Health

Periodontal Disease associated with heart attacks

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In the past on this site links between periodontal disease and cardiovascular disease have been mentioned, see for example the posts Additional link between cardiovascular and periodontal disease and Periodontal Disease and Cardiovascular Risk. Periodontal disease is also known as gum disease. Recently, a study appearing in the Journal of the American Dental Association titled “Association between periodontal care and hospitalization with acute myocardial infarction” written by Romesh P. Nalliah and et. al. (April 19, 2022) has shown that those with periodontal disease are at increased risk of ending up in the hospital due to a heart attack. In the study researchers explored periodontal care and heart attack-related hospitalizations and aftercare by analyzing Iinsurance claims data from MarketScan Research Databases, which includes information from hundreds of millions of patients in the U.S. Patients were included if they had been hospitalized in … Read more

Periodontal Disease Bacteria Tied to Alzheimer’s Disease

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An interesting article titled “Alzheimer’s Disease-Like Neurodegeneration in Porphyromonas gingivalis Infected Neurons with Persistent Expression of Active Gingipains” appears in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease written by Ursula Haditsch et al. (no. 75, pp. 1361–1376, 2020). The article seeks to explore the connections between Porphyromonas gingivalis (P. gingivalis), the main pathogen that causes chronic periodontitis, and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In the article, the researchers sought to show that intraneuronal P. gingivalis and gingipain expression in vitro after infecting neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). The researchers looked at the effect of the bacteria on the neurons at 24, 48, and 72 hours. The researchers used transmission electron microscopy, confocal microscopy, and bacterial colony to cause infection. They monitored gingipain expression by immunofluorescence and RT-qPCR, and protease activity with activity-based probes. The researchers used immunofluorescence, western blot, and ELISA to … Read more

Reducing Anxiety among Pediatric Dental Patients

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An interesting article titled “an Anxiety Reduction Program as an Alternative to General Anesthesia for the Anxious Pediatric Dental Patient” was presented on July 23, 2021, at the virtual session of the 2021 International Association for Dental Research (IADR)/AADR/CADR General Session written by Suher Baker and et al. The research set to investigate the efficacy of a systematic Anxiety Reduction Program (ARP) using progressive desensitization to reduce anxiety in children to a level that would allow dental treatment to be performed in-office without the use of general anesthesia. Dental anxiety has been covered on this site before see for example the post Dental Anxiety and Fear: Impact on Oral Health. Children are more likely to experience an unfavorable and unforeseen incident caused by an error or omission during dental treatment that has negative health consequencies. This is because children do … Read more

Dentists Seek new Guidelines for Gum Disease

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An interesting article titled “When is periodontal maintenance not enough?: The need for clinical guidance,” appears in the Journal of the American Dental Association published on January 21, 2023, written by Stephen K. Harrel and et. al. The article discusses how dentistry should seek to make new guidelines that address the management of periodontal patients who have continued inflammation. In the article discussion is made of how scaling and root planing is typically the first treatment for periodontal disease does not always eliminate inflammation. The initial treatment of periodontal disease consists of the removal of biofilm and calculus and patient education to help them continue to maintain oral hygiene in the future. The authors feel that in the case when inflammation persists, dentists should discuss to the patient advanced therapies and the risks of not undergoing these therapies while also … Read more

Does Medicare Cover Dental Services in 2023?

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In the U.S. when Americans turn 65 they are eligible for medical services and health insurance under the program called Medicare. Unfortunately Medicare doesn’t cover most dental care such as procedures and supplies like tooth extractions, cleanings, fillings, dentures, dental plates, or other dental devices. Recent surveys have shown that most people are in favor of expanding Medicare to include services like dental an vision. Many are also in favor of lowering the age of eligibity to less than 65. As of 2023. As of January 1, 2023, Medicare has now been expande to cover medically necessary conditions requiring dental services. According to the ADA the following dental services are now covered under Medicare: Such care can be performed in both an inpatient and an outpatient setting. Further, coverage applies to X-rays, anesthesia, or the use of an operating room … Read more