UNASSIGNED: One of the key factors in the prevention of the disease is the identification of the risk factors early in life. Based on multifactorial causation of oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF), apart from habit history, the genetical predisposition may be considered as an important risk factor in the occurrence of OSMF disease. The dermatoglyphic pattern may prove a salient genetic marker for the determination of OSMF as both are having similar intrauterine development period.
UNASSIGNED: To find out and compare the association between dermatoglyphics and OSMF.
UNASSIGNED: The present study was conducted on total 108 subjects divided in three groups where Group A was subjects with OSMF, Group B was subjects with tobacco related habits but without OSMF, and Group C was healthy controls. Fingerprint patterns of both hands were recorded and classified into whorls, loops and arches.
UNASSIGNED: The loop pattern was significantly higher in subjects having OSMF (Group A) as compared Group B and Group C in general as well as for left and right hands. The maximum prominence of loop patterns was noted in the little finger among the subjects with OSMF. Results for subjects with OSMF and without OSMF under five years of having tobacco chewing habits had also clearly demonstrated prominence of loop patterns in the subjects with OSMF.
UNASSIGNED: The results of our study show that there is a staunch possibility of genetically determined factors in the form of loop finger prints can be responsible for the occurrence of OSMF.

UNASSIGNED: Head and neck cancers constitute about 5%-8% of total body cancers in Europe, America, but in India, this figure is somewhat higher. The aim of this study is to evaluate the current burden of oral cancers in India, particularly North-East India.
UNASSIGNED: A full-length study starting from patient counseling to clinical and histopathological examination and grading was planned. The study was conducted under the guidance of clinician, oral surgeon, oral pathologists, and statistician.
UNASSIGNED: In the 3 years study, all the patients with oral lesions are examined clinically, out of them suspected oral cancer patients were histopathologically confirmed as oral squamous cell carcinoma patient. The socioeconomic profile of oral cancer patients in relation to all examined patients was summarized, and results are drawn.
UNASSIGNED: The studied population is heavily indulgent tobacco consumption. Education for cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment is needed.

BACKGROUND: Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the leading cancer among males in India. It is related to tobacco habits and alcohol consumption as well as the individual susceptibility for xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme polymorphisms. Glutathione S-transferase θ 1 (GSTT1) is a Phase II metabolic enzyme which is directly involved in catalyzing chemicals to mutagenic intermediates. This gene is characterized by genetic polymorphism resulting in complete gene deletion and subsequent absence of the enzyme, which ultimately dictates the risk of cancer development. Scraping buccal mucosa to obtain DNA from the cells is a simple, readily acceptable and rapid method to detect and assess the gene.
OBJECTIVE: To assess GSTT1 gene deletion in individuals giving a history of tobacco smoking and/or chewing and alcohol consumption and absence of clinically detectable lesions; and in OSCC cases to gauge if GSTT1 gene deletion confers protection to an individual and whether it can be used as a \"single\" marker to arrive at this conclusion. To validate the use of buccal scrape for determining the genotype of an individual by assessing the polymorphism at GSTT1 gene locus (22q11.2).
METHODS: Fifty-two cases were evaluated using buccal mucosal scrapes of tobacco habituates for 8 or more years, without clinically evident lesion (Group I) and from mucosa of tobacco habituates with clinically evident and histopathologically confirmed OSCC (Group II). DNA extraction and genotype at GSTT1 gene locus was determined by polymerase chain reaction assay.
METHODS: The results were statistically analyzed using Chi-square test.
RESULTS: 90.66% of subjects had GSTT1 null genotype in Group I subjects. In Group II, subjects with both clinically and histopathologically diagnosed oral cancer, about 76.96% had GSTT1 null genotype.
CONCLUSIONS: GSTT1 null genotype confers protection to individuals with tobacco habits and alcohol consumption, predominantly to those who used chewable form of tobacco and especially among female population. However, the influence of many other environmental, genetic and epigenetic factors should be considered for the genesis/occurrence of cancer.

BACKGROUND: The environmental and genetic factors are known to be associated with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). Here, we investigated the GSTM1 and GSTT1 polymorphisms and tobacco uses in patients and in their first-degree relatives to evaluate susceptibility toward HNSCC. Further, we explored high-risk interaction between genetic and environmental risk factors.
METHODS: Genotyping of GSTM1 and GSTT1 was performed in 170 patients, 300 first-degree relatives of patients and 300 controls using multiplex PCR. Multifactor dimensionality reduction (MDR) and logistic regression approach were applied for statistical analysis.
RESULTS: Analysis revealed that GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotype frequencies were significantly higher in patients (adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 2.18; P < 0.001 and OR = 1.61; P = 0.031, respectively). Also, the GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotype frequencies were significantly higher in first-degree relatives of patients compared with controls (P = 0.004 and P = 0.041, respectively). In MDR analysis, the best model for HNSCC risk was four-factors model of tobacco, betel quid chewing, smoking and GSTM1 null genotypes (cross-validation consistency = 10/10 and P < 0.0001), whereas in interaction entropy graphs, tobacco chewing and GSTM1 null genotype further showed strongest synergistic interaction.
CONCLUSIONS: GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotypes may act as markers to determine the genetic susceptibility in HNSCC patients and in their first-degree relatives. Furthermore, tobacco chewing and GSTM1 null genotype interaction identified as the strongest gene-environment model to predict HNSCC.

There is increasing evidence of a causal association between human papillomavirus (HPV) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Several studies have shown that HPV is associated with increased risk of oral cancer independent of exposure to tobacco and alcohol. The association is valid for HPVs 16 and 18, which generally are considered high risk types, because they have been detected in oral dysplastic lesions and cancers. We determined the baseline prevalence of HPVs 16 and 18 in normal oral mucosa of individuals with and without tobacco habit. PCR was used for DNA collected by oral smears to detect HPV 16/18 DNA in normal oral mucosa of 60 healthy individuals who were assigned to two groups of 30 subjects each. One group had a tobacco habit, the other did not. The tobacco user group comprised individuals who were tobacco chewers only. Sixty-five percent of individuals were positive for HPV 16/18 DNA, but HPV 16/18 positivity was less in individuals with tobacco habit than in those without tobacco habit. No significant association was found between the presence of HPVs and gender, age or duration of chewing habit, or between groups with and without a tobacco habit. We propose that HPVs16 and 18 commonly are present in normal oral mucosa and emphasize the importance of distinguishing clinical, subclinical and latent HPV infections when investigating HPVs and OSCC.

OBJECTIVE: Tobacco during pregnancy affects the health of the newborn. The aim was to assess the effect of maternal exposure to active and passive tobacco and of smoking cessation on the risk of preterm deliveries and birth weight, taking into account other risk factors.
METHODS: Longitudinal study conducted in 282 healthy pregnant women. General, obstetrical and hematological data were collected as it was the smoking habit during pregnancy. Pregnant women were classified as \"exposed to smoke\" (active smoker and passive smoker) and \"unexposed to smoke\" (non-smokers and women who quitted smoking during pregnancy).
RESULTS: A percentage of 59.2 were non-smokers, 18.4% active smokers, 8.5% second-hand smokers and 13.8% had stopped smoking. Unexposed pregnant women who stopped smoking had the same risk of premature deliveries and children with similar birth weight as non-smoker women. Active and second-hand smokers were at higher risk of preterm deliveries than non-smokers (odds ratio [OR] 6.5, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.4-30.8 and OR 6.2, 95% CI 1.0-38.9, respectively); however, higher levels of hemoglobin in the 1st and 3rd trimester exerted a protective effect (OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.8-0.9). Active and second-hand smokers had babies weighing less than non-smokers (around 129 and 178g less, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Active or passive exposure to smoke during pregnancy and lower hemoglobin levels are associated with an increased risk of premature deliveries and lower birth weight. Stopping smoking during pregnancy prevents these detrimental effects.