Rutgers School of Dental Medicine

THURSDAY, Jan. 9, 2025 -- Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs acetaminophen and ibuprofen are better at managing dental pain than opioids. People who had their wisdom teeth removed got better results from an acetaminophen/ibuprofen combo than with a hydrocodone prescription, researchers reported on Jan. 4 in the Journal of the American Dental Association . Those given the off-the-shelf meds had less pain, better sleep and higher satisfaction than those prescribed the opioid, results show. “We think this is a landmark study,” lead researcher Dr. Cecile Feldman , dean of the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, said in a news release from the university. “The results actually came in even stronger than we thought they would.” Dentists are among the nation’s leading prescribers of opioids, and wrote more than 8.9 million opioid prescriptions in 2022 alone, researchers said in background notes. For many young adults, dental procedures like a wisdom tooth extraction are their first exposure to opioid medications, researchers said. “There are studies out there to show that when young people get introduced to opioids, there's an increased likelihood that they're going to eventually use them again, and then it can lead to addiction,” researcher Dr. Janine Fredericks-Younger , associate dean for graduate programs at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine, said in a news release. For the study, researchers randomly assigned more than 1,800 patients undergoing a wisdom tooth extraction at one of five clinics to receive either the acetaminophen/ibuprofen combination or hydrocodone alongside acetaminophen. The over-the-counter combo managed pain better than the opioid, particularly during the first two days following the dental procedure, results show. Those taking acetaminophen/ibuprofen had less breakthrough pain, less interference from pain in their daily lives, and better sleep quality, researchers found. “We were looking at the effectiveness – so how does it work in real life, taking into account what people really care about,” Feldman said. What’s more, people not prescribed opioids were 46% less likely to fill a new opioid prescription within six months of their dental surgery , researchers found. The American Dental Association recently issued a recommendation urging that dentists avoid using opioids as a first option for pain relief, researchers noted. The research team hopes to expand their study to other dental procedures and pain scenarios. Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.

WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Aug. 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kane Biotech Inc. (TSX- V:KNE; OTCQB:KNBIF) (“Kane Biotech” or “Kane”) announces the publication of a new review article on DispersinB® in the journal Pathogens. Pathogens is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal focusing on pathogens and pathogen-host interactions. The article, entitled “Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans Dispersin B: The Quintessential Antibiofilm Enzyme,” is first authored by Dr. Jeffrey B. Kaplan, the discoverer of the DispersinB® enzyme and a consultant to Kane Biotech. Dr. Kaplan is currently a scientist in the Laboratory for Skin Research at the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya, Israel. Dr. Kaplan was previously a Professor at American University in Washington DC, an Associate Professor at Rutgers School of Dental Medicine in Newark NJ, and a Senior Scientist at Pfizer Inc. He is the recipient of numerous awards including a Fulbright Scholar Award. “DispersinB® has been studied in more than 70 research laboratories in 21 different countries, including such prestigious institutions as Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic,” said Dr. Jeffrey Kaplan. “DispersinB® exhibits antibiofilm activity against more than 25 species of bacteria, suggesting that the enzyme may have applicability as a broad-spectrum antibiofilm agent. Considering Kane Biotech’s extensive biocompatibility testing and formulation studies involving DispersinB®, I am optimistic about the commercial potential of products the Company has in development that contain this enzyme.” The article can be viewed here. In addition to this publication, Kane Biotech is presenting the following ongoing research: The antibiofilm properties of revyve™ Antimicrobial Wound Gel Spray to treat complex combat wounds at the Military Health System Research Symposium (MHSRS) (August 26-29, 2024).The antibiofilm properties and compatibility with different dressings of revyve™ Antimicrobial Wound Gel at the Symposium on Advance Wound Care (SAWC) (October 2-5, 2024). Earlier this year, Kane presented research on its novel thermo-reversible antimicrobial hydrogel spray with effective antibiofilm properties to treat complex combat wounds at the Special Operations Medical Association (SOMA) 2024 Scientific Assembly. “These ongoing presentations in peer-reviewed meetings demonstrate Kane’s ongoing commitment to helping clinicians understand biofilms,” said Dr. Robert Huizinga, Board Chair. “It also presents the potential treatments available to them to treat the underlying cause of chronic wound infections. We look forward to further advancing the science of biofilms at future industry gatherings.” About Kane Biotech Kane Biotech Inc. is a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development and commercialization of technologies and products that prevent and remove microbial biofilms. Kane has a portfolio of biotechnologies, intellectual property (68 patents and patents pending as well as trade secrets and trademarks) and products developed by Kane's own biofilm research expertise and acquired from leading research institutions. DispersinB®, coactiv+™, coactiv+®, DermaKB™, DermaKB Biofilm™, and revyve™ are trademarks of Kane Biotech Inc. Kane is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "KNE" and on the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol “KNBIF”. For more information: Marc EdwardsRay Dupuis Chief Executive OfficerChief Financial Officer Kane Biotech IncKane Biotech Inc medwards@kanebiotech.comrdupuis@kanebiotech.com Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Caution Regarding Forward-Looking InformationThis press release contains certain statements regarding Kane Biotech Inc. that constitute forward-looking information under applicable securities law. These statements reflect management’s current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management. Certain material factors or assumptions are applied in making forward-looking statements, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks relating to Kane’s: (a) financial condition, including lack of significant revenues to date and reliance on equity and other financing; (b) business, including its early stage of development, government regulation, market acceptance for its products, rapid technological change and dependence on key personnel; (c) intellectual property including the ability of Kane to protect its intellectual property and dependence on its strategic partners; and (d) capital structure, including its lack of dividends on its common shares, volatility of the market price of its common shares and public company costs. Further information about these and other risks and uncertainties can be found in the disclosure documents filed by Kane with applicable securities regulatory authorities, available at www.sedarplus.ca. Kane cautions that the foregoing list of factors that may affect future results is not exhaustive.

New research found that marine heat waves -- prolonged periods of unusually warm ocean temperatures -- haven't had a lasting effect on the fish communities that feed most of the world. The finding is in stark contrast to the devastating effects seen on other marine ecosystems cataloged by scientists after similar periods of warming, including widespread coral bleaching and harmful algal blooms. Rutgers-led research found that marine heat waves -- prolonged periods of unusually warm ocean temperatures -- haven't had a lasting effect on the fish communities that feed most of the world. The finding is in stark contrast to the devastating effects seen on other marine ecosystems cataloged by scientists after similar periods of warming, including widespread coral bleaching and harmful algal blooms. "There is an emerging sense that the oceans do have some resilience, and while they are changing in response to climate change, we don't see evidence that marine heat waves are wiping out fisheries," said Alexa Fredston, the lead author of the study who conducted the research as a postdoctoral associate in the Global Change Research Group, part of the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources in the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (SEBS.) The study, published in Nature, assessed effects on commercially important fish such as flounder, pollock and rockfish based on data extracted from long-running scientific trawl surveys -- conducted by towing a net along the seafloor -- of continental shelf ecosystems in North America and Europe between 1993 and 2019. The analysis included 248 marine heat waves with extreme sea bottom temperatures during this period. The researchers were surprised to find that marine heat waves in general don't show major adverse effects on regional fish communities. Although declines in biomass did occur after some marine heat waves, the researchers said these cases were the exception, not the rule. Overall, they found that the effects of marine heat waves aren't distinguishable from the natural variability in these ecosystems. "The oceans are highly variable, and fish populations vary quite a lot," said Fredston, now an assistant professor of ocean sciences at University of California, Santa Cruz. "Marine heat waves can drive local change, but there have been hundreds of marine heat waves with no lasting impacts." In addition to assessing the impact on the total quantity of organisms in a given area, known as biomass, the researchers examined whether marine heat waves were causing changes in the variety of fish species composing fish communities. For example, evidence might show the loss of species associated with cold water and an increase in species associated with warm water, a phenomenon known as tropicalization. The findings suggest fish may be able to find safe havens by moving to areas with cooler water during marine heat waves, which the researchers defined as periods of more than five days with extreme sea bottom temperatures for that region and season. The data included some notable examples of marine heat waves that did have profound impacts, such as the 2014-2016 marine heat wave in the Northeast Pacific known as "the Blob," one of the largest on record. While "the Blob" led to a 22 percent loss of biomass in the Gulf of Alaska, a 2012 marine heat wave in the Northwest Atlantic led to a 70 percent biomass gain. The authors also noted that these weren't large changes compared to natural variability in biomass, and similar effects weren't seen after most other marine heat waves. "We found that these negative impacts are unpredictable and that other heat waves had no strong impacts," said Malin Pinsky, an associate professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources and director of the Global Change Research Group at SEBS and a co-author of the study. "This means that each heat wave that hits is like rolling the dice: Will it be a bad one or not? We don't know until it happens." Other Rutgers researchers who participated in the study include Zoë Kitchel, a doctoral student, and Aurore Maureaud, a postdoctoral associate, both with the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources at SEBS. Researchers from other institutions participated in the study, including the University of British Columbia, the University of Bern in Switzerland, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea, the University of Montpellier in France, the University of Tromsø in Norway and Fisheries and Oceans Canada.