injury

Common Types of Teeth Injuries and Their Solutions

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Although teeth are naturally resilient, they can face some problems like gum disease and tooth decay. These types of dental problems can badly damage your tooth. In the worst case scenario,  you may even lose them! However, there are some external dangers that can injure your teeth as well. Fortunately, there are treatments available which can help fix them and can decrease the chance of losing them. It is best to frequently visit your dentist for a regular checkup. Some of the common dental injuries are as follows: Fractured or Chipped Teeth Your tooth can be fractured easily especially during sports (when receiving an abrupt blow to the face). A report by the National Youth Safety Foundation says that if athletes don’t wear mouth guards for some sports, they have a 60 percent more chance of damaging their teeth. Moreover, … Read more

Informed Consent in Dentistry: Can Change Impact Personal Injury Cases?

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An excellent article appears in the Spring 2017 edition of the The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics (vol. 45, pp. 77-94) written by Kevin I. Reid titled “Informed Consent in Dentistry.” The article discusses how informed consent is respecting the ethical right of an individual to make decisions about one’s body and only have actions undertaken on their body with authorization without undue influence. In order for informed consent to be considered valid in dentistry the following must occur: (1) the patient is competent and has the ability and capacity to understand and decide, (2) the dentist discloses material information, (3) the patient understands, (4) the patient is voluntarily entering the arrangement, and (5) the patient provides authorization to go ahead. Every patient however comes to a different degree of understanding to authorize treatment based on their prior dental experiences, education, motivation, attention, … Read more

Dental problems of Teenagers – Five Most Common Causes

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Teenagers have a lot of issues to think about and deal with everyday. School pressures, navigating social issues, and trying to figure out just where they fit in the grand scheme of things is enough for anyone to worry about. In light of this, one of the things that tends to get overlooked during this time of growth and change is that of dental health and oral hygiene. There are several factors to consider when talking about teens and oral health. Below is some information about the five most common dental problems facing teenagers. Smoking and Drug Use Along with all of the other pressures kids are facing, smoking and drug use are high on the list of things that can affect dental health. Aside from staining your teeth, smoking leads to gum disease and gingivitis as well as many … Read more

Migraine May Alter Brain Structure Permanently

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An article appearing in Neurology, explores the effects of a migraine on the brain’s structure on a long term basis. The study suggests that migraine may permanently alter brain structure which is counter to previously held beliefs that migraine has no long term consequence for the brain.  For example, see the post titled Are Migraine Related Changes Related to Impaired Cognition? where a study concluded that women with migraine have no long term effects of cognition over time. See also the post Do Migraines Lead to Cognitive Decline? In the current study, researchers explored 6 population based studies and 13 clinic based studies to determine if people who have migraine had an increased risk of brain lesions, brain volume changes, or other abnormalities as measured from an MRI of the brain. The researchers found that migraine with aura increased the … Read more

The Optional Alternative to Medical Injury Claims

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Previously on this blog I have discussed some of the issues with medical malpractice in the United States and some potential alternatives. In this post Potential Alternatives to the Current Medico-Legal System in the United States I talk about some possible alternatives such as having some agreement directly with the physician and hence avoiding trial lawyers. In this provocative post How to Improve Your Chances to Win a Dental Malpractice Lawsuit I discuss the 4 elements you need to win a malpractice suit in the U.S. and a possible suggestion to help improve your chances of doing so. Last year, Kevin Pho known as “social media’s leading physician voice” discussed in a post written on July 16, 2012, titled “The New York medical malpractice crisis: Who’s to blame?,” how some financially struggling hospitals are going without medical malpractice insurance and just … Read more