Universitas Odontologica, the scientific journal of the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana’s Dental School from Bogotá, Colombia, invites the academic, scientific, and professional community to submit original manuscripts for the thematic dossier Aging and Dentistry, which will be published in the volume 41 of 2022.
About the Journal
Universitas Odontologica’s mission is to become the international reference journal that promotes the advancement of knowledge in the dental field from and about Ibero America. The journal gives equal importance to knowledge, regardless of its application or impact reach, either local, regional, or global. Given the scientific nature of the journal, the types of articles accepted are: 1) original scientific and technological research articles, 2) reflection articles on original research results, 3) different modalities of systematic reviews of literature, and 4) case descriptions supported by systematic reviews (contributing with new research questions and promising techniques for future testing through research).
As of 2020, Universitas Odontologica is being published on a rolling volume basis (reception and publication of articles throughout the year). Its format is open access (http://www.javeriana.edu.co/universitasodontologica). The journal receives manuscripts in Spanish, Portuguese, and English, but currently publishes all the articles in English. Titles, abstracts, and keywords are published in the three languages. Universitas Odontologica covers a wide spectrum of topics related to Ibero-American dental work and knowledge. It includes ten application area-based sections: 1) Dental healthcare services and guild-related matters; 2) Basic sciences, biotechnology, and bioinformatics; 3) Scientometrics, and scientific writing and literacy; 4) Bioethics; 5) Dental education; 6) Dental materials and laboratory; 7) Legal and forensic dentistry; 8) Clinical practice; 9) Public health and oral epidemiology; and 10) Thematic Dossier (current issues/topics with an international team of expert guest editors).
Thematic Dossier: Aging and Dentistry
Human aging has become an increasingly important issue globally due to the growth of people’s life expectancy, the challenges it entails within communities and societies, the perception, and roles of the elderly in societal groups, the development of care and support systems, research on clinical practice, biomaterials and mainly restorative techniques, and the advancement of applied basic research to understand and intervene in the biological processes of ageing. As a phenomenon of demographic transition on a global scale, aging produces biological, physical, and emotional changes in people, transforms social structures and poses challenges in sectors such as health, social security, and the entire economy. In many health systems it is established that the dentist must be able to intervene on those alterations to restore functionality and improve the quality of life of the elderly. In this sense, Geriatric Dentistry or Gerodontology should also be part of multidisciplinary teams dedicated to the care of the elderly in community, hospitalization, institutionalized, palliative, and home services. On the other hand, in Gerosciences, that is, those disciplines that seek to identify the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate aging, the concept of personalized aging is seen more as a biological than chronological phenomenon. From this perspective, aging could also affect populations that are chronologically young, but biologically aged and that are susceptible to developing chronic inflammatory conditions such as cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular disease, periodontal disease, and edentulism.
For the Aging and Dentistry dossier, we will receive original studies with documentary, qualitative, observational, and experimental designs that explore questions such as: Which plans and programs can be designed/implemented to face the burden of oral disease in older adults? Have population analyzes been carried out on a local, national, regional, or global scale? Are there limitations to oral health care due to stereotypes such as ageism (age discrimination)? What is the nutritional status associated with masticatory function derived from tooth loss and the absence or dysfunction of dental prostheses? Are edentulism and pain/discomfort associated with dysfunctional rehabilitations affect people's self-realization, self-esteem, and socialization? What impact do habits (tobacco, alcohol), frailty syndrome (functionality, autonomy, sarcopenia), major cognitive impairments (dementia) and emotional states (depression) have on the maintenance of oral health in older people? What is the association of socio-family aspects that generate changes in the emotional state (depression, institutionalization, abandonment) with implications in services, oral health care programs in the elderly? Is aging associated with the severity of some systemic conditions such as obstructive sleep apnea and how can this association affect the oral microbiome and the increase in periodontal disease? What are the changes in the immune response of oral tissues associated with aging? How might such changes explain susceptibility to oral diseases (dental caries and periodontal disease)? What biomarkers have been discovered in saliva as indicators of early aging? Have salivary biochemical changes been described in aging that constitute risk factors for caries, periodontal disease, and other pathologies? What medications frequently used in aging can alter the functioning of oral structures and tissues? How to counter them? What is the relationship between oral cancer and aging? What is the frequency of aging markers in oral tissues in young population with systemic conditions such as obesity and diabetes and what predisposes them to develop oral diseases?
How to Submit an Article for Publication in the Dossier
ALL manuscripts must meet the submission requirements that are described on the journal’s website and must be submitted for evaluation through, http://www.javeriana.edu.co/universitasodontologica. The maximum accepted length of manuscripts is 5000-7000 words (Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations, for original research and literature reviews), without counting references. The maximum number of annexes (tables and figures) is eight (8). Manuscripts received for the Aging and Dentistry dossier and the other usual sections are first evaluated by the journal’s general and guest editors, who inspect the documents compliance of style, presentation, and methodological criteria. Those articles passing this screening go through the double-blind peer-review process. Each article has at least two peer reviewers or referees who are external to the institution where the manuscript originates and, if possible, from other countries. The articles that complete the arbitration process will be included in volume 41 of 2022 of Universitas Odontologica.
Key Dates
- Release of the call for manuscripts: 18 March 2022
- Deadline for manuscript submission: 31 August 2022
- Article evaluation and revisions: 31 August to 15 September 2022
- Pre-publication with DOI assigned: 15 November 2022
Editorial Team for this Dossier
Maria Teresa Calzada. Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia. Editora invitada.
Olga Lucia Zarta. Universidad El Bosque, Bogotá, Colombia. Editora invitada.
Octavio Alberto Gonzalez. Universidad de Kentucky, Lexington, KY, EE. UU. Editor invitado.
Nelly Stella Roa Molina. Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia. Editora invitada.
Jorge Enrique Delgado. University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, EE. UU. Editor general.
Sandra C. Delgado. Universitas Odontologica. Editora asistente.