Coronoid process hyperplasia: an unusual cause of mandibular hypomobility

A large number of disorders affecting the masticatory system can cause restriction of mouth opening. The most common conditions related to this problem are those involving the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and the masticatory muscles, when facial pain also is an usual finding. Congenital or developmental mandibular disorders are also possible causes for mouth opening limitation, although in a very small prevalence. Coronoid process hyperplasia (CPH) is an example of these cases, characterized by an excessive coronoid process growing, where mandibular movements become limited by the impaction of this structure on the posterior portion of the zygomatic bone. This condition is rare, painless, usually bilateral and progressive, affecting mainly men. Diagnosis of CPH is made based on clinical signs of mouth opening limitation together with imaging exams, especially panoramic radiography and computerized tomography (CT). Treatment is exclusively surgical. This paper presents a case of a male patient with bilateral coronoid process hyperplasia, initially diagnosed with bilateral disk displacement without reduction, and successfully treated with intraoral coronoidectomy. It is emphasized the importance of differential diagnosis for a correct diagnosis and, consequently, effective management strategy.

Environmental assessment of residues generated after consecutive acid-base pretreatment of sugarcane bagasse by advanced oxidative process

Abstract Background Biofuels produced from sugarcane bagasse (SB) have shown promising results as a suitable alternative of gasoline. Biofuels provide unique, strategic, environmental and socio-economic benefits. However, production of biofuels from SB has negative impact on environment due to the use of harsh chemicals during pretreatment. Consecutive sulfuric acid-sodium hydroxide pretreatment of SB is an effective process which eventually ameliorates the accessibility of cellulase towards cellulose for the sugars production. Alkaline hydrolysate of SB is black liquor containing high amount of dissolved lignin. Results This work evaluates the environmental impact of residues generated during the consecutive acid-base pretreatment of SB. Advanced oxidative process (AOP) was used based on photo-Fenton reaction mechanism (Fenton Reagent/UV). Experiments were performed in batch mode following factorial design L9 (Taguchi orthogonal array design of experiments), considering the three operation variables: temperature (°C), pH, Fenton Reagent (Fe2+/H2O2) + ultraviolet. Reduction of total phenolics (TP) and total organic carbon (TOC) were responsive variables. Among the tested conditions, experiment 7 (temperature, 35°C; pH, 2.5; Fenton reagent, 144 ml H2O2+153 ml Fe2+; UV, 16W) revealed the maximum reduction in TP (98.65%) and TOC (95.73%). Parameters such as chemical oxygen demand (COD), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), BOD/COD ratio, color intensity and turbidity also showed a significant change in AOP mediated lignin solution than the native alkaline hydrolysate. Conclusion AOP based on Fenton Reagent/UV reaction mechanism showed efficient removal of TP and TOC from sugarcane bagasse alkaline hydrolysate (lignin solution). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on statistical optimization of the removal of TP and TOC from sugarcane bagasse alkaline hydrolysate employing Fenton reagent mediated AOP process.