via RDH Magazine

Much of our time as dental hygienists is focused on caring for patients’ periodontal health, with an emphasis on calculus removal and prevention of periodontal disease. However, there is a growing push for the hygiene community to become more actively involved with caries prevention, beyond the typical practices of home-care instruction and evaluation. Several years ago, dental professionals began organizing the outlines of what would become known as Caries Management by Risk Assessment. The CAMBRA protocols represent a shift for the dental profession, from simply treating caries to actively working to prevent it by addressing its bacterial cause.  More »

via Mayo Clinic

Dental implants, rather than a fixed bridge or removable dentures, are an increasingly popular method of replacing teeth lost to an accident, gum diseases or tooth decay. In an interview in the January issue of Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource, Dr. Sreenivas Koka, chair of Mayo Clinic Department of Dental Specialties, discusses the advantages of dental implants and what’s involved.  More »

via HealthCanal.com

Exposure to the common pathogen causing periodontitis is linked to poor performance on cognitive tasks among older individuals, according to a study offering preliminary evidence that periodontitis is a potential risk factor for dementia. This association has been found in a new research study led by Dr. James Noble, assistant professor of clinical neurology at the Columbia University Medical Center Affiliation at Harlem Hospital, in collaboration with physicians at Columbia University Medical Center. “Studies and research have looked into the correlation between oral health, stroke and shared risk factors between stroke and dementia, but little or no studies have delved into the dental world, specifically periodontitis, as it relates to cognition,” Noble said.  More »

via San Francisco Chronicle
As recently as a decade ago, Vitamin D was mostly thought of as a helper-nutrient — it allowed the body to absorb and use calcium for strong bones. With a diet of fortified foods and a little bit of sunshine every day, most people got plenty of it. Aside from its well-known reputation for building and maintaining strong bones, Vitamin D could be tied to cancer prevention and cardiovascular health, and some researchers are looking into a connection between Vitamin D deficiency and gum disease, said Dr. Mark Ryder, chair of the division of periodontology at the University of California at San Francisco School of Dentistry. More »

via Dentistry IQ

All drugs have effects on the body, both intended and unintended. Drugs with dry mouth side effects are Allegra, Zoloft, Nexium, and Xanax, which promote tooth decay. Drugs with vomiting side effects are Abilify, Accupril, Accutane, and Altace. Vomiting increases tooth erosion and decay. Dilantin causes gingival hyperplasia or overgrown gums and is used as an anti-seizure remedy. While being used to treat osteoporosis, Actonel causes jaw bone problems including infection and delayed or nonhealing areas following tooth extraction. Imagine all the thousands of medications that have side effects we don’t have time to mention. More »

via RDH Magazine

Oral cancer was detected in at least one member of the public who participated in the free oral cancer screening held at Saratoga Race Course in July 2009. The screenings featured Trimira’s Identafi 3000 oral cancer detection device, an oral cancer screening tool that uses a patented triple-wavelength fluorescence and reflectance optical system. Identafi 3000 ultra is an intraoral device available for dentists and doctors to screen patients for early signs of oral cancer.  More »

*An Oral Cancer screening is part of your free Dental Implant Evaluation at Advanced Periodontics & Implant Dentistry

Flossing helps clean teeth in the areas that brushing alone just cannot reach (between the teeth and under your gum line).  Flossing and then brushing helps remove plaque, a sticky substance that accumulates and hardens over time. Left untreated, plaque deposits can eventually lead to gum disease and tooth decay.

Learning the proper way to floss your teeth is important. Your dentist or hygienist will be happy to demonstrate proper flossing techniques. The basic flossing techniques are shown in the photos below.

One type of dental floss does not work for everyone. Consumers can choose between waxed or unwaxed, flavored or unflavored, and regular or tape types. In general, a waxed floss slides between the teeth easier than an unwaxed floss. Flavored floss leaves a fresh taste in the mouth, and is especially nice for those times when brushing or rinsing is not possible. Tape floss is typically thicker than regular floss and is generally favored by people with wide gaps between their teeth.

Some companies are now marketing dental floss made from newer, “space age” materials. These newer materials offer increased smoothness and are also stronger than traditional floss. Ask your dentist which floss is right for you.

Some people with limited dexterity or arthritis cannot easily manipulate dental floss. These people may wish to try dental floss holders or intra-dental cleaners.

Floss is a multi-sensory experience, and you now have a full array of choices and flavors. Whatever your needs or preferences are, there is bound to be a product that will help you clean between the teeth and under the gum line. Brush and floss your teeth daily to help ensure the wellness of your teeth.

Denture Creams, like Poligrip and Fixodent, have been causing serious health problems in many people. Denture creams contain zinc, and excessive exposure to zinc can lead to copper depletion, which when severe, can cause serious neurological disorders.

More than 35 million Americans use denture creams, such as Poligrip and Fixodent, to keep their dentures in place. Yet the risk of denture cream zinc poisoning is virtually unknown. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has not required the manufacturers of these products to warn users of this danger. As a result, many people suffering from neuropathy and other neurological problems are unaware that their symptoms are the result of poisonous zinc denture creams.

Denture cream zinc poisoning could affect tens of thousands of people. Because early treatment is vital to reversing zinc poisoning, it is important that denture wearers educate themselves about this risk.

Neuropathy is one of the most common results of denture cream zinc poisoning. Neuropathy is a medical term describing disorders of the peripheral nervous system. Neuropathy can be a symptom or consequence of other diseases such as diabetes, and it can be a side effect of some drugs, like chemotherapy agents. It can also be the result of nutritional deficiencies, such as copper depletion caused by denture cream zinc poisoning.

The symptoms of neuropathy include:

• Tingling or numbness in the extremities

• Loss of ability to move legs, feet, arms or hands

• Poor balance and coordination

• Decrease in walking stride

• Abnormal blood pressure and heart rate

• Reduced ability to perspire

• Constipation and bladder dysfunction

At its most severe, denture cream neuropathy can leave patients permanently disabled. That’s why early detection of denture cream zinc poisoning is so important.

The evidence that zinc-containing denture creams can cause neuropathy is growing. Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas recently found a very strong link between zinc-containing adhesives and neuropathy. Their study, published in a 2008 issue of the journal “Neurology” determined that neuropathy in four patients was likely caused by their exposure to zinc in these products.

The patients in the University of Texas study usd an average of two tubes of denture adhesive every week. Normal blood levels of copper range from 0.75 to 1.45 micorgrams per milliliter (mL), but levels for the patients in the report ranged from less than 0.1 to 0.23 micrograms per mL. The top normal number for zinc blood levels is 1.10 micrograms per mL, but patients had levels ranging from 1.36 to 4.28 micrograms per mL.

Unfortunately, the damage the patients suffered was not easily reversed. To treat symptoms, one patient took copper supplements but didn’t stop using denture cream. His copper levels improved, but his zinc levels remained too high and he showed no improvement in his neurological symptoms. A second patient, who took copper supplements and stopped using denture adhesive showed improvement in copper and zinc levels, but no improvement in neurological symptoms.

Another patient’s neurological symptoms included weakness in the hands and poor balance, while another had weakness in her arms and legs that made her wheelchair dependent, along with cognitive decline and urinary incontinence. These patients only showed “mild neurological improvement” after they quit using denture adhesives and began taking copper supplements.

In addition to neuropathy, denture cream zinc poisoning can cause a number of neurological problems. These include:

Parasthesias: Spontaneous feelings of numbness, tingling, pinching, sharp, deep stabs, electric shocks, or buzzing in the arms and legs. Other types of parasthesias include feelings of cold, warmth, burning, itching, and skin crawling.

Dysesthesias: Unpleasant abnormal sensations that occur when a patient touches something, or is exposed to some other type of stimulus. Patients suffering from this disorder may feel burning, wetness, itching, elctric shock, “pins and needles” and other uncomfortable sensations in their extremities, especially their hands and feet.

Anemia: A blood disorder that occurs when the level of healthy red blood cells in the body becomes too low. Anemia can lead to serious health problems, including fatigue and impaired bodily organs.

Bone Marrow Failure Syndrome: These diseases are disorders of the hematopoietic stem cells that can involve either one cell line or all of the cell lines (erythroid for red cells, myeloid for white blood cells, megakaryocytic for platelets).

Denture cream zinc poisoning mimics many other disorders, and is often misdiagnosed. To correctly diagnose denture cream zinc poisoning, the zinc and copper levels in a patient’s blood must be tested.

Most often, if a patient with denture cream zinc poisoning  is misdiagnosed, they are thought to have a demyelinating disease. These types of disorders involve destruction of the myelin sheath – the protective covering of the nerve cells. Some of the demyelinating diseases most often misdiagnosed in patients with denture adhesive neuropathy include:

Multiple Sclerosis: People with denture cream neuropathy are often suspected to be suffering from Multiple Sclerosis. This is not surprising, however, as Multiple Sclerosis affects more than 400,00 people in the United States. Many of the symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis are identical to those of zinc copper depletion. Multiple Sclerosis can be difficult to diagnose early in the course of the disease because symptoms often come and go – sometimes disappearing for months.

Demyelinating Syndrome: This syndrome is often associated with other diseases, such as lupus. Typical symptoms include odd sensation in legs, arms, chest or face, such as tingling or numbness, weakness, blurriness or double vision, loss of dexterity, and coordination problems.

Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP): A rare neurological disorder in which there is swelling of the nerve roots and destruction of the myelin sheath over the nerves. This disorder causes weakness, paralysis and/or impairment in motor function, especially of the arms and legs. Sensory loss may also be present causing numbness, tingling or prickling sensations. The motor and sensory impairments usually affect both sides of the body, and the degree of severity may vary.

Guillan-Barre Syndrome: A disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks part of the peripheral nervous system. Early symptoms of this disorder – such as varying degrees of weakness or tingling sensations in the legs – are similar to those cause by zinc copper deficiency. In many instances, the weakness and abnormal sensations spread to the arms and upper body. These symptoms can increase in intensity until certain muscles cannot be used at all. When severe, a patient may suffer life-threatening paralysis.

Those most at risk for denture cream zinc poisoning are people who have used excessive amounts of these products for a long period of time. Many denture wearers use large amounts of adhesive to keep ill-fitting dentures in place. But, this is a dangerous solution to the problem. Because of the risk of denture cream zinc poisoning, it is much safer to seek the help of a dentist so that dentures can properly be fitted.

Your heart rate changes from minute to minute, depending on such factors as whether you are standing up or lying down, moving around or sitting still, stressed or relaxed. When you have been at rest for a while the heartbeat settles down and this is your heart rate. Slowing the heartbeat with exercise and stress reduction may help you enjoy more beats, reports the Harvard Heart Letter. Sixty years ago, researchers showed that men with fast resting heart rates were more likely to develop high blood pressure than those with slower rates. Since then, a high resting heart rate has been linked to atherosclerosis, sudden death, and an increased risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. Why? Each pulse of blood puts a mild stress on artery walls. More beats per minutes means more stress. A faster heartbeat also gives the coronary arteries less time to fill with blood. This can lead to an imbalance between heart cell’s demand for oxygen and the heart ability to provide it. Resting heart rate seems to be a common denominator for various types of heart diseases. A tantalizing possibility is that lowering your heart rate could help protect you from heart disease and may even let your heart beat for a longer period of time. The Harvard Heart Letter notes that if your resting heart rate is high, you can do something about it: exercise more and reduce stress. When you exercise, your heart beats faster during the activity and for a short time afterward. But exercising every day gradually slows the resting rate. The relaxation response, meditation, and other stress-busting techniques also lower heart rate over time.

(Source: Harvard Heart Letter, December 2008, Harvard Health Publications)

The researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University’s School of Dentistry have discovered a novel function of the peptide known as nerve growth factor (NGF) in the development of the trigeminal nerve. The trigeminal nerve provides the signaling pathway for periodontal pain, dental surgical pain, and pain associated with temporomandibular disorder, trigeminal neuralgia, migraine and other neuropathic and inflammatory conditions. The study is posted online in Neuropeptides and will appear in print issues of that journal in early 2009. Working with researchers in the dental school departments of Endodontology and Integrative Biosciences, second-year Endodontology resident and lead author of the study, Leila Tarsa, DDS, MS, found a new mechanism involved in establishing junctions known as synapses between trigeminal nerve cells. Nerve cells communicate with one another through chemicals called transmitters that are released at synapses. The transmitter release from nerve cells endings is possible only if aided by several molecules that are critical for proper function of the synapse. Dr. Tarsa’s research shows that NGF promotes transport of one of the molecules (called synaptophysin) from the nerve cell body to its ending. “This study has broad implications for trigeminal nerve regeneration,” said Agnieszka Balkowiec, MD, PhD, assistant professor of integrative biosciences and adjunct assistant professor of physiology and pharmacology, senior author of this study and whose lab hosted the research. The study was supported by grants from the NIH and the Medical Research Foundation of Oregon.

(Source: OHSU, news@ohsu.edu, January 7, 2009)