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From the 2010 Newsletter:
CAMBRA
Happy, HOT, July,
This month I'd like to get everyone in-the-know about CAMBRA.
You have BRAGGING RIGHTS! …
BOTTOMLINE: Your dentist (me) has been doing CAMBRA (PLUS A LOT MORE!) with her patients for over 30 years! So you can tell all your family and friends who start bragging that their dentist does CAMBRA...your dentist has been doing it for as long as you have been going to her (which in some cases is a lot of years!).
… What is CAMBRA?
It stands for Caries Management by Risk Assessment
Caries is the scientific name for cavities/decay...what causes your teeth
to need fillings. It is the scientific word for the bacterial invasion of the
teeth that cause a tooth to decompose and need a filling.
CAMBRA is a good beginning but does not go nearly far enough; nor does
it integrate with the other major bacterial disease in the mouth, periodontal (gum)
disease. CAMBRA does not take into account the ecology of the whole mouth and the need to
look at the whole oral ecology…
CAMBRA is here. GOOD. It will not change much of what happens in our office except the
following:
- The office will start to use the CAMBRA risk scale terminology...same tests.
- The office will use the ADA approved protocols when they are up-to-date enough
to be of value.
Another good thing. I am hopeful that in 10 years or so...with CAMBRA as a requirement for all dental schools and more and more dentists doing saliva testing ( and research now
retold in palatal ways for the mass media)... the insurance companies may actually catch
up and pay for some of these tests...
Remember a few dollars every 3 to 6 months could literally save you 10s of thousands of dollars in dental treatment costs. PREVENTION allows for PRESERVATION at a LOW over all COST!
Get lots of Vitamin D this July... the natural way... from the sun (but avoid sun burns).
Have a great July.
VP
From the 2010 Newsletter:
Oral Sex
This email is about Oral Sex
About 30 years ago when everyone smoked cigarettes
the typical oral cancer patient was a heavy smoking, hard drinking, male in his late 50s or older.
We had expected that as cigarette smoking decreased so would oral cancer rates.
Instead we started seeing oral cancer patients who were under 40, of both sex, had never smoked, and had none of the usual predisposing factors in their lives.
Research showed that these oral cancer victims had the same human papilloma virus (HPV) in their oral cancer (HPV 16 and 18) as the two HPV virus that show up in cervical cancer.
Now we know (as I am sure you saw in the news media a few years ago) that oral sex predisposed an individual to cancers driven by HPV 16 and 18 with a significant increase in the rate of oral cancer for individuals with multiple oral sex partners.
Oral sex can transmit all the STD (sexually transmitted diseases)
and should never be considered safe sex.
What to know:
Oral cancer is a horrid disease. The death rate is over 50 %. Many of those who live are badly disfigured for life having lost part or all of jaw and/or tongue and/or nose and/or roof of mouth.
The best defense against oral cancer is early detection.
You are vital in early detection.
Every month do an oral cancer exam at home. Check your tongue, cheeks, lips, and gums for lumps, bumps, red spots, and white spots.
If you find any of these watch them for 1 week. If they do not go away call us.
Every time we clean your teeth we do an oral cancer exam.
We don't usually announce this fact. It is done routinely. If we find anything we advise you.
Our usual protocol is to do an OralCdx (like a pap smear for the mouth) to check any white or red spots for cancer cells.
If we are dealing with a lump or bump of unknown origin a biopsy is usually recommended.
With lasers this biopsy is painless and quick...the lump/bump is gone and a pathologist will advise us exactly what the lump/bump was. This excisional biopsy is
the only sure way to know that these areas will not change into cancer.
So make oral cancer exams a part of your life. It could save your life. And please be careful...know where your sexual partners have been...it could save your life.
VP
From the 2008 Newsletter:
Sleep Apnea
SLEEP APNEA...17% population suffers from sleep apnea. The American Academy
of Sleep Medicine guidelines ranks oral appliance treatment equal to CPAP
machines in both mild and moderate sleep apnea. The guidelines also rank oral
appliances as the first choice in severe apnea if the patient cannot tolerate
the CPAP machine....
...we will make an O2/Oasys orthotic (dental appliance) for you if needed. This
is the only FDA approved breathing and apnea treatment oral devise on the
market. It is custom made for each patient.
...remember ALWAYS; try an oral appliance BEFORE surgery in severe apnea if the
CPAP is not tolerated. Oral appliances can be taken out. Surgery is forever.
FYI:
The AHI (Apnea/Hypopnea Index) is as follows:
AHI of 0-5=normal
AHI of 5-15= mild sleep apnea
AHI of 15-30= moderate sleep apnea
AHI of 30 or more=severe sleep apnea.
KNOW YOUR SCORE WHEN YOU HAVE A SLEEP STUDY...make choices from there.
From the October, 2002
Newsletter: Laser Dentistry is Here!
GREAT NEWS! Laser Dentistry is HERE! ...
I now have a laser to use in dentistry. The Biolase can be used on both hard
(tooth, bone) and soft (gums, cheeks) tissue.
What this means for you: ...
The laser makes the tooth, bone, gums, and oral tissue numb as it goes, so
for most procedures (even gum surgery) there is no need for injections.
The laser will cut tooth structure with no vibration and only a small sound
(like a soft popcorn popper).
The laser can sterilize a gum pocket in seconds.
A crown lengthening procedure can be done on the same day a crown preparation
and impressions are done. (No more 6-8 week waiting, no sutures, no bleeding, no
gum packs.)
No more cold sores; the laser will take the pain away. Healing is reduced to
3-4 days without pain AND a cold sore will never appear again in that spot!
Welcome to the 21st century.
FYI: There are only 25 Biolase
lasers in Massachusetts, 44 in New England (801 in the USA and about 1000
worldwise).
It is my pleasure to offer this new, state of the art, technology to you.
From the
Fall '98 Newsletter: Do You Know Your Cholesterol Levels?
If you worry about cholesterol levels, you should also worry about
periodontal disease.
Several longitudinal studies (studies of the same people over a long period
of time, 20 to 50 years in these cases) have shown that the presence of
periodontal disease is as good an indicator of heart disease and stroke as are
cholesterol levels! The exact mechanisms are yet to be understood. The new
theories are very similar to what happened in dentistry 25 years ago.
Twenty-five years ago in dentistry there was a theory that said that calculus
caused periodontal disease and bone loss. Then researchers like Dr. Keyes and
Dr. Loe found that it was bacteria that invaded the gum tissue and caused the
problem. As the bacteria died, the bacteria turned into calculus. For about ten
years there was a non-specific bacterial plaque theory and now there is the
specific plaque theory... as we know the names of the bacteria that cause
periodontal disease.
Bacteria cause periodontal disease, bacteria cause decay, and
bacteria cause most stomach ulcers. Now, bacteria are being implicated in
cardiovascular disease.
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