dental
Teach Your Children
There is actually an international association of dental professionals who use eco-friendly methods.
It is called the Eco-Dentistry Association.And it offers six tips for improving dental health – and the environment.For a start, it recommends that children should start early.
It says dentistry is a healing experience and should not be traumatic. Trauma – and the fear of dental chairs and drills – is best prevented when one takes children to dental appointments at a young age.
Teach children to turn off the water while brushing the teeth.
Teenagers should try using night guards. These devices prevent damage caused by clenching and grinding related to stress.
Choose the night guard created by your dentist specific to the teenager’s bite. Be sure that it is not made of plastics potentially detrimental to the environment.
Select the appropriate mouthwash for children – the one that doesn’t contain alcohol. This is important because a tooth tonic or mouthwash should be introduced as a dental routine during the teenage years – and alcohol is certainly an ingredient that is not part of this.
Then try digital imaging. Although the technology is not so widespread in the Philippines, it is available and used in some clinics like Dr. Smile at The Podium in the Ortigas business center in Pasig and at SM North Edsa, The Annex, Lower Ground Level, Q.C.
These diagnostic images use less radiation than radiographs (also called X-rays). The digital images don’t degrade over time and are easily sent by e-mail to you, your dentists and other appropriate specialists.
And while we are dwelling on the topic of what’s the right dental care for our children, I will take this opportunity to offer a few advice for adults as well. Mind you, these recommendations come from no less than the American Dental Association.
Eating – and crunching ice cubes – is a favorite pastime, as if the cubes are part of the snacks as well. For that matter, include candy and popcorn that hasn’t popped, or any other hard chewables that should not be chewed or crunched.
This is a no-no habit as it can fracture teeth.
Clean teeth the right way. This is done by ridding of food debris the space between the gumline and the point where gum attaches to the tooth. Turn the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle in order for the bristles to reach out-of-the-way places.
Use dental floss in order to reach particularly deep pockets. Tie a single or double knot in the floss to reach food particles.
When flossing the back teeth, curve the thread around the tooth and push it underneath the gumline.
Change toothbrush regularly. A change is due when the outer bristles of the brush start to flare or look like overgrown bush instead of the straight lines they were on during first use.
Last but not least, stop smoking. Smoking is so destructive to teeth and gums that many gum specialists in the United States won’t even treat smokers with dental problems because they don’t respond well to treatment.
For more information, visit the American Dental Association’s Web site: ada.org.
Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the Dean of the College of Dentistry, National University, President/CEO of Dr. Smile Dental Care & Laser Center and honorary fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy and the Japan College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515.
Dentists Can Identify Deadly Disease
The dental chair could be the seat of detecting the early signs of diabetes.
And a dental visit, according to researchers at the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, is an excellent chance to identify unrecognized and pre-diabetes conditions.
It is an excellent opportunity to intervene in the epidemic by identifying individuals with diabetes or pre-diabetes who are unaware of their condition, the researchers say in a study published in the July issue of the Journal of Dental Research.
The statistics add up. Gum disease is an early complication of diabetes, and about 70 percent of American adults see a dentist at least once a year, says Dr. Ira Lamster, the senior author of the paper and Dean of the College of Dental Medicine.
That could be a window of opportunity for dental care to play a significant role in the detection and prevention of diabetes, the incidence of which is increasing here and abroad.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in four Americans affected with type 2 diabetes remains undiagnosed. And those with pre-diabetes are at an increased risk for type 2 diabetes and also for heart disease, stroke and other vascular conditions typical of individuals with diabetes.
The window of opportunity is not wishful thinking because researchers found that only two dental parameters – the number of missing teeth and percentage of deep pockets caused by gum disease – were effective in identifying patients with unrecognized pre-diabetes or diabetes.
The researchers found this out among some 600 individuals who visited a dental clinic in New York’s Northern Manhattan. These individuals had never been told they have diabetes or pre-diabetes.
About 530 patients with at least one additional self-reported diabetes risk factor (family history of diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension or the risk of obesity) received a gum examination and a finger-stick and a hemoglobin A1c test which indicates whether an individual has diabetes or pre-diabetes.
“Early recognition of diabetes has been the focus of efforts from medical and public health colleagues for years, as early treatment of affected individuals can limit the development of many serious complications,” says the study’s lead author, Dr. Evanthia Lalla, an Associate Professor at the College of Dental Medicine.
“Relatively simple lifestyle changes in pre-diabetic individuals can prevent progression to diabetes, so identifying this group of individuals is also important,” she adds. “Our findings provide a simple approach that can be easily used in all dental-care settings.”
The study sought to develop and evaluate an identification protocol for high blood sugar levels in dental patients and was supported by a research grant from Colgate-Palmolive, the College of Dental Medicine says in a press statement, adding the authors report no potential financial or other conflicts.
How to Preserve Lost Teeth
THERE is still hope when one or more teeth are suddenly lost in accidents. Chances are, the natural tooth or teeth may be reattached, provided that dental attention is sought within 30 minutes. Before doing that, however, place the tooth or teeth in a glass or container of cold milk, according to Dr. Joseph Orrico, president of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry (AAID).
Time is of the essence on replacing teeth this way. “There’s a short window of opportunity in which the remaining living tissue on the root surface can be kept alive,” Dr. Orrico says, adding that milk has a neutral acidity (ph) balance and is fortified with vitamins that make it an excellent preservative.
When tooth or teeth preservation is unsuccessful, a root canal procedure saves the tooth structure and restores it with a crown. That is, when teeth are broken above the gum line. If a tooth is fractured below the gum line, the fragment is extracted and a dental implant, a bridge or a removable dental prosthesis is put in place. Age is a factor in determining which treatment to use because bone loss in the jaw of young people over the years could be significant for young patients with bridges or removable and unsecured prostheses.
In comparison, implants function like natural teeth and preserve the jawbone.
Dental implants are artificial tooth roots made of titanium screws that are inserted into the jawbone and affixed with a prosthetic tooth or crown. It replaces one or more teeth depending on the bone’s ability to support the implants.
In a process called osseointegration, titanium implants fuse naturally with bone over time. Implants function the same way as natural teeth, preventing the jaw structure against atrophy caused by bone loss. While bridgework and dentures may replace missing teeth, they do not prevent bone loss. This is because permanent implants enable a person to maintain his or her chewing functions properly. The action exerts natural forces on the jawbone just like natural teeth do.
Based in Chicago, the AAID is the first organization in the United States dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of implant dentistry by supporting research and education to advance comprehensive implant knowledge. AAID offers a rigorous implant dentistry credentialing program which requires at least 300 hours of post-doctoral instruction in implant dentistry, passing a comprehensive exam and presenting to a group of examiners successful cases of different types of implants.
It is one of the most comprehensive credentialing programs in dentistry.
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the Dean of the College of Dentistry, National University, President/CEO of Dr. Smile Dental Care & Laser Center and honorary fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy and the Japan College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515
Oral Implants for Healthy Smiles
By Dr. Joseph D. Lim
MRS. Manolita S. Silvestre, a businesswoman from Alabang, has a lot to smile about nowadays. Her speech has improved, she looks a lot better than before, and her confidence is up by a hundred percent, “I’m having a good time. I’m not ashamed to face people anymore and my self-esteem is high,” she said. Her secret? Dental implants—artificial teeth that are surgically implanted in the jawbone with the use of tiny screws. This device has helped over two million toothless people worldwide.
The availability of dental implants in the country has improved the quality of life of many Filipinos since they provide a better and more aesthetically pleasing alternative to dentures. Silvestre is one of the many Filipinos who has benefited from dental implants. Her success story has inspired other people to try out this new technology. Prior to her discovery of dental implants, Silvestre had been wearing dentures for years when she decided one day that they were not for her. “I’ve seen people who have lost their teeth and developed facial deformities because of ill-fitting dentures. I couldn’t accept that. I couldn’t imagine myself with an elongated face so I believed dental implants were the answer to my problem, I had read about them in some American journals when a friend of mine said they were being done here,” she recalled.
Although the technology is new, dental implants were used thousands of years ago by the ancient Egyptians. The technique was refined in the 1950s by Swedish orthopedist Dr. Per-Ingvar Branemark. While working in his lab, Branemark observed that titanium could integrate with living bone tissue – a process called Osseo integration. His discovery led to the development of modern dental implants which are widely used today.
Dental implants can be used to replace a single tooth or an entire set of teeth. In the surgical phase, the jawbone is drilled to accommodate the implant. After a few months or sufficient time for the bone cells to grow around the implant and hold it in place, a small metal post or abutment is attached to the implant to serve as an anchor for new teeth. The final stage involves creating new teeth or a prosthesis which is attached to the abutment.
What happened during the operation and how did it change Silvestre’s life? Find out in the second part of this series on Friday. Don’t miss it!
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Dr. Joseph D. Lim is the Dean of the College of Dentistry, National University, President/CEO of Dr. Smile Dental Care & Laser Center and honorary fellow of the Asian Oral Implant Academy and the Japan College of Oral Implantologists. For questions on dental health, e-mail jdlim2008@gmail.com or text 0917-8591515.
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