Alterations in the sex hormones causes significant variation in gingival keratinization. The study is based on comparing the pattern of keratinization in post-menopausal women and women of reproductive age. The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the pattern of keratinization in post-menopausal women and women of reproductive age using Papanicolaou stain. Sample collection was done. Papanicolaou staining procedure was carried out. Stained slides were viewed under microscope for the evaluation. The results were entered in SPSS software version 21. Comparing the cell differentiation types between the study groups and Comparison of cell differentiation types within the study groups were done. Alteration in sex hormones cause variation in gingival keratinization. Physiological levels of oestrogen and progesterone in pregnancy stimulates prostaglandin synthesis. Key words: Keratinization, post-menopausal women, cytology

Aim: To determine the dental anxiety level of patients reporting for treatment in a dental college in Kerala and to evaluate the relationship between dental anxiety level and dental caries status of patients. Materials and methods: Patients visiting the Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics at Annoor Dental College & hospital, Muvattupuzha, in a period of two months who were older than 18 years were selected for the study. All participants were asked to fill out a Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) to evaluate their level of dental fear. Gender, age, education level, socioeconomic status and oral health awareness were noted. Dental Caries statuses of patients were determined with DMFT index. Data collected were analyzed and frequencies were calculated. Pearson’s correlation test was applied to assess the relationship between dental anxiety level and dental caries status of the patients. Results: There is a significant association between the baseline characteristics of, age, sex, educational level, socioeconomic standards of the participants and their dental anxiety. Relationship between DMFT scores of the patient and anxiety level of the patient was also found to be significant. Conclusion: Patients with high level of dental anxiety have high caries status. So, elimination of dental fear is very important and should be managed by a patient centered approach. Key words: Dental anxiety, DMFT index, Dental caries.