Flap's Dentistry Blog

The Daily Extraction: January 27, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 23:55:00 +0000

Extraaction of Teeth #31 and #32 with a 302 straight elevator

In this case, Dr. Tommy Murph has to contend with a couple of bad teeth and a patient who is really scared.
Here is the pre-operative radiograph:

And, the grand result:

Enjoy your daily extraction!

Dr. Murph is a South Carolina dentist who practices general dentistry who really excels in extracting teeth.

For patients in the Myrtle Beach area, I can heartily recommend Tommy as YOUR dentist.

For dentists, Dr. Murph has a number of resources for you in extracting teeth, including one on one courses in his office and travel (outside the USA) courses with "hands on" instruction.

Dr. Murph's website is here and his extraction manuals are here on e-Bay.

Previous:

The Daily Extraction Archive

The Morning Drill: January 27, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:27:00 +0000

The staff of the 143rd Dental Company (Area Support) Forward stand outside the dental clinic with their commander, Lt. Col. Daniel P. Alston

Good Friday Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Dental company commander brings lifetime of knowledge

After 21 years away from the Army and retiring from dentistry in the civilian sector, Daniel P. Alston returned to serve in the Army Reserve, and now commands the 143rd Dental Company (Area Support) Forward as a lieutenant colonel.

When the 143rd Dental Company (AS) FWD was assigned the Kuwait mission, Alston was offered the command.

"At first I wasn't interested, because as a commander, I would be on a 12-month deployment and not a 90-day rotation," said Alston.

After discussing it with his wife, Alston decided that since he was near retirement, taking the command made sense.

"I'm 65 now, so I would be able to finish my time on active-duty status," Alston said. "Reserve retirement changes a lot when you put in more days on active-duty."

Alston had hoped to reach 20 years in service while in Kuwait. However, his current assignment fell short. So when he got word that the 143rd Dental Company (AS) FWD had the 2013 mission as well, he volunteered to stay.

"My wife and I decided it would be the best for us," Alston stated. "It was certainly the best for the unit because they won't have to go through the entire mobilization process to send a replacement."

So now Alston's team will be under his leadership for a total of 20 months, which, according to Staff Sgt. Kevin Morgan, the 143rd Dental Company (AS) FWD noncommissioned officer in charge, will make for an enjoyable deployment.

"Lieutenant Colonel Alston is the easiest going guy I have ever worked for," said Morgan.

Having been a dentist since he was 24, as well as a private business owner, Alston brought a lifetime of knowledge to his command.

"He's a really good guy, and with the experiences in his life, it's easy for us to go to him when we have issues or any kind of problem," said Morgan. "He's like a father figure you can always lean on, which is good to have in this type of atmosphere."

Jury finds dentist not liable for dental malpractice

After a three-day trial, a Humboldt County jury found Dr. Jeremy Keener not liable for dental malpractice in a case involving a root canal gone wrong. The trial began with jury selection on Monday (Jan. 23) and concluded late Wednesday (Jan. 24).

Natasha Stilwell sued the dentist after a root canal temporarily left her face and a portion of her nose with raw sores. Additionally, she had lockjaw for months and developed a hole in the palate of her mouth.

She suffered no long-term injury as a result of the incident, but Stilwell sued to recover medical expenses as well as compensation for pain and suffering.

In finding Keener not liable of dental malpractice, the jury determined Keener’s actions did not fall below accepted standards of care.

Kennewick police accuse 3 of prescription drug scheme

Two employees of a Kennewick dental office are accused of pulling off a sophisticated scheme involving at least 167 forged prescriptions.

Nicole Bernice Polus and Chareise Louise Raugust, along with her fiance, Miljan Ignjatic, allegedly wrote, called in or picked up fraudulent prescriptions in the Tri-Cities during a four-year period, police said.

"There were so many names ... including fictitious names," Kennewick police Detective Rick Runge told the Herald. "It is just so large, we just went with the suspects' names and family" to try to track the forgeries.

Polus and Ignjatic made their first appearances Thursday in Benton County Superior Court and pleaded innocent to several charges of obtaining a controlled substance through fraud.

Polus, 40, faces an April 9 trial on eight charges of fraudulently obtaining Lorcet and Vicodin. The charges include the aggravating factor that she used a position of trust to commit the crime. Polus was a dental hygienist in William Craig Stout's dental office.

Ignjatic, 34, is charged with six counts of obtaining Lorcet, hydrocodone and diazepam through fraud. His trial is also set for April 9.

Raugust, who was Stout's office manager, pleaded innocent to one count of obtaining a controlled substance -- hydrocodone -- through fraud, with the aggravating factor that she used a position of trust to commit the crime.

She also was in court Thursday. Her trial is April 9.

Ex-Sussex County dentist accused of groping patient indicted for perjury

A former Sussex County oral surgeon who lost a civil lawsuit in 2009 that claimed he groped a 25-year-old woman as she recovered from anesthesia following surgery was indicted today on charges that he lied during the jury trial.

Joel P. Kurtz, 67, now of Bethel, Conn., was indicted on two counts of third-degree perjury and two counts of fourth-degree false swearing.

Following a six-week jury trial in Newton, Kurtz, formerly of Livingston, was found liable of groping Amy Metzler, now 27, of Frankford, at his Andover Township office in 2002 and 2003. The jury awarded Metzler $275,000 in compensatory damages and $100 punitive damages.

“The indictment relates to his claim made during the trial that he was never a plaintiff in any other lawsuit during his 30-year practice when, in fact, he had been sued earlier by another female patient,” said First Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Mueller, who presented the case against Kurtz to a grand jury.

In the earlier case, Mueller said Kurtz was sued in December 1976 by a woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by him earlier that year. That case was resolved in 1979 when the victim reached a $20,000 out-of-court settlement, he said.

Enjoy your morning!

The Morning Drill: January 26, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:50:00 +0000

Good Thursday morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Valrico Dentist Heads to Court Over Neighbor's Cigar Smoke

In the 23 years Dr. Edmund Rahal has had his dentist office in the strip shopping center at 3646 Lithia-Pinecrest Rd., Valrico, he's had his share of neighbors.

But, up until now, none of them have stunk, Rahal said.

That all changed when the Twisted Cigar moved into the storefront next to Rahal's dental office in October.

Rahal said smoke from the combination cigar shop and smoking lounge has filtered into his dental office, making employees sick and eliciting complaints from patients.

"It's not just a cigar shop. It's a place where patrons come in and smoke. There are big-screen TVs for them to watch," said Rahal. "And now they've applied for a beer and wine license.

"Since they opened, we've been losing existing patients, and there's no way to gauge how many new patients we've lost because of this," Rahal said. "We had a women just this morning complain. She said she couldn't stand the smell."

He said employees say they go home at night smelling of cigar smoke and one employee who's allergic to smoke coughs and wheezes in the office.

Twisted Cigar owner Jim Brown has tried to alleviate the problem by installing filters and sealing the drywall that separates the two storefronts.

However, Rahal said the problem persists. "The cigar store has done what it could, but nothing's made a difference," said Rahal.

Report outlines 5 elements for improving oral healthcare

Accountability, data collection, and new ways of delivering care are critical if the U.S. is going to improve the quality of its oral healthcare, according to "Oral Health Quality Improvement in the Era of Accountability," a new report funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the DentaQuest Institute.

Dental expenses are now among the highest out-of-pocket health costs to consumers, second only to expenses for drug prescriptions, according to the report.

The report, authored by Paul Glassman, DDS, MBA, a professor of dental practice and the director of the Pacific Center for Special Care at the University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, lists five elements for improving oral healthcare in the U.S.:

    Increased use of electronic dental records and integrated health records
    Better measurement of oral health outcomes
    New payment and incentive mechanisms
    Expanded delivery of care by nondental professionals, as well as new types of allied dental professionals
    Use of telehealth technologies to reach people in remote areas

Exercise may boost mood for some chronically ill

Working out regularly may brighten the mood of people with chronic health problems like cancer, heart disease and back pain, according to the first sweeping look at previous research.

But it's no miracle cure: On average, six people would need to hit the gym or go for a jog for one person to see a mood improvement.

"It's a nice piece of evidence and I'm pleased because I like the concept," said Dr. Alan J. Gelenberg, who chairs the department of psychiatry at Penn State University in Hershey.

Gelenberg, who wasn't involved in the new work, said the findings jibe with guidelines from the American Psychiatric Association, which recommends regular exercise against the blues.

"There is some evidence for its use to prevent depression, and there actually is evidence for exercise as a treatment in itself," he told Reuters Health.

The Write Diet: Lose Weight With Just 15 Minutes and a Journal

Can losing weight really be as simple as a 15-minute writing session? It worked for a group of women who recently took part in a psychological study. But it depends on what you write about.

Women who wrote about their most important values for 15 minutes lost an average of 3.4 pounds over the next few months. Women who wrote about something less important gained an average of 2.8 pounds.

The researchers think the weight loss was due to increased self-affirmation or self-esteem. Writing about their values made the women see themselves as better people and feel better about themselves. It may also serve to strengthen resolve. Often, heavy eaters eat in an attempt to elevate their mood. Who hasn't felt better after eating a brownie? But some people take this to an extreme and over time, the pounds can add up.

The researchers speculate that writing about one's values can kick off a chain reaction. It starts when writing about an important value makes you feel better about yourself. Maybe when you go home that night you skip the brownie or cookies you've been using as an emotional crutch. In time, skipping the brownie becomes a habit.

Enjoy your morning!

California Dental Association Supporting Dental Mid-Level Providers?

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:16:00 +0000

Welcoming sign of the California Dental Association Spring Meeting in Anaheim, California

Perhaps, but it is unclear whether the California Dental Association supports a study, supports increased access to care or what. Read this piece and make up your own mind.

Is California gearing up to be the next state to consider midlevel providers? Lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow the state to study the benefits of alternative dental care providers.

The California Dental Association (CDA) supports the proposed legislation, but two other state dental groups, the California Academy of General Dentistry (CAGD) and the California Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (CALAOMS), oppose the concept of midlevel providers, saying they lack the necessary training to do irreversible procedures.

SB 694, introduced by state Sen. Alex Padilla (D-San Fernando Valley), would also establish a state dental director who could help California secure federal funds for subsidized dental programs.

As originally written, the bill would have allowed the dental director to "design and implement a scientifically rigorous study to assess the safety, quality, cost-effectiveness, and patient satisfaction of irreversible dental procedures performed by traditional and nontraditional providers for the purpose of informing future decisions about scope of practice changes in the dental workforce that include irreversible or surgical procedures."

But with a January 31 deadline looming, opponents stepped up pressure and the bill was amended to remove references to "irreversible procedures," "workforce," and "scope of practice changes."

My experience with the California Dental Association over decades (I am no longer a member, for a variety of reasons) is that they really won't fight the left-wing controlled Democratic Legislature and Democrat Governor Jerry Brown.

With ObamaCare providing "free" dental care for children in 2014, there will be a scramble to find sufficient numbers of dentists to provide the required services. Of course, there will not be enough, so why not open it up to Community College trained dental therapists?

Well, there will be problems with that as well, and I will not go into the debate on whether these folks are trained to do irreversible procedures or not. But, you see where the CDA is going with this.

The funny part is that California dentists are actually paying real money dues to an organization which is undercutting their own business by supporting competition. I wonder what the pediatric dentists organization will do?

I think the California Dental Association will lose even more members with this latest gambit.

If you want to follow the legislation, SB 694, a link to the bill and its legislative history is here.

By the way, when the U.S. Supreme Court throws out ObamaCare this late spring on constitutional grounds or President Obama is not re-elected, everything will change again.

The Morning Drill: January 25, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:25:00 +0000

Good Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Suit: Web site developer harassed Grayslake orthodontist

A Web site developer harassed patients and emailed the alma mater of a Grayslake orthodontist after the two became embroiled in a dispute about the design of a site, a libel lawsuit filed Wednesday claims.

The two-count suit claims libel and breach of contract. It seeks unspecified damages.

Dr. Michael Stosich hired Zenman Productions, Inc., to develop a Web site for his orthodontist practice, a suit filed in Cook County Circuit Court claims. The contract called for Zenman to provide search engine optimization so the Internet site would be displayed on various search engines, including Google.

Stosich, whose practice is at 1275 E. Belvidere Road, Suite 100, paid the initial deposit and Zenman missed numerous deadlines and didn’t provide features Stosich wanted on the site, the suit said. The Web site went live Dec. 2, 2011, and did not appear during a Google search.

Zenman told Stosich that this was normal and that the search capability would be effective in six months, the suit said. Stosich hired a third-party developer who discovered Zenman imbedded a file that intentionally left the Web site unsearchable and blocked the site from the Web results of search engines.

Dental Exam Went Well? Thank Fluoride

I admit to being jealous of my sons for growing up in a time when vaccines spared them miseries like the measles, mumps and polio scares that marred my childhood. But I’m most envious of their freedom from the dental decay that forced me to spend countless miserable hours with my mouth propped open while the dentist did his best to stay on top of rapidly rotting teeth.

By my mid-20s, I had already lost one molar and all four wisdom teeth, and every remaining molar had been restored with fillings.

It’s not that I failed to brush my teeth or that I noshed constantly on sweets. It’s that my teeth lacked the protection of fluoride, which was introduced to New York City’s water supply in 1964, five years before my twin sons were born but 23 years too late for me.

More Americans Uninsured in 2011

More American adults lacked health insurance coverage last year than in any year since Gallup and Healthways started tracking it in 2008. The uninsured rate has been increasing since 2008, climbing to 17.1% in 2011.

The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index asks 1,000 American adults each day about their healthcare coverage and reports monthly, quarterly, and annual averages. The monthly percentage of uninsured adults increased to 17.7% in December 2011, tying July for the highest on record. The uninsured rate was 17% or higher in most months in 2011.

Gallup first documented an increase in the monthly percentage of uninsured adults in November 2008, rising above 16% for the first time in February 2009 and above 17% for the first time December 2010.

Myths and misses about Alzheimer’s Disease

Mark Twain, the American author and humorist once said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” In my experience as a geriatrician, I’ve encountered many misunderstandings about this degenerative neurologic disease that devastates both patients and their families. Countering these can help patients, families, professionals, and all those who have someone in their lives with Alzheimer’s disease.

There’s no difference between Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. The confusion here is understandable, as Alzheimer’s disease is the cause of at least 60% – and perhaps a much larger proportion – of all those diagnosed with dementia. Although the terms are used interchangeably, dementia is the umbrella which covers all diseases that cause cognitive decline in adulthood, including Alzheimer’s disease. The next most common cause of dementia is vascular disease, such as occurs after multiple strokes or one very large one. Other etiologies of dementia are Parkinson’s disease (and a similar entity called Lewy body dementia), trauma (e.g., head injuries from motor vehicle crashes or playing professional football), infectious diseases like syphilis and HIV, and miscellaneous causes like hypothyroidism and vitamin B12 deficiency. Because there are a myriad of causes of dementia with varying treatments, it is imperative that families seek out experts to diagnose loved ones with suspected dementia.

Enjoy your morning!

No California Deaths Due to Whooping Cough or Pertussis in 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 22:14:00 +0000

Good news in California.

Nobody in California died from whooping cough in 2011 -- the first time in more than two decades that there were no deaths due to the disease, public health officials announced early Tuesday.

The previous year, 10 infants died from whooping cough, or pertussis. In addition, the number of people infected dropped from 9,000 in 2010 to 3,000 last year.

Whooping cough reached epidemic levels in 2010, prompting public health officials to launch a massive effort to reduce the number of cases and deaths. They advised physicians to look for early signs of the disease and offered free vaccines to hospitals and clinics. The California Department of Public Health also created public service announcements and partnered with local health departments to get out the word about the dangers of whooping cough. And the state passed a law requiring students in grades 7 to 12 to get vaccinated.

I have a new grandchild being born in a few months and my physician recommended a pertussis booster to be included when it was time for my tetanus shot.

It is important for people to realize that before routine vaccinations, many of these, then common diseases, really reeked havoc on children and adults alike.

Please make sure you are up to date of your own vaccinations.

The Morning Drill: January 24, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:29:00 +0000

Good Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Studies support use of leaded glasses, thyroid collars

Leaded glasses and thyroid collars can effectively reduce patient exposure to radiation during cone-beam CT (CBCT) imaging without disturbing diagnostic image quality at several anatomic areas, including the alveolar processes, according to research presented at the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology (AAOMR) annual meeting in Chicago last month.

In a previous study, researchers from New York University, Stony Brook University, Columbia University, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center reported that the use of leaded glasses reduced radiation dose to the eye from a commercially available cone-beam CT system by 62% for a full field-of-view (FOV) scan and 38% for a collimated scan (Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology, and Endodontology, October 2011, Vol. 112:4, pp. 502-507).

Significant reduction in dental cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) eye dose through the use of leaded glasses

Objective

In light of the increased recognition of the potential for lens opacification after low-dose radiation exposures, we investigated the effect of leaded eyeglasses worn during dental cone-beam computerized tomography (CBCT) procedures on the radiation absorbed dose to the eye and suggest simple methods to reduce risk of radiation cataract development.

Study design

Dose measurements were conducted with the use of 3 anthropomorphic phantoms: male (Alderson radiation therapy phantom), female (CIRS), and juvenile male (CIRS). All exposures were performed on the same dental CBCT machine (Imtec, Ardmore, OK) using 2 different scanning techniques but with identical machine parameters (120 kVp, 3.8 mA, 7.8 s). Scans were performed with and without leaded glasses and repeated 3 times. All measurements were recorded using calibrated thermoluminescent dosimeters and optical luminescent dosimetry.

Results

Leaded glasses worn by adult and pediatric patients during CBCT scans may reduce radiation dose to the lens of the eye by as much as 67% (from 0.135 ± 0.004 mGy to 0.044 ± 0.002 mGy in pediatric patients).

Conclusions

Leaded glasses do not appear to have a deleterious effect on the image quality in the area of clinical significance for dental imaging.

Is Oral Sex to Blame for the Surge in Cancer of the Mouth and Throat?

Earlier this month, the American Cancer Society (ACS) released its annual Cancer Facts & Figures. The 2012 report includes some encouraging facts. Since 1990, the incidence of some common tumors including lung, colon, and prostate cancer has declined. Meanwhile, the rate of seven malignancies, like those of the lower mouth and throat linked to human papillomavirus (HPV), is increasing. The cause of this trend, which many assume is linked to people engaging in more oral sex, is not as straightforward as you might think.

Oropharyngeal cancers refer to tumors of the tonsils and rear tongue, back of the palate and posterior walls of the throat. Like their anatomical neighbors -- malignancies of the larynx, vocal cords, anterior and mid-tongue, other parts of the mouth and lips -- oropharyngeal cancers arise more often in people who drink and smoke heavily. These other head and neck cancers have waned in recent years, probably because North Americans are smoking fewer cigarettes and chewing less tobacco.

Dentist admits using PAPER CLIPS in root canal procedure

For some, going to the dentist is already an anxiety-inducing matter, but an appointment with this guy could have brought on potential health risks.

Michael Clair, 53, pleaded guilty Friday to a slew of accusations stemming from his substandard dental practice in Fall River, Massachusetts.

Among the charges are illegally prescribing prescription drugs, assault and battery, witness intimidation and conning Medicaid out of $130,000.

In addition, Clair is accused of trying to save a few bucks by using a paper clip instead of a stainless steel bar for a root canal procedure.

Using anything other than stainless steel puts patients at risk of pain and even infection.

Mass. AG: Dentist used paper clips in root canals: MyFoxBOSTON.com

Enjoy your morning!

Aspen Dental to Sponsor Ryan Newman's Chevrolet for NASCAR

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 20:22:00 +0000

This dental corporation, Aspen Dental, is going for marketing in a very large way.

Aspen Dental, one of the largest and fastest-growing networks of dental-care providers in the United States, has reached a multiyear agreement with Stewart-Haas Racing, the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team co-owned by three-time and reigning series champion Tony Stewart.

The company will be the primary sponsor of the No. 39 team with driver Ryan Newman at the July Sprint Cup race at Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway and the September event at New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. When not serving as primary sponsor, Aspen Dental will be an associate sponsor with placement on the lower-rear quarter panel of the No. 39 Chevrolet Impala and on the upper chest of Newman's uniform. The company also secured rights to utilize Stewart for promotions.

I don't know if seeing a sponsored patch or decal on a NASCAR race car will really spur someone going to the dentist. But, obviously, somebody likes to brand their company in this way.

We have come a long way from when I began practice and the dental society measured the height of the letters of your name on the front dental office window.

The Morning Drill: January 23, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:48:00 +0000

Good Monday Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Dentists Overuse Antibiotics in Children

A survey has suggested that most dentists tend to overprescribe antibiotics in children, researchers report in an article published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Dental Association.

The study, in which 154 North Carolina dentists indicated how they would treat hypothetical cases, found that adherence to professional prescribing guidelines ranged from 10% to 42%.

"I was surprised at how low it was, frankly," the article's corresponding author, Jessica Y. Lee, DDS, MPH, told Medscape Medical News.

The dentists tended to prescribe antibiotics when the guidelines say they are not needed, said Dr. Lee, an associate professor of pediatric dentistry at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

"What can go wrong is that we can develop antibiotic-resistant organisms," she warned. "And people can have an allergic reaction that can be pretty severe."

US dentists write between 200 million and 300 million antibiotic prescriptions each year, accounting for about 10% of all such prescriptions in the United States, Dr. Lee and colleagues write.

To understand how well these drugs are being used, the researchers wrote a set of scenarios describing patients and their symptoms and asking under what circumstances the respondents would prescribe antibiotics.

Of the almost 300 dentists to whom the surveys were sent, 154 dentists responded, of whom 48 (31%) were pediatric dentists and 106 (69%) were general dentists.

By Eighth Grade, Sunscreen Use Halves, Tanning Rises

Between the fifth and eighth grades, children learn to love a tan, and sunscreen use plummets, despite growing evidence of a link between childhood sunburn and adult melanoma, according to results from a survey of 1 group of children, published in the February issue of Pediatrics.

Stephen W. Dusza, DrPH, from the Department of Medicine, Dermatology Service, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York City, and colleagues surveyed 360 Framingham, Massachusetts, fifth graders about tanning attitudes and behaviors in 2004, and surveyed them again in 2007 as eighth graders.

In surveys issued 1 month after returning from summer break, children did not report significantly more sunburns the summer before eighth grade than they did 3 years earlier (55% among eighth graders compared with 53% among fifth graders; P = .79), but both boys and girls reported a growing preference for tans in eighth grade (67% to 34%; P < .001) and for dedicating time to tanning (40% of eighth graders compared with 22% of fifth graders; P < .001). Strikingly, sunscreen use fell by half. As fifth graders, 50% of students reported they "often or always" used sunscreen when outdoors 6 hours or more compared with 25% of eighth graders.

"We have identified a crucial period in periadolescence in which students increase time spent in the sun to get a tan and strengthen tan-promoting attitudes," the authors write.

"With at least 50% of children experiencing sunburns before age 11 and again 3 years later, targeting children in pediatric offices and community settings regarding unprotected [ultraviolet] exposure may be a practical approach," they write.
The American Academy of Dermatology says melanoma is the most common form of cancer in young adults (aged 25 - 29 years), and the second most common cancer in those aged 15 to 29 years.

Sex is safe for most heart patients, doctors say

If you've recently had a heart attack or heart surgery, you might be concerned that revving up your pulse during a moment of passion could be dangerous. Rest assured: Resuming sexual activity is perfectly safe for most heart patients, according to new guidelines from the American Heart Association (AHA).

Certain patients, such as those with severe heart disease who have symptoms while at rest, should put off sex until their condition has stabilized. But if you can walk briskly or climb two flights of stairs without experiencing chest pain, abnormal heart rhythms, or shortness of breath, you're almost certainly ready to start having sex again, the guidelines say.

The authors stress, however, that all heart patients should check with their doctor before resuming their sex life. Just as important, the guidelines encourage patients -- and their partners -- to discuss any feelings of sex-related anxiety or depression with a health professional.

Nanocrystals Make Dentures Shine

The hardest substance in the human body is moved by its strongest muscles: When we heartily bite into an apple or a hotdog, enormous strengths are working on the surface of our teeth.

"What the natural tooth enamel has to endure also goes for dentures, inlays or bridges," glass chemist Prof. Dr. Christian Rüssel of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (Germany) says. After all, these are worn as much as healthy teeth. Ceramic materials used so far are not very suitable for bridges, as their strengths are mostly not high enough. Now Prof. Rüssel and his colleagues of the Otto-Schott-Institute for Glass Chemistry succeeded in producing a new kind of glass ceramic with a nanocrystalline structure, which seems to be well suited to be used in dentistry due to their high strength and its optical characteristics. The glass chemists of Jena University recently published their research results in the online-edition of the science magazine Journal of Biomedical Materials Research.

Enjoy your morning!

The Morning Drill: January 19, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:04:00 +0000

Good Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Center City dentist charged in $5 million insurance fraud

A Center City dentist and his daughter have been charged with billing insurance companies for almost $5 million in fraudulent medical bills through the pain management clinic they operate together.

Owen Rogal, 71, who has been living and working in Center City for decades, runs the Pain Center at 12th and Lombard Streets. His 50-year-old daughter, Kim Rogal, of Delaware, works there as an office manager.

Since mid-2002, District Attorney Seth Williams said Wednesday, the Rogals have repeatedly billed 15 insurance companies $4,800 for a procedure that costs $800 at the most. The Rogals also characterized the routine, low-risk procedure as a delicate form of brain surgery, authorities said.

"This is a case that only happened because of greed," Williams said. "They didn't need to do what they were doing. He could have continued making a more comfortable living than probably 90 percent of all Americans, as a dentist. He saw this as an opportunity, and he took it."

Authorities believe the Rogals pocketed more than $1 million of the $5 million they billed in the scheme. They each face up to 317 years in prison and a fine of $613,000.

Water Pik celebrates 50 years of innovation in Fort Collins

If you showered this morning or brushed your teeth, you may have used a product developed in Fort Collins.

For 50 years, Water Pik has been manufacturing products that have eased the burden for kids wearing braces, rinsed the day's grime from our bodies, pulsated away pain and even given comfort to a newly released American hostage.

Still, some Fort Collins residents may not even know it's here.

Housed in a nondescript, white cinder block building at Riverside Avenue and Prospect Road, there's nothing showy or flashy about Water Pik's corporate headquarters.

And that's just the way Water Pik's President and CEO Richard Bisson likes it.

"That's been my strategy ... to be a stealth operator. The landscape in which we play, selling consumer products to the masses primarily in North America, is extremely competitive," he said.

Study: Indoor Tanning Linked With Early Onset of Skin Cancer

Given that indoor tanning beds were officially classified as a human carcinogen in 2009 -- up there with cigarettes and asbestos -- it should be fairly obvious that frequent tanning-booth exposure would increase your risk of skin cancer.

Indeed, the evidence linking indoor tanning with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma, one of the more common forms of the disease, is "convincing," according to the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer. But the research concerning tanning beds and basal cell carcinoma, the third and most frequent major type of skin cancer -- which accounts for some 80% of all skin cancer cases in the U.S. -- has thus far been inconsistent.

Basal cell carcinoma, a slow-growing cancer, has traditionally been a disease of middle age. But it's been appearing with increasing frequency in people under 40, especially in women -- a demographic that also happens to like indoor tanning -- suggesting a link. So researchers at the Yale School of Public Health sought to study the association.

The study included 376 people under 40, who had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma between 2006 and 2010. They were matched with a control group of 390 dermatology patients who were diagnosed with minor skin conditions like cysts and warts. All participants had skin biopsies, and all were drawn from a Yale University database.

Fitness studios stream classes online

It's miserable outside. The whole world is a depressing gray color that just makes you want to lie on the couch and watch reruns of "Sex and the City."

You don't have time to pack your gym bag, drop off the kids, drive to the fitness studio, shower and change, pick up the kids and get back home before dinner.

Plus, you're really tired of floor mats that reek and that woman in the back row who always steps left instead of right, effectively knocking you down on your out-of-shape gluteus maximus.

Whatever your reason is for not wanting to hit the gym, Kristin Knee of Flirty Girl Fitness understands.

"I don't even want to go to my own studio when it's raining," she said with a laugh.

That's why late last year, she and her sister, Kerry, launched Flirty Girl Fitness LIVE, a Web service that streams three or four of their franchise's group classes every day.

Enjoy your morning!

The Daily Extraction: January 18, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:20:00 +0000

Teeth #28 and #29 are to be extracted this visit

Dr. Murph uses the 301 straight elevator to remove these two lower premolars.

The pre-operative radiograph:

And, the video:

Enjoy your daily extraction!

FlapsBlog.Net: Stop Online Piracy Act in the House and the PROTECT IP Act in the Senate

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

Members of Congress - STOP It!

Can Licorice Fight Tooth Decay and Gum Disease?

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 14:11:00 +0000

Licorice Root
Photo Credit: brook a schneider

Surprisingly, the answer is YES, according to a new study.

Scientists are reporting identification of two substances in licorice -- used extensively in Chinese traditional medicine -- that kill the major bacteria responsible for tooth decay and gum disease, the leading causes of tooth loss in children and adults. In a study in ACS' Journal of Natural Products, they say that these substances could have a role in treating and preventing tooth decay and gum disease.

This calls for more investigation, especially since licorice root can cause some problems e.g. interaction with some prescription drugs. Moreover, we are not talking licorice candy here.

But, the mechanism of action should be explored.

The Morning Drill: January 12, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:48:00 +0000

Good Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

New toothpaste substitutes cocoa extract for fluoride

A New Orleans start-up has developed a toothpaste that uses a naturally occurring compound found in cocoa instead of fluoride to help strengthen teeth.

Theodent relies on Rennou, a proprietary blend of a cocoa extract and other minerals that work together to strengthen teeth. The extract is a white crystalline powder with a chemical makeup similar to caffeine, according to Arman Sadeghpour, PhD, Theodent president and CEO.

"Theodent is more effective at strengthening enamel than fluoride," he said in an interview with DrBicuspid.com. "More and more people are shying away from fluoride due to concerns about toxicity."

Theodent Classic ($9.99) hit store shelves at Whole Foods Markets last week. Theodent 300, an extra-strength and luxury version ($99.99) for supersensitive teeth, will be marketed to select cosmetic dentists and medical professionals, according to the company.

Indianapolis dentist faces Medicaid fraud charges

An Indianapolis dentist faces Medicaid fraud charges for allegedly billing the state for unnecessary dental work.

Arnel J. Gallanosa was charged Wednesday with 10 counts of Medicaid fraud, five counts of theft and three counts of conspiracy to commit Medicaid fraud. He declined to comment on the allegations.

A court affidavit alleges Gallanosa offered patients money for accepting free dental work, then billed Indiana's Medicaid program.

In one instance, Gallanosa allegedly paid a man who recruited three dental patients from an Indianapolis mental health facility. Prosecutors say the same day he removed 33 teeth from the three patients.

Marijuana Smoke Not as Damaging to Lungs as Cigarette Smoke, Study Suggests

Using marijuana carries legal risks, but the consequences of occasionally lighting up do not include long-term loss of lung function, according to a new study in the Jan. 11, 2012, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. In 2009, 16.7 million Americans ages 12 and older reported using marijuana at least once in the month prior to being surveyed. In addition, since 1996, 16 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized the medical use of marijuana to help manage the symptoms of many diseases, including cancer, AIDS and glaucoma.

"With marijuana use increasing and large numbers of people who have been and continue to be exposed, knowing whether it causes lasting damage to lung function is important for public-health messaging and medical use of marijuana," says the study's senior author, University of Alabama at Birmingham associate professor Stefan Kertesz, M.D.

Kertesz, of the UAB Division of Preventive Medicine and the Center for Surgical, Medical and Acute Care Research and Transitions at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Birmingham, says it's long been known that marijuana smoke has many irritant chemicals found in tobacco smoke and can cause lung irritation, wheezing and cough immediately after use; however, the research on long-term effects on lung function have inconsistencies.

Orange Juice Prices Are Climbing Because of a Contamination Fear

Orange juice concentrate futures are shooting up right now, thanks to news that traces of a fungicide banned in the United States was detected in juice from a brand the FDA didn't name. The Journal reports, "January-delivery orange juice on ICE Futures U.S. surged 9.3 percent to $2.12 per pound, the highest price since November 1977," which if we recall correctly from Trading Places, means someone should check on the Duke brothers. The chemical at the center of the orange juice price spike, called carbendazim, is used in Brazil, which exports to the United States, and while the amount found in the juice is miniscule at 35 parts per billion, news that the FDA would increase its testing sparked a market rally that has pushed up the price of orange juice concentrate to its highest level in more than 34 years.

Enjoy your morning!

The Morning Drill: January 11, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 15:40:00 +0000

I am back from a family funeral in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

So, let's go to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Road rage dentist breaks OAP's cheekbone and knocks out his teeth

A road rage dentist who knocked out a pensioner's teeth and broke his cheekbone with a single blow has been banned from the profession for a second year.

Shaun Edwards, 46, was spared jail after he admitted the 'appalling and terrifying' attack on 67-year-old Albert Finney.

The former Army major leapt out of his black BMW and issued his victim with the chilling warning: 'If you knew who I am, you wouldn't tangle with me.'

Edwards, who at the time was running the Sneyd Dental Practice in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, was handed a four-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, when he appeared in court.

He was suspended for 12 months in January 2011 after a General Dental Council committee ruled his fitness to practise was impaired by reason of his conviction.

After the case was reviewed one year on, the GDC committee decided Edwards' suspension should continue.

Annandale Man Pleads Guilty to Health Care Fraud - Tuan Vu, 43, owns a dentist practice in Alexandria

Tuan Vu, 43, of Annandale, plead guilty on Tuesday to committing health care fraud at his dentist practice in Alexandria.

Vu, who owns Cosmetic & Family Dentistry, PLLC, was charged by criminal information with health care fraud for “fraudulently billing insurance providers hundreds of thousands of dollars for dental services that he did not provide to his patients,” according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Hulk Hogan Gets Surgery My Dentist Left a Tack ... In My Face!

Hulk Hogan's mouth is seriously messed up, after a dentist accidentally ripped out 50 stitches from his mouth.

Hulk tells TMZ ... in October he went in for dental surgery to get implants. The doctor performed a sinus graft -- placing a donor bone in the mouth to support the implant. Hulk then went to a cosmetic surgeon to begin the implant process. When the doc removed the mold in Hulk's mouth, it ripped out around 50 stitches from the donor bone procedure.

Hulk says he's been dealing with the problem ever since ... his mouth became infected and the antibiotics just weren't doing the trick.

So recently Hulk had a CAT scan, which revealed -- get this -- that one of the doctors left a metal tack in his mouth.

1-800-DENTIST Chooses SiteSpect to Amp up Web Optimization Efforts with Non-intrusive Multivariate Testing and Behavioral Targeting

SiteSpect, Inc., the leading provider of non-intrusive optimization solutions, today announced that 1-800-DENTIST, the largest dental-patient matching service in the United States, has selected SiteSpect as its multivariate testing and behavioral targeting platform.

Used by more than 6.5 million people every year, 1-800-Dentist serves all 50 states and has been consistently ranked as one of the nation’s top brands by BRANDWEEK. The company plans to leverage SiteSpect’s multivariate testing and behavioral targeting to provide deep statistical data on every component of its web site in order to provide customers with a better site experience and increase conversions.

“1-800-DENTIST has been helping people find the right dentist since 1986. In recent years, we’ve greatly expanded our online presence to match how today’s consumer wants to interact with us,” said Michael Turner, President of 1-800-DENTIST. “That’s why we turned to SiteSpect. Their record of success in helping increase the effectiveness of B2C websites through rigorous testing and improvement programs is impressive. The fact that SiteSpect offers a unique, non-intrusive approach to testing was an important factor in our decision.”

Enjoy your morning!

The Morning Drill: January 3, 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:21:00 +0000

Happy New Year!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines for the start of the new year:

Lots of Exercise May Boost Kids' Grades

A Dutch review of prior research reveals that the more physically active school-aged children are, the better they fare in the classroom.

Most of the studies in the review had been conducted in the United States, while one came out of Canada and the other out of South Africa.

The findings are published in the January issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

"We found strong evidence of a significant positive relationship between physical activity and academic performance," the researchers, led by Amika Singh of the Vrije Universiteit University Medical Center at the EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, said in a journal news release.

"The findings of one high-quality intervention study and one high-quality observational study suggest that being more physically active is positively related to improved academic performance in children," the authors noted.

New study reveals how bacteria fight fluoride

Researchers from Yale University have uncovered the molecular "tricks" used by bacteria to fight the effects of fluoride (Science, December 22, 2011).

The researchers found that sections of RNA messages called riboswitches -- which control the expression of genes -- detect the buildup of fluoride and activate the defenses of bacteria, including those that contribute to tooth decay.

"These riboswitches are detectors made specifically to see fluoride," stated senior study author Ronald Breaker, PhD, chair of the department of molecular, cellular, and developmental biology, in a press release.

Bird flu virus doesn't jump between humans: China

The latest bird flu virus that killed a 39-year-old bus driver in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen over the weekend is not yet transmissible between humans, Chinese health authorities said.

"The virus found in the patient was 90 percent similar to H5N1 viruses previously isolated in ducks in China, which suggested that the man was very likely to have been infected through direct contact with a bird," the Shenzhen Center for Disease Prevention and Control said in a statement.

"It is still not transmissible between people," it said, adding that the bus driver was probably infected through direct contact with birds.

The Health-Law Provisions Being Implemented in 2012

The future of the health-care overhaul law hinges on a decision by the Supreme Court in 2012; the court will hear a case challenging the law’s constitutionality over three days starting March 26, with a decision expected by the end of June. Meantime, though, more provisions of the law are due to be implemented next year. The Kaiser Family Foundation counts 10 such provisions, eight of which it says are in progress already.

The major provisions of the law, however, including the controversial individual mandate to purchase coverage and requirement that insurers accept all comers, don’t take effect until 2014 — if the law isn’t struck down or repealed. Here’s the Obama Administration’s timeline for the implementation of the law.

Enjoy your morning!

Happy New Year - 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 20:06:00 +0000

I wish everyone a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

Many thanks for reading!

California Dentist Arrested for Providing Drugs and Alcohol to Minors

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 21:50:00 +0000

It wasn't Dr. Lavonne Sawyer's first brush with the law regarding drugs and it wasn't just marijuana and alcohol.

A San Joaquin County dentist who was arrested on drug charges in 2008 is once again in trouble with the law.

Lavonne Sawyer, 53, was arrested in her Lodi home after police received a call about alleged drug activity there.

"When officers arrived, they found a half dozen teenagers under the influence of drugs and alcohol and Ms. Sawyer was home," said Officer Misty Springmeyer with the Lodi Police Department.

Police say Sawyer claimed to not be aware of the drugs in her home.

"She said she could not smell the marijuana because her nose was stuffed," Springmeyer said.

Sounds like a suspended dental license, rehab and many years of probation, if this dentist is ever to practice again.

Hope she gets some help, but she obviously should not be practicing dentistry.

Teeth and Gums: The Gateway to Your Body and Health

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 23:22:00 +0000

This is a good video from the Wall Street Journal on why dentists will play a larger role in everyone's health.

The eyes may be the window to the soul, but the mouth provides an even better view of the body as a whole.

Some of the earliest signs of diabetes, cancer, pregnancy, immune disorders, hormone imbalances and drug issues show up in the gums, teeth and tongue—sometimes long before a patient knows anything is wrong.
There's also growing evidence that oral health problems, particularly gum disease, can harm a patient's general health as well, raising the risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, pneumonia and pregnancy complications.

"We have lots of data showing a direct correlation between inflammation in the mouth and inflammation in the body," says Anthony Iacopino, director of the International Centre for Oral-Systemic Health, which opened at the University of Manitoba Faculty of Dentistry in Canada in 2008. Recent studies also show that treating gum disease improves circulation, reduces inflammation and can even reduce the need for insulin in people with diabetes.

More work for dentists = I like that prospect!

Merry Christmas 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 01:05:00 +0000

Wishing you and your family the happiest of the holiday season.

The Social Media Persecution of Dr. Edward Dove Continues

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 23:21:00 +0000

You remember the Flap?

And, on it goes with an online petition to pressure the California Dental Board to revoke Dr. Dove's dental license.

Well, this father, Chris Cook knows how to work the social media, but the California Dental Board does not work in this way. Then, there is the California Attorney General and an Administrative Law Judge whose findings are all subject to appeal in the regular court system.

I have a feeling this "bad blood" will be continuing for a while.

The Morning Drill: December 21, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 16:59:00 +0000

Good Morning!

As most dental practices are in the process of closing for the holidays, I wish to take this opportunity to wiish the very best of the season to everyone and a happy new year.

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Dentist accused of groping KOP mall employees

An itinerant dentist accused of groping two women employees at King of Prussia Mall stores waived his preliminary hearing Thursday.

Vasanth Dharmaraj, 33, a former Upper Merion resident who relocated to Connecticut, is charged with indecent assault, harassment and disorderly conduct, according to court papers

When Dharmaraja lived in the Philadelphia region, he practiced dentistry in a variety of Pennsylvania cities and towns including Philadelphia, Gilbertsville, Phoenixville, York, Reading, Harrisburg and Temple, according to the Upper Merion police’s Detective Division.

The defendant is free on $25,000 unsecured bail. An arraignment is scheduled in Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas on Feb. 1 at 9:30 a.m.

FTC: Dental Board Cannot Order Nondentists to Stop Whitening

The North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners cannot order nondentists to stop whitening teeth, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has ruled.

The December 2 ruling could have implications for tooth whitening by nondentists in other states, and for the scope of dental boards in general.

The North Carolina board plans to appeal, board attorney Noel Allen told Medscape Medical News. "It's a very unique and radical position that the FTC is taking," said Allen. "It runs contrary to the way states protect their citizens."

At the heart of the case is a question about whether the board is acting more as an arm of the state government, enforcing the law, or as a trade association, to benefit its members.

“Painless” Plasma Brush Is Becoming Reality In Dentistry, MU Engineers Say

University of Missouri engineers and their research collaborators at Nanova, Inc. are one step closer to a painless way to replace fillings. After favorable results in the lab, human clinical trials are underway on the “plasma brush.”

In less than 30 seconds, the plasma brush uses chemical reactions to disinfect and clean out cavities for fillings. In addition to the bacteria-killing properties, the “cool flame” from the plasma brush forms a better bond for cavity fillings. The chemical reactions involved with the plasma brush actually change the surface of the tooth, which allows for a strong and robust bonding with the filling material.

“There have been no side effects reported during the lab trials, and we expect the human trials to help us improve the prototype,” said Qingsong Yu, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering of MU, and Meng Chen, chief scientist from Nanova, Inc., which holds a co-patent for the plasma brush with MU.

“200 million tooth restorations cost Americans an estimated $50 billion a year, and it is estimated that replacement fillings comprise 75 percent of a dentist’s work. The plasma brush would help reduce those costs,” said Hao Li, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering in the MU College of Engineering. “In addition, a tooth can only support two or three restorations before it must be pulled. Our studies indicate that fillings are 60 percent stronger with the plasma brush, which would increase the filling lifespan. This would be a big benefit to the patient, as well as dentists and insurance companies.”

U.S. bill would create grant program for dental charities

A bill introduced to the U.S. Congress in November would make it easier for charitable programs such as Donated Dental Services (DDS) to provide necessary dental care to low-income children and adults with serious medical conditions.

S.1878, the "Coordination of Pro-Bono Medically Recommended Dental Care Act," was introduced November 16 by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ). The bill would create a grant program that will support national dental programs such as DDS to coordinate medically recommended dental care for these patients.

The care would be provided by volunteer dentists at no cost to patients with medical conditions such as diabetes, cancer, autoimmune disease, and kidney disease or who need heart or joint replacements or transplants.

Enjoy your morning!

The Morning Drill: December 20, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:09:00 +0000

Good Morning!

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Lack of dental care costing Australia $1.3B annually

Millions of Australians are financially locked out of the country's dental health system, undermining their ability to gain and keep employment and costing the economy more than $1 billion annually, according to a report released December 8 by the advocacy group Brotherhood of St. Laurence.

The Brotherhood of St. Laurence was established in the 1930s to eliminate poverty in Australia.

The report analyzed existing data to estimate the disease burden of untreated dental conditions and the resulting economic burden. The report's authors, Jeff Richardson, PhD, a professor of economics and the foundation director of the Centre for Health Economics at Monash University and Bronwyn Richardson from Campbell Research and Consulting, found that the direct and indirect costs to the economy are significant.

Dentist who helped pimps wants to work again

Onetime Chicago dentist Gary Kimmel went to prison in 2009 after he admitted he aided pimps in a prostitution trafficking ring.

The aid included providing space in Marina Towers for paid sex acts to happen, buying luxury cars for pimps in his name and keeping his office open late to fix the teeth of battered prostitutes.

In one case, Kimmel fixed a prostitute’s teeth for free in exchange for her performing sex acts for his friend, according to prosecutors.

That was back when Kimmel, affectionately referred to as “Doc” by those who know him, ran a popular and successful dental practice at 233 E. Erie.

In an emergency bid at the time of his indictment, the state stripped Kimmel of his ability to practice dentistry. He was sentenced to 37 months in 2009.

Now, Kimmel is already out of prison.

And despite his felony conviction, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned he is ready to practice dentistry again — and eligible to renew his license.

In early December in federal court, Judge Blanche Manning granted an early end to his court supervision, shaving off one year. That cleared the first major legal hurdle to restoring his license.

“We hope to have him back working as a dentist in no time,” his lawyer, Joseph Lopez said.

Vitamin D and Calcium Supplementation Reduces Fracture Risk

Combined supplementation with vitamin D and calcium can reduce the risk for fracture, according to the findings of a meta-analysis.

Mei Chung, PhD, MPH, from Tufts Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues published their findings in the December 20 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

The authors mention that active forms of vitamin D participate in a number of biological processes in addition to their indirect effects on bone mineralization. "For example, as recently noted, 1,25-(OH)2D inhibits parathyroid hormone secretion and promotes insulin secretion, inhibits adaptive immunity and promotes innate immunity, and inhibits proliferation and stimulates differentiation of cells," the authors write. "These functions suggest a possible role of vitamin D in cancer prevention."

Oral Bacteria Enables Breaking Bond On Blood Vessels to Allow Invaders in

A common oral bacteria, Fusobacterium nucleatum, acts like a key to open a door in human blood vessels and leads the way for it and other bacteria like Escherichia coli to invade the body through the blood and make people sick, according to dental researchers at Case Western Reserve University.

Yiping Han, professor of periodontics at the Case Western Reserve School of Dental Medicine, made the discovery in her continued work with the Fusobacterium nucleatum bacterium, one of the most prevalent of the more than 700 bacteria in the mouth.

She found the gram-negative anaerobe has a novel adhesin or bonding agent she's named FadA that triggers a cascade of signals that break the junctures in an interlocking sheath of endothelial cells on blood vessel's surface just enough to allow F. nucleatum and other bacteria into the blood.

A description of bond-breaking process was described in the Molecular Microbiology article, "Fusobacterium nucleatum adhesin FadA binds vascular endothelial cadherin and alters endothelial integrity."

Enjoy your morning!

The Afternoon Drill: December 19, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:31:00 +0000

Venice Beach, California

Good afternoon.

I had some errands to run this morning, including some last minute Christmas mailings, so the Morning Drill is now in the afternoon.

On to today's dentistry and health headlines:

Maine dental board votes to restrict IPDHs in pilot project

Despite opposition from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the governor of Maine, the Maine Board of Dental Examiners voted today to restrict what x-rays independent practice dental hygienists (IPDHs) can take during an upcoming pilot project.

In June 2011, Maine passed LD 230, directing the board to implement a two-year pilot project that expands the scope of practice of IPDHs to allow them to take x-rays in underserved areas without the presence of a dentist. The board was also directed to develop rules for the pilot project.

As written, the board's proposed rules allow IPDHs to take only bitewing and periapical x-rays without a dentist present and prohibit them from taking other types of x-rays.

Last month the FTC told the board that the proposed rules were too restrictive and could undermine the project's purpose.

Supreme Court sets Obama healthcare arguments

Oral arguments on President Barack Obama's sweeping U.S. healthcare overhaul will last 5-1/2 hours spread over three days from March 26-28, the Supreme Court said on Monday.

The Supreme Court last month agreed to hear the 5-1/2 hours of oral arguments, one of the lengthiest arguments in recent years. There have been similar marathon sessions in a handful of big cases dating back over the past 70 years.

New head for Ohio VA center that had dental issues

The new director of a southwest Ohio VA medical center that was rocked earlier this year by dental-clinic hygiene problems said Monday he plans more community outreach to build confidence and attract more veterans to its services.

Glenn Costie, the director at the John J. Pershing VA Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Mo., the last two-plus years, took over Monday at the Dayton Veterans Affairs Medical Center, which serves some 37,000 veterans. In a message to his new staff, he said he wants an environment that is "patient-centric, strives for perfection and is innovative."

He replaces William Montague, the former Cleveland VA director called out of retirement in March to serve as acting director in Dayton. The previous director was reassigned after an investigation found a clinic dentist wasn't regularly changing latex gloves or properly sterilizing equipment.

Some 535 veterans who had undergone invasive procedures in the clinic had their blood tested as a result. Hospital officials said three of the patients tested positive for hepatitis, which can cause liver damage, but they weren't certain how they contracted it.

Costie said he wants to make sure the region's veterans know they are can get high-quality, safe health care at the center. He will focus on "building trust with the community," he told The Associated Press.

Posting Calorie Information On Sugary Drinks Curbs Sales Among Teens

During our daily subway commute to and from Health Blog HQ, we’ve noticed posters telling us exactly how far we’d have to walk to work off various sugar-sweetened drinks.

Now a study just published online by the American Journal of Public Health makes us think that the NYC Department of Public Health, which is behind the posters, may be on to something.

Researchers wanted to know what would happen to sales of sugary drinks including soda, sport drinks and fruit drinks if they posted calorie information about those drinks on beverage cases at corner stores in Baltimore. They were also curious about whether the way that calorie information was presented would make a difference.

So they rotated three different signs through four different corner stores. One sign pointed out that a bottle of soda or fruit juice has about 250 calories. Another pointed out that such a drink has about 10% of a person’s daily calories. And another pointed out that working off a bottle of soda or fruit juice takes about 50 minutes of running.

The researchers collected data for about 1,600 beverage purchases by black teens — who are more likely to drink sugary beverages and to be obese — across the different information strategies and, for comparison, a baseline period.

Giving any type of calorie information lowered the likelihood of a sugary-drink purchase by about 40% compared to no signs at all, says Sara Bleich, an author of the study and an assistant professor of health policy at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The study also found that giving information about the physical activity equivalent lowered the likelihood of a sugary-drink purchase by about 50%.

Enjoy your afternoon and evening!

The Morning Drill: December 16, 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Flap) — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 14:48:00 +0000

Santa Monica, California looking towards Malibu

A Friday morning drill today even though most dentists take Fridays off.

The reason: I am on call for Jury Duty at the Ventura County Court on Monday.

On to today's dentistry and health headlines.

Should dentists offer health screenings?

Each year, nearly 20 million men, women and children in the United States fail to see a family physician or similar health care professional, but they do pay at least one visit to the dentist, according to a new study in the American Journal of Public Health.

For this segment of the population, dentists may be the only doctors in a position to spot the warning signs of chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, and provide referrals or advice to prevent serious complications, says Shiela M. Strauss, Ph.D., the lead author of the study and an associate professor at New York University's Colleges of Dentistry and Nursing.

Oral or dental abnormalities can signal a broad range of body-wide health problems, including HIV, sexually transmitted diseases, eating disorders, and substance abuse, in addition to diabetes. In a previous study, for instance, Strauss and her colleagues found that 93% of patients with gum disease (such as gingivitis) also met the criteria that should trigger blood-sugar screening under American Diabetes Association guidelines.

"I'm not advocating for dentists to become general health care providers," Strauss says. But, she adds, dentists can easily measure blood pressure and administer simple screening questionnaires - both of which could potentially make a big difference to the health of someone at risk for diabetes who hasn't seen a doctor recently.

In the new study, Strauss and her team analyzed data from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, a nationally representative government-sponsored survey of health care use. In 2008, the researchers found, roughly one-quarter of adults did not see a physician, nurse practitioner, or other general health care provider - but of that group, 23% did see a dentist. The pattern was similar among children.

Will Regrowing Your Teeth Replace Fillings?

For anyone who has ever lost a tooth—including the 25 percent of Americans over 65 who have lost all theirs due to decay or gum disease—it may be possible to get natural replacements someday, thanks to breakthroughs being made at the University of Illinois at Chicago. On the fourth floor of the school’s College of Dentistry, researchers are inducing lab rats to form new dentin to fill cavities in their choppers. It’s the first step toward the holy grail of dentistry: regrowing teeth. Eventually people may be able to get replacement teeth—even a whole set of 32—made of human dentin and enamel and attached to the jaw with human fibers (rather than the titanium posts used today).

To create those new teeth, researchers are attacking the problem layer by layer, attempting “to copy how nature has done it,” says Anne George, professor of oral biology at UIC. George and her ten-member team of students and scientists are focusing on ways to produce dentin, the part-mineral, part-protein material inside teeth that provides cushioning during chewing. They drill a hole in a rat’s tooth and fill the cavity with a protein that attracts cells that make dentin. “It’s best to get cells to do the work,” she says. “What we are trying to do is see what molecules will help us repair and make new dentin.” George predicts that within five to ten years people will be able to generate their own natural fillings.

More Floridians are taking their toothaches to the ER

More Floridians who go without routine dental care are resorting to hospital emergency rooms when the pain of tooth decay or infection becomes too terrible to bear, costing taxpayers and hospitals nearly $90 million last year.

In Southwest Florida, the cost of ER dental care amounted to more than $3.2 million in 2010.

Health experts said too few dentists accept Medicaid patients in Florida, where reimbursement rates are among the lowest in the nation.

The average ER charge of $770 per visit contrasts with an estimated $130 to cover a year’s worth of preventive oral care in childhood, said Frank Catalanotto, who chairs the Department of Community Dentistry at the University of Florida.

And in many cases, ER visits only result in treating the pain — not the underlying cause, resulting in a costly cycle of return visits.

Supreme Court Denies Petition for Review in California Dentist Suit Over Disclosure of Medical Records

The U.S. Supreme Court Dec. 12 said it will not review a California Supreme Court decision that held the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) does not preclude a lawsuit alleging a debt collector disclosed medical records in violation of a California medical information privacy statute (Mortensen v. Brown, U.S., No. 11-434, review denied).

The high court action leaves standing a June decision in which the California Supreme Court reinstated claims brought against Stewart Mortensen, d/b/a Credit Bureau Services, alleging he violated California's Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (CMIA), Cal. Civ. Code §56 et seq., in sending personally identifiable family dental records to credit reporting agencies (see previous article).

The state high court said the FCRA provisions impose obligations on debt collectors that furnish information to credit bureaus, but those provisions do not evince an intent by Congress to preempt state laws that impose additional health information privacy obligations on, or provide for additional remedies against, debt collectors.

The court noted that the Consumer Credit Reporting Reform Act of 1996, which amended FCRA to add provisions applicable to “furnishers,” was passed nearly contemporaneously with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. HIPAA, the state supreme court continued, expressly allowed for more stringent state law regulation of health information privacy.

Enjoy your morning!