Wisdom Teeth

An Oral Surgeon and His Quest To Educate

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I found the website of an Oral Surgeon living in England and teaching at the King’s College Dental School who has started a website to educate patients. His website addresses many of the issues surrounding wisdom teeth removal and their removal. I am suprised I did not find it until this month as looks like it has been around since 2007. On the website it states “As an Oral Surgeon, I find the more information you can give patients and dentists the better.” I feel the goals of his site are somewhat aligned with those of my own. He is also very knowledagle on different policy issues occuring in the UK. The website includes some very detailed explanations of problems and complications that can occur form tooth removal. http://www.exodontia.info/ExodontiaWarnings.html The website also includes some of the guidelines governing the practice … Read more

Dental Hygiene Prevents Heart Infection

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Good dental hygiene and health may be crucial in preventing heart valve infection, according to research reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. In a study of 290 dental patients, researchers investigated several measures of bacteremia (bacteria released into the bloodstream) during three different dental activities — tooth brushing, a single tooth extraction with a preventive antibiotic and a single tooth extraction with a placebo. Researchers found bacteria in the blood more often with the two extraction groups than with the brushing group. However, the incidence of bacteremia from brushing was closer to an extraction than expected. “This suggests that bacteria get into the bloodstream hundreds of times a year, not only from tooth brushing, but also from other routine daily activities like chewing food,” said Peter Lockhart, D.D.S. In 2007, the American Heart Association modified its recommendation … Read more

Xylitol Gummy Bears

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The tooth protecting sugar substitute xylitol has been incorporated into gummy bears to produce a sweet snack that may prevent dental problems. Giving children four of the xylitol bears three times a day during school hours results in a decrease in the plaque bacteria that cause tooth decay. Xylitol is a naturally occurring sugar alcohol that is frequently used as a sweetener. It has been shown to reduce levels of the harmful mutans streptococci bacteria  known to cause tooth decay. Xylitol chewing gums are  not considered to be suitable for younger children. A recent study demonstrates that six weeks of xylitol gummy bear snacking, the levels of harmful MS bacteria in the children’s plaque was significantly reduced. However, I have seen studies and reports that dogs die from ingesting a small amount of xylitol. Thus I do not think that … Read more

My Interview with ABC

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I recently conducted an interview with ABC 7 which is a local affiliate for Chicago. The video and story is by Sylvia Perez and Christine Tressel and can be found here http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news/health&id=6480245 The video portrays my website and discussion of it along with Michael Miloro, DMD, MD, FACS from UIC Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Jay W. Friedman, DDS, MPH. I think it gives some more prospective on the issue my website raises and is worth a view if you have the time.

Dentist Drill Use Dwindling in The Future

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A new technology that spots tooth decay almost as soon as it’s begun promises to reduce the need for drilling and filling. Drilling is one of the top dental phobias causing many to not to go to the dentist. The new technology may be available five years from now, is based on Raman spectroscopy most commonly used to distinguish between different chemicals by identifying each molecule’s unique fingerprint. It detects decay simply and painlessly by pointing a tiny optical fibre at the tooth to check on its health. A preliminary study at King’s College London, where the technique is being developed, found that chemical changes in the tooth could be detected by analysing how light is scattered when a laser is fired at the tooth. Researchers were able to tell healthy teeth from carious teeth because bacteria, responsible for the … Read more