Dental News

Hot Tooth Keyboard introduced

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Dr. Smile 25 March, 2009 (0) Comment

LANDOVER, Maryland — Man & Machine, Inc., a leading manufacturer of hygienic waterproof keyboards and mice, introduces the U Hot, the company’s first wireless keyboard for the dental practice. The keyboard works for days without needing to be recharged, giving the user the freedom of movement in and around the dental operatory. To recharge, simply plug the keyboard into any computer with the included USB cable.

The U Hot Keyboard can be rinsed and submerged in water. The capacity for the U Hot to be thoroughly washed reduces the quantity of surface germs and therefore mitigates infection risk to dental team members and patients.

The inside of the keyboard is sealed to protect it against fluids, such as blood, saliva, food, drink, and most cleaning agents. Drainage holes in each key pocket allow excess water or spilled fluids to quickly exit the keyboard before causing damage. These features do not disrupt typing comfort; the U Hot looks and feels like a normal keyboard.

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Syneron Dental Announces European OEM Agreement

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Dr. Smile 21 March, 2009 (0) Comment

YOKNEAM, ISRAEL - Syneron Dental, a division of Syneron Medical Ltd. (NASDAQ: ELOS), announced that it has signed an OEM agreement with a European company to produce and distribute a dental laser using Syneron’s Laser-in-Handpiece(TM) technology. Details of the agreement have not yet been disclosed.

Syneron’s novel Laser-in-Handpiece concept, incorporated in its LiteTouch(TM) Erbium: YAG dental laser, represents a unique combination of characteristics: superior power and high-speed cutting abilities, along with exceptional maneuverability and precision in the oral cavity. Syneron’s LiteTouch was first launched in 2006 and is used by dentists worldwide.

According to Syneron Dental President, Mr. Eyal Cohen, “We welcome this opportunity to incorporate Syneron’s dental laser technology according to the request of a respected European dental laser device manufacturer who wished to provide our unique technology to their installed base. We believe that having our technology utilized and promoted by their dental customers will raise its visibility internationally.”

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UMKC dental student wins national top collegiate cartoonist award

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Dr. Smile 21 March, 2009 (0) Comment

FRED BLOCHER

A steady hand is helpful in dentistry and drawing, as Grant Snider can attest. The UMKC student worked on a comic strip this week in his apartment.

If Grant Snider the future dentist is half as good as Grant Snider the cartoonist, there’s going to be a lot of happy mouths in Kansas City.

Snider, a second-year dental student at UMKC, doesn’t yet see patients. But as a cartoonist for the school’s student paper, University News, he has drawn his way to a $10,000 national journalism award from the Scripps Howard Foundation. In winning the Charles M. Schulz Award, given annually to the college cartoonist of the year, Snider’s work was cited as “comic strips that reflect the influence of graphic novels.”

As a Scripps Howard winner, he joins an elite group of journalists who represent some of the most prestigious news outlets in the country. Other winners this year include Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman of the New York Times, Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter David Willman (formerly of the Los Angeles Times), and reporters from the Boston Globe, the Miami Herald and National Public Radio.

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Schütz Dental GmbH

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Dr. Smile 21 March, 2009 (0) Comment

Production of objects in non-precious metals with galvanic quality. The WOL-CERAM ELC (Electrostatically Layered Ceramic) technology is a procedure comparable to electro-forming. During the process of electrophoresis, non-precious metal is settled directly on the original stump, which renders duplicates redundant. Oxide-free, homogenous non-precious metal constructions with perfect fit evolve in the following sintering process. The expenditure of time is minimal. When producing primary or secondary constructions, friction is controllable. This ultra-modern method is based upon more than 15 years of experience.

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The Importance of a Medical History

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

A thorough medical history should always be obtained from a patient on the first visit to the dental office, and updated periodically. This crucial information should be as accurate as possible since it can have an impact on your dental treatment. Forgetting to include relevant medical information could lead to serious consequences. For example, all drugs, including prescriptions, over the counter or elicit should be documented, since even aspirin, which thins the blood for up to seven days, could lead to excessive bleeding following an extraction. Forgetting to inform your dentist that you are on a blood thinner such as coumadin could lead to disastrous consequences. Individuals with numerous medical conditions should provide a photocopy of all drugs taken. Patients often do not realize that a simple cleaning can have serious medical implications if they have not informed their dentist and/or hygienist that they were born with a heart defect or acquired a murmur during their life.

Forgetting to include relevant medical information could lead to serious consequences.

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What are Dental Implants

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Advantages
of Implants

	Does not involve other teeth
	Very high success rate
	Stabilizes dentures

Dental implants have been around a long time; however only in the last decade have they become popular. The reason for this is that titanium has proven itself as a metal which is incredibly biocompatible, meaning that the body doesn’t reject it when implanted into bone. This metal has now been useful for many medical situations. In the case of dental implants, titanium fixtures are placed surgically into the jaw bone and left to integrate with the bone for several months. After full integration the upper portion of the implant fixtures are exposed and porcelain teeth or dentures are attached with screws and other metal components.

Patients with loose lower dentures are great candidates (for dental implants) since as little as two implant fixtures can hold the denture so that it no longer “floats” around causing soreness and difficulty with mastication

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What are Dental Veneers

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

All those beautiful perfect smiles that we constantly see in the media are often the result of dental veneering. Veneers are thin porcelain “shells” that are bonded over the front surfaces of your front teeth. They are used to correct or improve many different situations. For example they can be used to cover severely stained, discolored or pitted teeth, or to close spaces between front teeth by making the veneered teeth wider.

Furthermore they can be used to correct mildly crooked or chipped teeth. They have been used extensively to whiten a person’s smile but today’s modern bleaching techniques are now more popular when color improvements is the only goal to achieve.

The advantage over crowns (caps) is that much less enamel needs to be removed, making the procedure much more comfortable while still achieving a natural look. After a thin layer of enamel is removed, models of your teeth are sent to a laboratory for fabrication.

A week or so later these veneers are bonded into place and become an integral part of your teeth. Separation or fractures are extremely rare but not impossible.

Porcelain veneers are extremely resistant to staining and you can expect many years of service without any discoloration or changes to the appearance of your smile.

If you feel you may benefit from veneering your teeth, let your dentist know. Only he can tell if you are a good candidate. Chances are you will be, and within a week or so you will have an entirely new improved smile.

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What Causes Tooth Sensitivity

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (2) Comment

Everyone has experienced a sensitive tooth. Actually, some level of sensitivity is considered normal since teeth are enervated with pain nerves. However, when teeth becomeabnormally sensitive, a cause is usually detected. The most obvious source is dental decay, which destroysenamel and dentin, causing pain when the irritants produced are liberated, reaching the nearby pulp nerves. Obviously, the treatment here is to remove the decay and replace it with a restoration (filling). It should be stressed that teeth

since this disease destroys the supporting tissue surrounding the teeth, which again exposes the roots. Another source of sensitivity occurs when enamel (which contains no nerves) is lost thereby exposing the sensitive dentin below, where nerve endings are present. Enamel can be lost from excessive bruxing (grinding), or from a diet too rich in acids such as carbonated beverages and most citrus fruit drinks, which dissolve enamel. What measures can you take if you suffer experience excessive sensitivity?

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Tooth Brush Abrasion

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (1) Comment

Dentistry has been so successful over the last few decades at educating and convincing the public about the value of their teeth that we are now commonly observing “tooth brush abrasion”. Patients are now brushing on a regular basis and many as often as three or four times a day. Actually, if you use a proper brushing technique, you only need to brush twice a day. There is nothing wrong with more as long as the brushing is done properly, and with soft nylon bristles. Make sure to read the label when buying a brush in order to avoid accidentally buying a hard or medium bristle brush. Use an ADA seal approved toothpaste, which is low in abrasion. Some toothpaste are very abrasive, as in smokers’ toothpastes (Topal, Pearl Drops, etc.).

Furthermore, if you are in the habit of rushing and brushing with a sawing stroke from front to back you will end up with grooves in your teeth near the gum line. These grooves are referred to as tooth brush abrasion. They are clean, smooth and often darker in colour since you have removed the enamel and are now looking at yellow dentin orcementum below.

Furthermore, if you are in
the habit of rushing and
brushing with a sawing stroke
from front to back you
will end up with grooves in
your teeth near the gum line.
These grooves are referred
to as tooth brush abrasion.

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Smoking and Your Teeth

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Effects of
Smoking

l Oral and lung
cancer

l Peridontal disease

l Bad breath

l Tooth erosion

l Poor healing

l Dry socket
infections

l Hairy tongue

l Reduced taste

l Smoker’s face

If you thought that smoking’s main effect was the staining of your teeth, please read on attentively. The tobacco in cigarettes, cigars, and pipes contains over 4000 harmful chemicals. The worse outcome from smoking is cancer and although oral cancer is not as common as lung cancer, it is nevertheless very harmful.Smokers should remember that if they are lucky enough to avoid cancer, they nevertheless will suffer from many other deleterious effects of smoking. Periodontal disease (gum disease), which leads to tooth loss, is extremely common in smokers. Many treatments for this condition are unsuccessful because the poisons from the tobacco weaken the body’s immune system, thereby decreasing the healing process to the point that many surgeons will avoid extensive treatments on these individuals. Furthermore, smokers will accumulate more tartar thereby requiring more extensive cleanings, which are often painful since the exposed roots (caused by the gum disease) are sensitive.

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The Aging Dentition

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

As we age, we notice many obvious signs of aging, such as wrinkled skin, loss of hair, diminished eyesight, loss of stamina, the list goes on. Many changes do occur in the human dentition, some being normal while many are preventable. Some people believe that the loss of all their teeth is a normal part of aging. Before the introduction of refined sugar and over- processed food, the lost of an entire dentition was probably an extremely rare occurrence. With today’s modern dentistry and nutritional information, one can keep most, if not all of their teeth for a lifetime.

There are, however, changes which occur as we age which are inevitable. For example, under normal wear our teeth get a little shorter. This is accelerated if several of your back teeth have been removed. Another change is the darkening of our teeth. Dentists can now reverse this by a simple bleaching process.

Older adults will often complain of dry mouth, caused by a reduction in salivary flow, which is often aggravated by some medical conditions or the medicines used to treat them (high blood pressure etc…).

Left untreated, dry mouth can damage your teeth. A lack of saliva can also cause dentures to hurt from irritation, and can reduce their retention. Without adequate saliva to lubricate your mouth, wash away food, and neutralize the acids produced by plaque, extensive cavities can form.

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What is Root Canal Treatment

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Teeth are basically composed of the crown which is what you see above the gumline and the root below, which is approximately twice as long as the crown. The pulp is a space inside which extends all the way down to the tip of the roots, which contains blood vessels and nerves.

The function of the pulp is to nourish the tooth and keep itvital. A root canal treatment is the removal of this pulp because it has become infected and inflamed (usually by decay) thereby causing discomfort.

Often but not always there is an abscess present. Without treatment the infection can spread aggressively but with today’s modern dentistry and antibiotics, serious sequelaes are rare but still occur.

Without treatment the infection
can spread aggressively
but with today’s modern
dentistry and antibiotics,
serious sequelaes are
rare but still occur.

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What is Pregnancy Gingivitis

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Pregnancy gingivitis is the term used to describe the gum inflammation many women get during pregnancy. The signs and symptoms are red puffy gums, bleeding and redness, combined occasionally with bad breath as well as discomfort. These symptoms are the same as any gingivitis but the difference is that the gingivitis can occur from a very small amount of plaque. In other words, this individual would probably not have gingivitis if she was not pregnant. Why does this occur?During pregnancy many hormonal changes occur which are obviously needed to produce a healthy delivery. However, some of these hormones lower a woman’s resistance to plaque, so that a level of plaque not normally a problem, may become enough to cause gingivitis. Basically, this is an exaggerated gum response.

During pregnancy many hormonal changes
occur which are obviously needed to produce
a healthy delivery. However, some of
these hormones lower
a woman’s resistance
to plaque, so that a level of plaque not normally a problem, may become enough to cause gingivitis.

Studies have shown that increased gingivitis most commonly begins during the second and third month of pregnancy and increases in severity through the eighth month and begins to decrease in the ninth month. If an individual is already suffering from gingivitis (or worse, periodontitis), before the pregnancy, this change of hormones will often aggravate the existing condition, resulting in a flare-up which often creates enormousdiscomfort, to an individual who is already coping with being pregnant.

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Periodontal Disease

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Periodontal disease {gum disease}, sometimes referred to as “pyorrhoea” is a condition which destroys the soft tissue and surrounding bone which support teeth. The cause is plaque, a white film of food and bacteria which accumulates on the teeth over a period of 24 hours if your teeth are not properly cleaned.You can feel plaque with your tongue when your teeth are not clean. If not removed, plaque hardens to form calculus (tartar) which is not removed by brushing or flossing. Even a clean mouth can build up some tartar which can only be removed by a dentist or hygienist.

The initial stage of this disease is called gingivitis, which simply means inflammation of the gums. If left untreated it progresses toperiodontal disease, the difference being that the supportingbone is being destroyed.

Over time the teeth become stripped of their supporting tissue (gums and bone), often resulting inloose and sore teeth which need to be extracted. Most important is that this disease usually progresses without the individual’s awareness since the symptoms are not always obvious.

Your dentist and hygienist can check for signs of this disease during your regular check-up and cleaning. You can start by looking for the following signs and symptoms:

1. Red swolen gums
2. Bleeding gums
3. Receding gums
4. Loose teeth
5. Migrating teeth
6. Bad breath
7. Bad taste
8. Spacing between teeth

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Orthodonics (Braces)

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Dr. Smile 24 December, 2008 (0) Comment

Most people associate braces with crooked teeth and an unattractive smile. It is obvious that a person’s confidence and self esteem are enhanced from a beautiful smile. However, aesthetics is only one of the many benefits of braces. For example, when teeth are misaligned, food particles get trapped more easily, and a crooked dentition is much more difficult to clean, which can lead to gingivitisand/or periodontitis (gum disease). In more severe cases,mastication is not as efficient and digestive problems can occur. So straight teeth not only gives you a more pleasant smile, it also provides a dentition that functions better.