Infographic on Links between Breast Cancer and Oral Health

Did you know women with gum disease are 11 times more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer? In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, this great infographic by dentalplans.com depicts several different links between breast cancer and #oral health, which can be shared with patients and professionals alike in order to learn more about this distinct connection.

Mohs Hardness Scale for Top Dental Abrasives

English-Spanish Terminology in Dentistry PDF

A free PDF on English-Spanish Terminology in the Dental Office is now available under the Clinical Resources tab on the website for The Richmond Institute for Continuing Dental Education. If you are not a current member, simply sign up for a free membership, and you’ll be granted complete access to everything on the site, including this PDF and many other professional resources. [View More]. 

Top 3 Most Acidic Soft Drinks in the U.S.

Do you know what the top three most ACIDIC sodas in today’s market are? Surely there are many that come close behind, but according to a study published in American General Dentistry (AGD) by the Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Dental Medicine, the top three most acidic soft drinks available today are as follows:

1. RC Cola (pH of 2.387)

2. Cherry Coke (pH of 2.522)

3. Coke (pH of 2.525)

Despite their lack of sugar, diet sodas are also bad for your oral health, though their pH values tend to be a bit higher than regular sodas. Moreover, non-cola beverages are less acidic than cola drinks, but were found to be more erosive overall due to a higher mean percent weight loss after a 48 hours of immersion. For example, a drink called ‘Surge’ had the highest overall weight loss at 7.85%, followed by 7-Up at 6.17%. This is thought to be because non-cola drinks contain citric acid  which chelates calcium at higher pH levels, leading it to be particularly erosive. Cola drinks, on the other hand, usually contain phosphoric acid. 

See the table below for comprehensive results of this study:

To view the original study, please visit: http://www.agd.org/support/articles/?ArtID=923

Environment Plays a Bigger Role than Genetics in Oral Microbiology

A new study in Genome Research discusses the difference between genetics and environment in determining oral microbiota. Over the average lifetime, an individual experiences an abundance of bacteria in the mouth from childhood to adulthood, but little has been studied on whether genetics or environment plays a bigger role in this occurrence. Therefore, researchers conducted a study by sequencing the microbial DNA of saliva from several sets of twins, and paired those sequences in a database to determine which type of bacteria existed in each individual.

Overall, scientists found that the salivary microbiomes of identical twins were no more indicative than those found in fraternal twins, meaning the influence of genetics is not as strong as the impact of environment.[1]

“We were also intrigued to see that the microbiota of twin pairs becomes less similar once they moved apart from each other…” stated Simone Stahringer, author of the study.

It was also discovered that salivary microbiota changes the most during adolescence, indicating that behavioral changes may have a significant influence. In general, this study hopes to provide more clarity on how aspects like oral hygiene, environment, and even diet can influence oral microbes.

To read the original article, please visit: http://medicalnewstoday.com/articles/251417.php

Why Dental Professionals Take Blood Pressure

When dental professionals take their patient’s blood pressure, they may not always realize that some patients have absolutley no idea why it is being done, or what the implications can mean for both their oral and general health. As hypertension continues to affect 66.9 million Americans—making it the most common medical condition known today—it is important for the dental profession to relay to their patients the reasons why blood pressure should be taken in the dental office.[1]

The following are recent facts from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) about this condition and its relation to the general public:

• 53.5% of U.S. adults have uncontrolled hypertension (about 35.8 million people).

• 39.4% of U.S. adults with uncontrolled hypertension (about 14.1 million) are unaware that they have hypertension.

• 89.4% with uncontrolled hypertension have a “usual source of health care and insurance, representing a missed opportunity for hypertension control.”

Fittingly, that last point adequately depicts the reasons why Americans need to have additional resources (outside from their regular physician) that are able to sufficiently diagnose, if not treat, this growing disease. Even if they have insurance like the statistic suggests, they still are not getting the information they need (for whatever reason[s]), so having dental professionals help detect this condition will ultimately create more awareness, if nothing else.

The following are a few of the main reasons why dentists should already take their patient’s blood pressure:

• When the systolic pressure goes above 160mm or the diastolic goes above 100mm, the risk becomes much higher for dentists to perform any kind of dental procedures. (A normal/healthy reading is 120mm systolic over 80mm diastolic).

• 34% of people who are on medication still report having poorly controlled blood pressure, which means they are at a greater risk of experiencing a stroke or heart attack during a dental procedure if their blood pressure escalates.

• Some medications (especially those related to blood pressure) can have negative consequences on the patient’s oral health; some can cause dry mouth—which may lead to decay/dental caries—while others can cause light-headedness, which may result in the patient passing out after standing up or laying back in the dental chair.

• Even those patients who take medicine specifically for hypertension, their dentist needs to confirm the medication is indeed working the way it should, and is in a safe range to receive other types of treatments and/or prescriptions.

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To learn more about this topic and/or earn CE credit , check out the course below by Margaret J. Fehrenbach, RDH:

“Blood Pressure Issues in the Dental Office”

Xylitol: The Sugar that Dentists Approve Of

With an exceedingly vast consumption of sugar in the U.S. every year, it is becoming more apparent than ever that significant changes need to be made to the overall diet/lifestyle of the general American public. What most people outside the dental industry don’t realize is that another sweetener exists outside the traditional substitutes, that not only tastes as good as sugar, but actually benefits your teeth and fights against the presence of oral disease!

If you’re in dentistry, you’re probably already familiar with this sweetener known as Xylitol. Today, we are seeing it being added to many brands of fluoride, prophy paste, toothpaste, and more as research continues to show just how effective this sweetener can be. Studies have already reported tremendous results, and everyday more is being done to learn its potential in the fight against oral disease.

Here are some of the most staggering statistics and interesting key facts related to xylitol and oral health:[1]

• Xylitol was first discovered in 1891 by chemists from both Germany and France.

• Five exposures to xylitol per day can drastically improve oral health by reducing the accumulation of plaque biofilm, and decelerate the transmission of Streptococcus mutans from mother to child.

• It encompasses anti-inflammatory properties that prevent infection, and accelerate the healing process for open wounds, ear/sinus infections, and aspiration pneumonia.

• The human body makes 5-10 grams of xylitol each day during the metabolism of carbohydrates.

• Overall, it looks and tastes just like regular sugar, but only contains 2.4 calories per gram, which is 40% lower than other carbohydrates.

• Xylitol does not incorporate insulin for metabolism, making it ideal for people who have been diagnosed with diabetes.

• It encompasses a higher pH level in both saliva and plaque fluid, vs. the acidic pH associated with sucrose ingestion.

• Xylitol-sweetened candy consumed several times a day has proven to be more effective in reducing the incidence of caries than fluoridated toothpaste or fluoridated milk.

*Reference: DentalTown, “Xylitol: The Good Sugar”, August 2012.

Mechanical Objectives for Cleaning/Shaping Root Canal Systems

Successful endodontic therapy depends upon complete debridement by thoroughly cleaning and shaping the root canal system. When practitioners make every effort to understand and fulfill the five mechanical objectives behind this fundamental process, then the outcome of endodontic treatment will certainly be favorable…[READ MORE]

New Dental CE Course on Salivary Diagnostics in Oral Health

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Salivary diagnostics is quickly becoming one of dentistry’s most promising tools in the detection and prevention of oral-systemic diseases. While traditional methods still prove to be effective (e.g. blood or urine), they are typically more complex and more expensive to conduct. Salivary diagnostics allows for a much simpler way to obtain samples, and is also safer for clinicians since they are less exposed to viruses like HIV or HVC. Overall, this course discusses the many additional benefits associated with salivary testing, including a review of diseases it is able to detect, and an overview of the latest products now available to the oral health community.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

1. Review the composition of saliva and how it supports the many functions within the oral cavity.

2. Understand the many advantages that salivary diagnostics has over traditional methods of detection/prevention.

3. Learn how it aids in detecting some of the most common oral diseases, such as caries, periodontal disease, and even oral cancer.

4. Compare the various products that are now on the market for dental professional to detect these different diseases.

5. Become acquainted with the different ways that the medical industry is currently using salivary diagnostics to prevent systemic disease.

CATEGORY: Oral-Systemic

CE ACTIVITY: Self-Instructional

NUMBER OF CREDITS: 2

COST: $20.00

PUBLISH DATE:  September 20, 2012

EXPIRATION DATE: September 20, 2015

SPONSORED BY: