dental

Science Shows Why Wisdom Teeth Take So Long to Emerge

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An interesting article titled “A biomechanical perspective on molar emergence and primate life history” by H. Glowacka and G. Schwartz appears in the October 2021 edition of Science Advances (Vol. 7, Issue 41). The article looks into why it takes 18 years or more before humans start to have wisdom teeth emerge and fully develop. Compared to other primates, the third molars (wisdom teeth) come later. In the study the authors state: “Our results support the idea that the biomechanical constraint on masticatory form in adult primates operates throughout the duration of craniofacial growth. This constraint regulates where molars can emerge safely into functional occlusion, which, when viewed within the mechanical context of overall orofacial growth, modulates the timing of when molars emerge.” What this means is that our wisdom teeth are just not able to finish growing until our jaws become large … Read more

Delivering Sedation in Dentistry

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It has become increasing popular to deliver sedation to patients receiving dental work. Sedation is defined as the deliberate drug-induced depression of consciousness used to reduce anxiety and awareness associated with unpleasant medical procedures. Sedation is used to reduce anxiety.  In some cases dentists or oral surgeons deliver both the dental work and the sedation, while in others there is a separate anesthesiologist to do so. One should always verify proper training and license prior to undertaking any sedation from a healthcare professional. Sedation is generally considered very safe as long as it is performed by an appropriately trained practitioner in a monitored environment. Sedation dentistry uses different approaches depending on personal choice and comfort. In the order of increasing anesthesia these are local anesthesia, minimal sedation, nitrous oxide/oxygen, moderate (conscious) sedation, deep sedation, and general anesthesia. A more thorough discussion … Read more

Deadly Dentistry: Death in the Dental Chair

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If you are thinking about having any dental work done for yourself or your loved ones you should know that in many cases it is not without risk and can even be deadly. There are many cases of death occurring in dental offices over the years for both children and adults having dental procedures. The Dallas Morning News made an in depth piece exploring various issues surrounding death in the dental chair and the story indicated cover-up and not holding offenders accountable. The seven part piece was published in 2015 and is available at http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/deadly-dentistry/index.html. It is a lengthy investigative piece, so you will need a fair amount of time to get through the entire story. For convience the links for each of the seven parts are also provided separately below. Part 1 http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/deadly-dentistry/part1.html Part 2 http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/deadly-dentistry/part2.html Part 3 http://interactives.dallasnews.com/2015/deadly-dentistry/part3.html Part 4 (which has … Read more

Development of new restorative dental materials for cavities

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New research by Salvatore Sauro, who is a professor of dental biomaterials, has shown that new dental biomaterials can help regenerate dental hard tissues. The work occurred at CEU Cardenal Herrera University, in Spain, with collaboration of researchers from other parts of Europe. Bacterial plaque which causes tooth decay due to acids produced by different bacteria species; has led to research for the development of restorative biomaterials. The international group of researchers generated two new dental restorative biomaterials containing bioactive glasses, and explored their effectiveness in reducing the enzymatic auto-degradation of collagen fibres and evoking their remineralization. The researchers set out to evaluate the inhibition of endogenous proteolytic enzymes of dentin and the remineralization induced by two experimental resins containing bioactive glasses. The first resin contains micro-particles of Bioglass 45S5 and the other one contains micro-particles of an experimental bioactive glass enriched with … Read more

Dental Phobia – Therapy Treatments for Anxiety and Phobia

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Overcoming a fear of the dentist, or odontophobia, is incredibly important if you want to maintain your oral hygiene and avoid having serious health problems in the future. You may be pleased to learn that fear of the dentist is actually surprisingly common – affecting 20% of the population worldwide. Most people’s fear of the dentist doesn’t stop them from visiting the dentist when problems arise but it does stop them when going in for regular check-ups – which increases the likelihood of actual problems occurring.  For some though dental phobia is so severe that they will not visit the dentist under any circumstances – and will often result to extreme measures to fix their own dental issues. In either case various techniques and therapies can be used to overcome dental phobia. Visiting the dentist regularly is the best way … Read more