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Introduction: The lack of a healthcare system is one of the serious problems among the Koragas. The Koraga tribal community in the Kasargod district has a community health center in the area, but it lacks advanced medical and dental facilities, making it difficult for them to seek treatment in the few private hospitals in the area due to their economic backwardness. The Malavettuvan tribes are distributed only in the ghat areas of the Kasaragod District of Kerala. Their major occupation is agriculture, and they are educationally, economically, and socially backward. Aim: To compare the periodontal status of the Koraga and Malavettuvan tribes of the Kasargod district. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 304 participants from both Koraga and Malavettuvan tribes aged 35-55 years. Clinical parameters such as the oral hygiene index, Community Periodontal Index (CPI), and loss of attachment were measured. A questionnaire was used to assess the oral hygiene habits, lifestyle, and other habits of the populations. Statistical analysis was carried out using the Mann-Whitney U-test. Results: The results of the present study showed a significant difference in the oral hygiene index (Median OHI of Koraga-0.40, Malavettuvan-1.20 respectively, p-value

Background: Enterococcus faecalis is a Gram-positive, facultative anaerobic coccus that can survive under harsh conditions. Studies have shown a positive relationship between biofilm formation and gelE gene expression in E. faecalis. The production of gelatinase (MMP 2) has been detected in 50% of E. faecalis isolates from endodontic and periodontal infections, which suggests its role in the pathogenesis of apical and marginal periodontitis. Although E. faecalis is not considered a periodontopathogen, this species has been more frequently detected in subgingival samples with periodontitis than from periodontally healthy subjects, suggesting that the local conditions in periodontitis may favor its colonization. Hence, the aim of the current study was to detect and compare the presence of E. faecalis in subgingival biofilms of healthy, gingivitis, and periodontitis subjects. Materials and Methods: A total of 100 subjects aged between 25 and 55 years, from the Outpatient Department of Periodontics were recruited for the study. All the subjects were screened for gingival and periodontal status using plaque index, gingival index, and clinical attachment loss. They were divided into three groups based on the clinical findings. Group A: 18 healthy individuals (gingival index with score zero) Group B: 34 gingivitis patients (gingival index with score >1) Group C: 48 chronic periodontitis patients (clinical attachment loss >5 mm in >30% of sites). Subgingival plaque samples of all the enrolled subjects were collected using a sterile curette, later poured into a transport medium (Viability Medium Goteborg Agar III) and sent for microbial culturing within 2 h for detection of E. faecalis. Results: E. faecalis was detected in 26.8% of all samples evaluated. There was a significantly higher frequency of E. faecalis in subgingival biofilms of periodontitis group (41.7%), compared to gingivitis (5.9%) and healthy group (0%). Conclusion: Enterococci may contribute to increased collagen and periodontal destruction and may further lead to disease progression in patients with chronic periodontitis.

Background: Increasing life expectancy around the world, an outstanding achievement of our century, has brought with it new public health challenges. India is the second most populous country in the world, with over 72 million inhabitants above 60 years of age as of 2001. The life expectancy in India increased from 32 years in 1947 to over 66 years in 2010, with 8.0% of the population now reaching over 60 years of age. Few studies in India target the health, especially mental health, of this geriatric population. This study aims to estimate the current prevalence of psychiatric disorders in the geriatric population of the rural area of Singanodi,Karnataka, India. Methods: This cross sectional, epidemiological, community-based study was conducted in a rural health training area of Singanodi, Raichur District, Karnataka, India.The General Health Questionnaire-12, Mini Mental State Examination, and Geriatric Depression Scale were administered to 366 participants. Chi square tests with Yates correction were utilized for statistical analysis using SPSS 19.0 software. Results:We found that 33.9% of the geriatric population in the selected province were above the threshold for mental illness based on the GHQ-12 questionnaire. Females had a higher prevalence of mental disorder at 77.6% (152 out of 196) as compared to males who had a prevalence of 42.4% (72 out of 170). The most common psychiatric disorder was depression (21.9%), and generalized anxiety was present in 10.7% of the study population. Prevalence of cognitive impairment was 16.3%, with a significantly higher percentage of affected individuals in 80+ age group. Conclusion: Mental disorders are common among elderly people, but they are not well documented in rural India. The assessment of psychiatric disorder prevalence will help strengthen psycho-geriatric services and thus improve the quality of life of the elderly. A system that ensures comprehensive health care will have to be developed for this purpose as part of our future efforts.