attempts over almost a century to estimate optical acuity in this species are still debated. Here, we developed a method to visualize a stable, reliable pseudopupil by staining the photoreceptors with fluorescent dyes. We validated this method in several species and found it to outperform the dark pseudopupil for this purpose, even in pale eyes, allowing more precise location of the gaze centre. We then applied this method to estimate the sampling resolution in the frontal part of the eye of the honeybee forager. We found a broad frontal acute zone with interommatidial angles below 2° and a minimum interommatidial angle of 1.3°, a broader, sharper frontal acute zone than previously reported. Our study provides a new method to directly measure the sampling resolution in most compound eyes of living animals.

White Matter Integrity Changes and Neurocognitive Functioning in Adult-Late Onset DM1: A Follow-Up DTI Study

Background: Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (DM1) is a multisystemic disease that affects gray and white matter (WM) tissues. WM changes in DM1 include increased hyperintensities and altered tract integrity distributed in a widespread manner. However, the precise spatiotemporal changes are yet undetermined. Methods: MRI data were acquired from 8 adult- and late-onset DM1 patients and 10 healthy controls (HC) at two different timepoints over 9.06 years. Fractional anisotropy (FA) variations were assessed with Tract-Based Spatial Statistics. Transversal and longitudinal intra- and intergroup analyses were conducted, along with correlation analyses with clinical and neuropsychological data.Results: At baseline, reduced FA values were found in patients in the uncinate, anterior-thalamic, fronto-occipital, and longitudinal tracts. At follow-up, the WM disconnection was shown to have spread from the frontal part to the rest of the tracts in the brain. Furthermore, WM lesion burden was negatively correlated with FA values, while visuo-construction and intellectual functioning were positively correlated with global and regional FA values at follow-up.Conclusion: DM1 patients showed a pronounced WM integrity loss over time compared to HC, with a neurodegeneration pattern that suggests a progressive anterior-posterior disconnection. The visuo-construction domain stands out as the most sensitive neuropsychological measure for WM microstructural impairment.

Prediction of developing temporomandibular joint dysfunction in patients with maxillary dental anomalies

Objective. To describe the basic predictors of developing dysfunction of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) in patients with maxillary dental anomalies. Materials and methods. An open, prospective, controlled clinical experimental study was carried out; 250 patients aged 18 to 35 (mean age 23.5 2.6 years) with maxillary dental anomalies including 134 persons with temporomandibular joint dysfunction and 116 with normal articular function were examined. Results. A multidimensional disperse analysis permitted to conclude that an extremely high (95100 %) probability of occurring temporomandibular joint dysfunction is determined with the presence of combination of two and more functional disorders with a complex of other (occlusive and cephalometric) preclinical markers of dysfunction; a high (7595 %) probability of development when one functional disorder is associated with a gnathic form of dentition occlusion anomaly; a medium degree (4575 %) of probability of occurring dysfunction with the presence of gnathic form of dentition occlusion anomaly with roentgenological changes in TMJ and the absence of functional signs; a low (1545 %) probability when detecting a dentoalveolar form of occlusion anomaly or dentition anomaly combined with roengenological changes in the joint and the absence of functional disorders; a very low (015 %) probability of dysfunction development with the presence of congested position of incisors, anomalies of separate teeth position in the sagittal plane in the frontal part and the absence of functional disorders. Conclusions. The knowledge of the above-mentioned predisposing factors (signs) of the disturbance of the joint function can be used as an instrument for prediction of the probability of developing the temporomandibular joint dysfunction in patients with maxillary dental anomalies.

An Experiential Evaluation of Arka Dhyana (Intuitive Medita-tion) from the Perspective of HeartMath and the Theory of the Six Main Levels of Consciousness

An introductory course of Arka Dhyana, also known as Intuitive Meditation (IM), consisting of five sessions, was offered to an international audience via Zoom technology. Participants were shown how to connect to their deeper self, essence or soul by bringing their I-ego-awareness from the thinking mind, often associated with the frontal part of the brain, to 19 energetic stations in the body including the heart centre. In this limited study, evaluation was both process and outcome orientated and included HeartMath (HM) Inner Balance or emWave2 electronic technology to measure mean coherence and achievement before and after each session. A highly significant increase in both coherence and achievement in six participants was found, which was also reflected in a reported increase in wellbeing related to feelings in qualitative statements indicating changes in levels of consciousness and individual transformative experiences as predicted by the Theory of the Six Main Levels of Consciousness.

Electrodynamics of Reactive Power in the Space of Inter-Substation Zones of AC Electrified Railway Line

In railway traction, the definition of “electromagnetic field” is functionally connected to the concept of the reactive power consumed by the electric rolling stock, and characterized by the running and standing electromagnetic waves in the space of the inter-substation zones from the site of the AC traction system. Such a definition is established and theoretically justified by the theory of electromagnetic fields. This article uses the methodology of this theory, in particular, a method for power balance estimation in electromagnetic fields based on Maxwell’s equations, as well as methods for the analysis of running and standing electromagnetic waves based on the theory of reflection, propagation and transmission of plane harmonic waves. The research considers the regularities of standing electromagnetic waves in the space of inter-substation zones of electric traction systems, which occur due to the incomplete reflection of incident waves from the contact wire and metal parts of the roof surface and the frontal part of the body of the electric rolling stock. The flow of electricity to the roof surface and the frontal part of the body of an electric locomotive is considered. The possibility of using existing methods to reduce wave reflections and thereby to effectively compensate for reactive power in the space of inter-substation zones is discussed.

Blind Visualization of Task-Related Networks From Visual Oddball Simultaneous EEG-fMRI Data: Spectral or Spatiospectral Model?

Various disease conditions can alter EEG event-related responses and fMRI-BOLD signals. We hypothesized that event-related responses and their clinical alterations are imprinted in the EEG spectral domain as event-related (spatio)spectral patterns (ERSPat). We tested four EEG-fMRI fusion models utilizing EEG power spectra fluctuations (i.e., absolute spectral model - ASM; relative spectral model - RSM; absolute spatiospectral model - ASSM; and relative spatiospectral model - RSSM) for fully automated and blind visualization of task-related neural networks. Two (spatio)spectral patterns (high δ4 band and low β1 band) demonstrated significant negative linear relationship (pFWE &lt; 0.05) to the frequent stimulus and three patterns (two low δ2 and δ3 bands, and narrow θ1 band) demonstrated significant positive relationship (p &lt; 0.05) to the target stimulus. These patterns were identified as ERSPats. EEG-fMRI F-map of each δ4 model showed strong engagement of insula, cuneus, precuneus, basal ganglia, sensory-motor, motor and dorsal part of fronto-parietal control (FPCN) networks with fast HRF peak and noticeable trough. ASM and RSSM emphasized spatial statistics, and the relative power amplified the relationship to the frequent stimulus. For the δ4 model, we detected a reduced HRF peak amplitude and a magnified HRF trough amplitude in the frontal part of the FPCN, default mode network (DMN) and in the frontal white matter. The frequent-related β1 patterns visualized less significant and distinct suprathreshold spatial associations. Each θ1 model showed strong involvement of lateralized left-sided sensory-motor and motor networks with simultaneous basal ganglia co-activations and reduced HRF peak and amplified HRF trough in the frontal part of the FPCN and DMN. The ASM θ1 model preserved target-related EEG-fMRI associations in the dorsal part of the FPCN. For δ4, β1, and θ1 bands, all models provided high local F-statistics in expected regions. The most robust EEG-fMRI associations were observed for ASM and RSSM.

Coastal Observations: Rapid development and colonization of a UK sand dune system

Between the years 1200 and 1600, vast quantities of sand were brought inshore from offshore bars as a result of centuries of ferocious storms, to form a series of dune systems along the South Wales coastline. Today, as a result of many housing, leisure, and industrial developments only a few remnants exist. On one such remnant at Porthcawl, Wales, UK, became a caravan site in the 1930s, which was abandoned in 1993 for political reasons. Within 27 years a minimum of 120,000 m3 of sand was transported from the adjacent beach and formed dunes >4 m in height along a 400- m frontal edge that extended some 130 m inland, approximately a third of the site. Typical vegetation found along the frontal part of the system are Ammophila arenaria (marram), Agropyron junceiforme (sand couch grass) and Euphorbia maritimum (spurge). To the rear of the system, vegetation included Agrostis tenuis and stolonifera, (bent and creeping bent grass), Cirsium avense (creeping thistle), and Caluna vulgaris (heather). A 4-m-high and c. 3000m2 area of a vigorous stand of Hippophae rhamnoides (sea buckthorn) has also formed. The rapidity of dune formation and vegetation colonization is staggering.

Preliminary Report on the Eighteenth Excavation Season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga

The eighteenth excavation season of the Archaeological Expedition to Wad Ben Naga focused on the continued excavations of the so-called Isis Temple (WBN 300; more specifically on the frontal part of the proper temple), the continued excavations of structure WBN 250, and the continued excavations of cemetery WBN C260.