Hi Everyone,
I have wanted to share this story with you in case there is room in your life to help another person.
Over the last couple of years, we have been seeing a patient from the Smile Again program through MDDS. I will call her Sarah. Sarah came to us with a history of addiction, having been in an abusive relationship and was living in a recovery facility in Denver. We were not even able to call her directly on the phone and did not know her real name, which made scheduling appointments a relay phone game.
She was quiet, friendly and wanted to have a beautiful smile. Her struggles took their toll on her teeth and her overall health. She is a charmer and we all fell in love with her immediately. She loved to come to our office where we enjoyed pampering patients with "little extras" like hot chocolate and neck warmers. She showed up to her appointments, as promised, and as the improvements to her smile began, her transformation began to take place. The patient who was once sort of quiet and shy began to share with us the history of her struggle, the fact that she has children and even a grandchild and how much it meant to her to really get her life on track. Our relationship with Sarah over the last two years has taught us that taking a leap of faith and believing in someone can make all the difference in the world. And I believe she has enriched our lives as much or more than we have enriched hers.
Today, Sarah attends college to become a psychologist in order to help others who have faced similar struggles. And though her program has ended, she is still our patient and our friend.
We are Grateful,
Kristine
Hi Flossie Posse,
I received a letter in mail from GlaxoSmithKline today stating a "potential health risk" for people who use denture adhesives such as Super Poligrip 'Original', Super Poligrip 'Ultra Fresh' and Super Poligrip 'Extra Care' regularly. The implications are severe, though they state that the occurrences are "rare" based on the millions of people who wear dentures. Regular use over an extended period of time can cause neurological symptoms such as "sensory disturbance, limb weakness and difficulty walking." GSK recommends seeing your dentist for an oral evaluation if you are required to use denture adhesive regularly or if you use it more than once a day.
We are able to assist in our office by evaluating your current denture to see if you are a candidate for a better fitting denture or an implant secured denture to enable you to eliminate the need to use potentially hazardous denture adhesives.
If you know someone who wears a denture and uses denture adhesive, please forward this information to them and they will receive a discount on a denture evaluation in our office for mentioning this article. If you are currently a patient in our office who has a denture, call to schedule an evaluation to see how we can be of service to you.
Having a denture that fits can not only improve your health, but increase the quality of life you experience by making it easier to talk, eat and by preventing embarrassing social situations.
We will keep you posted on this important matter.
Warmly,
Kristine
Did you know that gum disease is contagious? It's true. The bacteria can be tranferred in saliva. So if you are planning on kissing your Valentine, you could be giving more than love.
If you share utensils, drinking glasses, or if you have a cough, if you sneeze or like to kiss, you can transfer gum disease to other family members including children. How can you avoid this?
- Have your entire family evaluated for gum disease
- Follow through with periodontal treatment
- Follow up with your recare visits recommended by your hygienist. Sometimes more frequent recare is recommended because the bacteria can repopulate within 30 days.
- Make sure your hygienist is checking your gum health at each visit.
Did you know that 75% of tooth loss is from gum disease? It's true. Gum disease can also cause or complicate the following illnesses:
- Diabetes
- Stroke
- Heart Disease
- Osteoporosis
- Pneumonia
- Pre-term births
- Reduces effectiveness of medications
Give the greatest gift this holiday: the gift of health. Arrange for your family visit your dentist this month.
Flossie Posse,
Do you kiss your dogs on the lips? I do, I'll admit it. Well, I kiss them on their noses, really, but their noses are pretty close to their lips. I'm not sure why I do this, given the fact that I know what they do with their mouths. There is not a week that goes by when Nyla, the younger of my two Jack Russell Terriers, brings me something dead. Sometimes I think it was dead when she found it and sometimes I know it wasn't. Regardless, she does not discriminate and is very proud of her treasures. The old man Jack Russell, Puck, mostly gets in trash and finds bones and other bacteria infested morsels. Either way, logic tells me the old saying that a dog's mouth is cleaner than a human mouth can not be true. So I did a little research.
What I did find is that most infections carried by dogs are not transmissible to humans and vice versa. The infections such as staph and strep that they might carry are species specific.
According to ABC news, the bites inflicted by humans on humans are more likely to become infected than bites inflicted by dogs on humans. I was relieved I could not find any research regarding human bites and their affect on dogs. I am sure that news would be bad all the way around.
But is a dog's mouth cleaner based on bacteria counts etcetera? The short answer is no. After all, a dog's tongue is not only used for eating and drinking, but also as a washcloth and toilet paper.
I will probably continue to kiss my dogs. Since I work in a dental office, I am certain that my dogs have cleaner mouths than most dogs. I do brush their teeth with special peanut butter flavored toothpaste. I just try not to think too much about the details.
How could you not kiss this face?
Smooch!
Kristine
I worked for a large natural retailer for about ten years and I had the BEST job within that company. It was so amazing! I was in charge of the beer, wine, coffee, cheese, chocolate and olive department. It was easy to get excited about going to work when wine and cheese tasting started at 7am and moved through the afternoon.
I placed wine orders on Tuesdays and the wine representative from the largest company I worked with would come in on Tuesdays, sometimes bringing twenty or so samples. His name was Chris. This was a great thing to get paid to do, except for one thing. Our "tasting room" was basically the place where we did the dishes. It was small and hot and steamy and Chris had breath that smelled like three day old road kill on a hot street in July. It was terrible. It was so bad, I was thinking that he could not possibly taste the wine. How could he detect the subtle nuances of vanilla that French oak imparted into the wines? How could he detect the creaminess of the malolactic fermentation on a California chardonnay with all of the bacteria in his mouth? I could barely stand to be in the hot, steamy tasting room with him and would often delegate the job to one of my employees. It was sad to give up free wine.
I had to do something for Chris. I debated back and forth about what to say and how to say it. I knew it was my responsibility to say something given my family history in dentistry and with the additional knowledge that provided me.
Ultimately, I told him he was my friend and I cared about him and asked him if anyone had ever told him he had bad breath before. To my surprise he said, "Yes, all the time."
"Does that concern you?" I asked.
"Not really," he said. "I have always had bad breath."
"Did you know that it is caused from bacteria?" I asked.
"No," he said.
"Yes," I said. "The same types of bacteria that are found in carcasses and feces. And all of that bacteria can complicate and cause systemic diseases such as diabetes and can increase your chances of a heart attack."
"Wow," he said. "I didn't know."
"I'm only telling you because I care about you. Especially since your profession involves interpersonal relationships with people who have a highly trained sense of smell," I said.
I left the company shortly thereafter. Reports from my old team were that Chris's breath did not improve that much. But at least I did my part to help stop the stink. It was not an easy thing to do, but I feel better that I did it.
Dear Flossie Posse,
I have good news. We are changing the blog format. See, what happened was that the Internet Marketing Company told us that the blog should be totally informational. They said we can't really talk about our office and what's going on around here because that would mean we were being "self promotional." Blogs are supposed to be "informational." But then, Dr. Johnson was watching the movie, Julie and Julia with his wife and he thought that Julie's blog was much more fun and interesting than ours. Ours was pretty boring to write and therefore would have been EXTREMELY difficult to read were it not for the impeccable writing skills. Getting the other team members to help me come up with topics was like pulling teeth. (C'mon, corny is the new clever.) I had to agree with Dr. Johnson because all of the hours I worked on writing that blog, I dozed off a few times and whacked my head on my computer keyboard, leaving an imprint of the keys T, Y, G and H on my forehead. So he gave me permission to write something that people might actually like to read.
So, I am asking for some dentistry topics from our WAY smarter and funnier than average readers. It can be anything from how your smile changed your life to stories that start out with, "You know what is so gross..." Believe it or not, we have a few of those and we look forward to sharing them with you in the future. Don't worry, you'll get the same great content, but maybe not so tightly wrapped.
Ciao!
Kristine
PS Thanks for sticking with us during our uncharacteristically "boring phase" which I will now refer to as The Dark Ages. Don't ever let an Internet Marketing Company tell you how to write. Have you ever read their blogs? YAWN.
- “A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found 42 percent of kids aged 6 to 19 had had a cavity or filling in their permanent teeth when examined between 1999 and 2002…”Medline Plus -August 25, 2005
- “Although dental caries (tooth decay) is largely preventable, it remains the most common chronic disease of children aged 5 to 17 years - 5 times more common than asthma (59% versus 11%).” CDC – 2005
- “Poor children have nearly 12 times more restricted-activity days because of dental-related illness than children from higher-income families. Pain and suffering due to untreated tooth decay can lead to problems in eating, speaking, and attending to learning. CDC – 2005
- “An estimated 75% of Americans reportedly have some form of periodontal disease.”The American Dental Hygienists’ Association - 4/2002
- “Dental caries (tooth decay) is the single most chronic childhood disease - 5 times more common than asthma and 7 times more common than hay fever.” Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General - 4/2002
- “Over 108 million children and adults lack dental insurance, which is over 2.5 times the number who lack medical insurance.”Oral Health in America: A Report of the Surgeon General - 5/2001
Tooth sensitivity generally means that you have twinges of pain in your teeth when brushing, biting down, consuming hot or cold liquids or sweets. Sensitivity can be quite painful when left untreated. It has several potential causes:
- Poor oral hygiene allowing tartar to build up at the gum line and cause infection
- Long term tooth wear
- Clenching and grinding
- Receding gums
- Untreated caries
- Cracked teeth
- Cracked fillings
- Tooth whitening
- Infection
- Excessive pressure
The treatment for sensitivity requires an examination to determine the cause. Some of the treatments may include:
- Regular fluoride treatments
- night guard or splint to be worn during the day or at night
- New fillings or an adjustment of existing fillings
- Crowns
- Gum grafting
- More regular dental visits
- Desensitizing toothpaste
- Avoiding acidic foods
See your dentist for an exact diagnosis and treatment. Tooth sensitivity is not only annoying and troublesome, but also an indicator of an underlying condition. If your teeth are sensitive and it hurts to have them cleaned, request an anesthetic or nitrous oxide to make your dental hygiene visits more comfortable.
Many patients put off necessary dental care because they are unsure how they will be able to afford what they need in this struggling economy. Rather than staying on top of regular dental visits and maintaining their health, the fear of finding an unexpected problem keeps them away. Putting off dental care can cause an emergency situation, more expensive care down the road or even tooth loss. Here are some things to consider when planning your dental care:
- Does your dentist offer interest free financing? This can be a useful way to break down payments over time at no cost to you.
- Do you have a Health Care Savings Account? The tax benefits from such an account can provide significant savings.
- If you have a large treatment plan, will your dentist help you decide what is your most pressing dental needs? Treating the worst first allows you choose how much you can spend per month or year and still continue to receive treatment.
- Do you have a plan for covering the portion of your treatment not covered by your insurance? Dental insurance has not changed much since the 1960s and most patients now incur and out of pocket expense. Be prepared.
- And ideally, you can plan ahead and be preventative instead of seeing your dentist on an emergency basis. Keep up with regular visits and follow your dentist's recommendations. This will save you a lot of money in the long run.
We love the men, too, but when it comes to dentistry, women have every right to consider themselves our special guests.
As women begin to have hormonal changes during peri-menopause and menopause, they can begin to see changes in their dental health such as decreased saliva, increased caries (decay), taste alterations, gum disease and bone loss.
Because of these changes, it may become necessary for women to make more regular visits to the dental hygienist in order to keep on top of the changing biology. Instead of the old "every six months," which is a treatment plan recommendation for children and people with very little dentistry, menopausal women may find it beneficial to avoid future problems by having visits three to four times a year. Crisis prevention is still much less expensive than crisis management. Avoid pain and emergencies by planning ahead, taking excellent care of your mouth and by treating yourself as a priority during these coming changes.
Supplements such as calcium and vitamin D can help prevent bone loss. In addition, we offer a wide variety of products in our office to assist in maintaining optimal wellness. We offer prescription strength fluoride toothpaste to prevent caries and sensitivity, mouth rinses to aid in the healing of gum disease, which not only causes bad breath, but also causes many other systematic complications and also the latest in toothbrush technology.
We know your smile is so important to you and we are here to answer questions, address your concerns and to provide you with the five star treatment you deserve.