Blind Woman Can sees everything because of her tooth
For 10 years, 61-year-old Kay Thornton was blind. She's the first American to give up a tooth for an eye. Doctors extracted her tooth, put it in her eye, and used the tooth to anchor a lens which gave her back her vision.
Dr. Victor Perez performed the unique surgery a year ago at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami. He told her she'd get her sight back, but she'd have to go to the dentist first.
Kay can once again drive the tractor on her farm in Mississippi, enjoy seeing her grandkids, and make sure she never misses a bingo game. This is all because of her tooth.
Insurance company also supporting this surgery now-
Initially, Kay received a letter from her insurance company that said they did not want to pay doctors fees because the surgery wasn't "medically necessary" and reasonable.
Now, the company has agreed to pay and is investigating why the claim was questioned in the first place.
This all happen because of a healthy oral condition & tooth she is having in her mouth. In old age we lose our teeth long before our sight so in many cases there is no tooth to do such surgeries. So keep your teeth intact & healthy.
In some condition tooth can be used to get the stem cells which then can be used to find cure for the medical condition the subject is suffering from or to regenerate some cells.
So don’t neglect your oral health. Visit your nearest dentist to find how is your oral health & how you can make it better for long time.
Digestion begins in Oral cavity. Carbohydrates get digested in Oral cavity with the help of enzymes present in saliva.
Oral cavity is just below the maxillary sinus. Sometimes long canine root apex is just touches it.
Oropharyngeal passage is common pathway for food & air.
Whole body developed from branchial arches & every organ is developed from group of tissue & tissues are made up of group of similar cells. In short everything in our body is interlinked & having a very delicate balance.
So in many diseases we can see the oral findings
For example
In Diabetes – Acetone breath is common finding with severe periodontal tissue destruction. Loosening of teeth.
Source- Oral health and diabetes - the important link - here
Many diseases show the Oral manifestation
Vitamin deficiency
Scurvy(Vitamin C deficiency) related to the periodontal tissue destruction, Vitamin D deficiency shows delayed tooth eruption.
Blood dyscrasias, metabolic disorders like protein energy malnutrition also shows the oral manifestation.
Following video is just a collection of such diseases & their oral implications- (please pause the video for reading the details.) here
Following things your teeth can say about your health & what to do when you find these symptoms-
·Hypertrophy of gingival (Gums Growing Over Teeth )
·Dry Mouth
·White Webbing Inside Cheeks
·Crusting Dentures
1)Flat, Worn Teeth, Headache shows that you are under big time stress, because bruxism -Crunching and grinding the teeth- at night during sleep is a common sign of emotional or psychological stress. the jaw may ache from the clenching.
Mouth guards used at night can relieve the symptoms and protect teeth. You can advice muscle relaxant But your stress is basic cause removing your stress will eliminate all problems
2) Cracking, Crumbling Teeth shows that Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) - The enamel becomes thin and almost translucent. Disintegrating teeth are usually caused by acid that's coming up from the stomach and dissolving them the term for this is-Perimolysis &The cause: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD, also called acid reflux disease). GERD causes stomach acid to back up into the esophagus.
Cracking or chipping teeth in a younger person is also a telltale sign of bulimia
eating disorder in which the sufferer causes herself (or himself) to vomit before digesting.
Solving the underlying cause is the only solution. Tooth become sensitive so desensitizing paste is just superficial treatment.
3) Sores That Won't Go Away may be the sign of oral cancer. Many people bite the insides of their mouth as a nervous habit. Others sometimes bite the gum accidentally, creating a sore. Suspicious oral ulcers tend to be raised sores and often have red or white (or red and white) borders. They may lurk underneath the tongue, where they're hard to see. Bleeding and numbness are other signs, but sometimes the only sign is a sore that doesn't seem to go away. A biopsy usually follows a visual check.
4) Gums Growing Over Teeth is a Sign of Medication problems. You are taking a medication for heart disease or seizures or you take drugs to suppress your immune system (such as before a transplant), these drugs are the reason of that unusual gingival hypertrophy. This overgrowth can make that area hard to brush and floss, inviting tooth decay and periodontal disease.
Surgical removal of such overgrowth is not the only treatment but doctor have to adjust the drug dose.
5)dry mouth is sign of sjogren’s syndrome, diabetes. Many things can cause dry mouth, from dehydration and allergies to smoking and new medications. (In fact, hundreds of drugs list dry mouth as a side effect, including those to treat depression and incontinence, muscle relaxants, antianxiety agents, and antihistamines.) But a lack of sufficient saliva is also an early warning of two autoimmune diseases unrelated to medicine use: Sjogren's syndrome and diabetes. Other signs of diabetes include excessive thirst, tingling in the hands and feet, frequent urination, blurred vision, and weight loss. In Sjogren's, the eyes are dry as well as the mouth, but the entire body is affected by the disorder. Because its symptoms mimic other diseases (such as diabetes), people are often misdiagnosed and go several years before being properly diagnosed.
6) White Webbing Inside Cheeks shows lichen planus or white patch leukoplakia or red patch erythroplakia. Another common area where a lichen planus rash may appear is the vagina. Lichen planus often goes away on its own, but sometimes treatment is necessary. The last thing you might expect to discover while brushing your teeth is a skin disease. Sometimes lichen planus is drug induced too.
7)Crusting Dentures- shows aspiration pneumonia- A leading cause of death in older people is aspiration pneumonia, often from inhaling debris around the teeth and dentures, dangerous (even fatal) inflammation. Too often, the problem stems from people in the care of others -- those in nursing homes, for example -- who fail to clean dentures properly. Dentures need to be removed daily from the mouth, cleaned with a special brush, and stored in a cleansing solution.
Oral Manifestation of systemic disease- Here is the original article- Link
98% of American Dentists and 91% of American Doctors Believe There Is Link Between Oral Health and Overall Health… (Source – here)
Our previous articles also highlighted this topic-
Dentist can help to Identify the patient at risk of heart attack part 1 & part 2
Cosmetic Dentistry notes on Oral Health & whole body Relation - here
This all article is just a try to show that oral cavity is a window of entire body health.
So as soon as you find any symptom or oral lesion or oral finding visit your dentist, because that smallest finding may be the early indication of some systemic disease. Regular interval visit to dental office will easily find such findings & further precautionary measures will be take place in time. So without any time wastage visit your nearest dental office.
[ A patient education article to encourage patient to visit dental office]
This Study is based on - MSH- melanocyte-stimulating hormone- MSH, could stimulate tooth growth. MSH mixed with a chemical called poly-L-glutamic acid to create a gel.
Still in a clinical trial mode. but a very promising step.
There are some similar articles-
Tooth regeneration gel soon replace painful fillings- here
reattach teeth using stem cells - new technique - here
“The 82-year-old retired PENSIONER John Giblin from Faversham awoke to find he'd grown a new tooth two months ago.
John, who used to pick hops in Faversham, moved from London to Somerville Close two years ago. He says it's now just a matter of waiting for an appointment to get the offending incisor removed.
John says he has no idea why he grew another tooth so late in life, and admits he didn't look after them when he was young.We wish John well and hope he receives a visit from the tooth fairy some time soon.”Source- Here& here
We know about the teeth that are present at the time of birth Natal teeth Or Errupt in first month after birth Neo natal teeth.
Definition:Teeth that are present at birth are natal teeth, and teeth that emerge through the gingiva during the first month of life areneonatal teeth.Source- here
But here in case of Mr. John Giblin from Faversham the tooth eruption is so late that we can say in age of being edentulous he is having eruption of incisor. this is either a case of delayed eruption or over Retentive incisor or may be a supernumerary malposed tooth. We are not confirmed what it is exactly.
If anyone having some more information please share
Study focusing on women show that Vitamin B veggies cut risk of mouth cancer
Women who consume high volumes of folic acid found in vitamin B from vegetables and some fruits are less likely to suffer from mouth cancer.
Women who drank a high volume of alcohol and had low folic acid intake were three times more likely to develop mouth cancer than those who drank high volumes of alcohol but had high volumes of folic acid in their diet.
This is the first time that folic acid intake has been shown to affect the risk of the disease.
Alcohol is one of the major risk factors for mouth cancer and those who drink to excess are four times more likely to be diagnosed.
Alcohol leads to a reduction in folic acid metabolism by creating acetaldehyde which leads to a reduction of folic acid in the body.
Folic acid or vitamin B9 is essential to an individual's health by helping to make and maintain new cells.
·Pregnant women are advised to supplement their intake of folic acid, to ensure a healthy development of the baby.
·Folic acid is found in vegetables such as spinach, asparagus, beans, peas and lentils and is added to bread.
·Fruit juices, broccoli and brussel sprouts contain smaller amounts.An unhealthy diet has been linked with around a third of mouth cancer cases.
Can you imagine Very beautiful & attractive smile but with very bad breath. How it feels? How many people’s would love to spend time with person who is known for his bad breath? How many times you try to go away from such person?But what if you are the person with bad breath? Did you noticed this peoples are actually trying to avoid person who is known for his bad breath? Is it affecting your social life? Yes, bad breath is a social problem.
Bad breath is also known as the Halitosis in dental office.
Why this bad breath happens?
Oral cavity contains various types of organisms & their colonization. Some of them survive inside the periodontium. Some organisms survive by forming plaque the biofilm (a conglomeration of bacteria) at the back of the tongue, teeth which is normal, but emits an odour of hydrogen sulphide that human noses are extremely sensitive to. That sensitivity is what makes bad breath a social issue.
Poor Oral hygiene commonly gives birth to bad breath. Poor periodontal & Dental health are another reasons.
For some people, bad breath is caused by a dry mouth, which may be a result of medications you are taking. Saliva, which contains oxygen, is critical for fresh breath. We produce less saliva, the older we get, so older people tend to have more bad breath than the young.
There is Halimeter that measures the concentration of bad breath causing sulphur compounds & Tells you how bad the halitosis problem is.
Some Health problems that can cause Halitosis-
1.A hiatus hernia,
2.serious lung infection,
3.stomach or liver issues,
4.Diabetes mellitus,
5.Carcinoma
6.Trimethylaminuria or
7.an inborn metabolic problem can also cause bad breath
Way to keep your breath clean & fresh.
·Drinking lots of water keeps the mouth hydrated, which keeps bad-breath-causing sulphur compounds at bay.
·Chewing sugarless gum stimulates the production of saliva while you’re chewing, but that stops when you stop chewing.
·Munching on apples, celery, cucumbers and carrots — natural cleansers — also helps detoxify breath.
·Maintain your Oral hygiene properly as per your dentist’s advice. Visit dental office on regular intervals.
For Best Oral Hygiene –
··Once a day flossing is necessary
··Twice a day brushing is mandatory. Clean your tongue properly each time youbrush.
··Massage your gums properly after each brushing.
··Irrigate & clean your mouth after each meal.
··Avoid sticky & refined food, use fibrous & vitamin rich food. ”mastication is mechanical cleansing of teeth”.
··Visit your dentist regularly or scheduled interval for oral prophylaxis.
What you have to do before visiting Dental office?
·First & very important thing is as soon as you are in need of dentist or services from dental office call them & fix your appointment & confirm it with date & exact time. In some dental offices you must be physically present to take an appointment, in such case, do it as per the rule.
·Visit dental office on given time. Remember time is precious.
·Always have a healthy snacks 1 hr before the visit. So if your treatment procedure prolongs then you don’t have to starve. Make sure that you don’t over eat.
·If you are under some medication. Tell your dentist about it & consult your general physician about the whole dental procedure.
·Bring all the previous dental records with you to the dental office. Also bring your recent medical records. Always mention your medical records in chronological order.
·If you are having some kind of drug allergy, drug history or medical history personally tell this to your dentist.
·If you are under age then bring a responsible person with you.
·Remember that dentist is there to help you & he is protecting your teeth & helping you to maintain good oral hygiene which is contributing to improve your overall personality. So never fear or get panic to visit your dentist. Visiting your dentist is necessary for your oral health & it shows good effect on your personality.
·What ever you are feeling tell it to your dentist. If you are having any kind of fear, discuss it with your dentist. Dentist is always there to help you & make sure your smile is healthy smile.
We dentistCare, Protect, restore& Enhance your beautiful smile & your Oral & Dental Health.
According to Armstrong, Malherbe and Ockerse study of Sound & Carious teeth composition –
No difference were found in calcium, phosphorous, magnesium and carbonate content of enamel But Significant differences in fluoride content of enamel is observed.
According to Malherbe and Ockerse study-
from sound teeth -Fluoride content of enamel is 410 ppm & dentin is 873 ppm.
In carious teeth – Fluride content of enamel is 139 ppm & dentin is 223 ppm.
Armstrong further stated that the enamel of sound teeth contained 0.0111 ± 0.0020 percent fluoridewhile that of carious teeth contained only 0.0069 ± 0.0011 per cent fluoride.
According to Brudevold & associate – Surface enamel is more resistant to caries than sub surface enamel. Surface enamel is more highly mineralized tends to accumulate greater quantities of fluoride, zinc, lead and iron than the underlying subsurface enamel. The surface enamel is lower in carbon dioxide, dissolves at a slow rate in acids, contains less water and has more organic material than subsurface enamel. These factors apparently contribute to caries resistance and partly responsible for slower disintegration of surface enamel than the underlying subsurface enamel in initial carious lesions.
Morphological characteristics of the Tooth
Enamel Hypoplasia predisposes to the development of dental caries. More sever the tooth affected more extensive will be the caries.
Morphologic features like presence of deep narrow occlusal fissures or buccal or lingual pits. Such fissures & pits tend to trap food, bacteria & debris.
Due to Morphologic chararacteristics the rate of caries progress may be influenced, But initiation of caries is affected very little.
Tooth Position
Teeth which are malaligned, out of position, rotated or otherwise not normally situated may be difficult to cleanse and tend to favor the accumulation of food & debris. In such cases thecaries prevalence is much more than the normal person.
The Saliva factor
Composition of saliva
The concentration of inorganic calcium & phosphorous in saliva is inversely proportional to rate of saliva flow. According to karshan report calcium & phosphorous content of saliva is low in caries active person.
Saliva of caries immune persons exhibit a greater ammonia content than saliva from person with caries.
In 1934 Grove & Grove reported that the ammonia nitrogen of saliva from caries Susceptibles ranged from none to 8.0mg/100ml. ; while ammonia nitrogen in saliva from the caries immune ranged from 4.0 to 10.0 mg/100ml.
pH of the saliva
it is much more debated topic some says there is no direct correlation but saliva pH can control the plaque pH which directly affects the bacterial growth in plaque. But it is a still debatable topic.
Quantity of saliva
Theoretically at least, influence caries incidence. This is evident in case of salivary gland aplasia where xerostomia like condition shows the lack of saliva with rampant caries.
Resting saliva- certain amount of saliva is constantly being secreted by salivary gland this constituted amount of saliva is known as resting saliva.
·Stimulated or Activated saliva also have an effect on caries prevalence.
·Rate of saliva flow is also a constituting factor in caries prevalence.
·Viscosity of saliva also affect the caries prevalence.
Antibacterial property of saliva
Van Kesteren and associates found that the saliva probably contains at least two antibacterial substances. One of which resembles lysozyme. the other being distinctly different.
Diet
Physical nature of diet- Soft refined food cling to the tooth surface if instead of soft food fibrous or hard substance are usedthen there is less chance of food clinging. Also the food which require more mastication is good for the oral health.
Carbohydrate content of the diet –Univesally accepted truth about tooth is carbohydrate rich diet is important factor in dental caries.
Vitamin content of the diet- Enamel hypoplasia is observed in vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin K have the enzyme inhibiting activity. So considered as a anticaries agent. Fluorine content of the diet is also the main contributing factor in patients.
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) is hypothetical basis proposed as an anticaries agent on hypothetical ground that it selectively alters the oral flora by promoting the growth of non cariogenic organisms which suppress the cariogenic forms.
Systemic factors
Heredity is the main systemic factor. In the conditions where tooth enamel or dentin shows hypomaturation or faulty matrix formation Like Amelogenesis imperfecta such teeth are more prone to dental caries. In some diseases of bone & joints like Osteogenesis imperfect teeth hypoplasia is observed such teeth are more prone to caries.
General Oral hygiene & hygiene maintenance
Important factor to control the caries.
For Best Oral Hygiene -
·Once a day flossing is necessary
·Twice a day brushing is mandatory.
·Massage your gums properly after each brushing.
·Irrigate & clean your mouth after each meal.
·Avoid sticky & refined food, use fibrous & vitamin rich food. ”mastication is mechanical cleansing of teeth”.
·Visit your dentist regularly or scheduled interval for oral prophylaxis.
I am writing & publishing this “Patient education” article just to give the patient a moral support & encouragement to visit dentist without any fear & patient must recognize emergency of the treatment so few common emergencies are explained in very simple language. But if you are having any kind of dental pain – please visit your nearest dental office.
Symptom- the acute pain while drinking cold water & while eating is the symptom.
can be treated successfully by palliative procedures. Normal dental tooth cavity preparation & cavity feeling with sedative cement base will bring the comfort. Very simple procedure completely relives the pain.
Acute irreversible pulpitis-
Symptom- persistent pain, pain while eating, drinking, Pain is irregular & mostly observed while drinking hot tea or coffee but pain is spontaneous & occurs while bending over & disturbs sleep.
It’s an endodontic emergency- where root canal therapy is required. Pulpectomy is another name for this procedure. This procedure requires some time because root canal cleaning & shaping is required so if possible then only it is done in single sitting, or if possible then regular interval short appointments are given. These appointments most times given with patients convenience. This procedure is done under local anaesthesia.
Where localized collection of pus in alveolar bone is observed some time the pulp of the concerned tooth is dead or some time tooth might remain vital
Endodontic treatment is carried out to give the comfort.
Acute periodontal abscess- tooth might be vital in such cases. But instant incision & drainage of pus is mandatory.
Avulsed tooth- when entire tooth comes out of socket this condition is known as tooth avulsion. This avulsed tooth must not be dried or washed with detergent & scrub. It must be stored in proper media like patients own saliva, Milk, Coconut oil & visit your dentist .
Remember this tooth is out of its socket & only your dentist can properly fix this tooth.
Fractures-
Maxillary or mandibullar fractures must be treated immediately.
Tooth fracture is another emergency which is divided in crown fracture & root fractures. If root fracture is vertical then prognosis will be poor.
These are the most common dental emergencies.
After the treatment all that pain you are suffering from will be vanished.
P.S.
This article is exclusively for a common man & this article is just for the benefit of the patient.
Please regularly visit your dentist to avoid dental emergencies- some emergencies like accidental fractures due to sports or adventurous activity will be avoided by using mouth guards & perfect head gears.
Some emergencies like abscess can be avoided by maintaining proper hygiene & practicing some brushing techniques & flossing regularly as per your dentists recommendation or prescription.
Some small caries can be avoided by the time when they are just started. This treatment done at initial stage gives you a benefit of healthy mouth & avoid that agony of pain.
Every dentist will be agree on this. Regular Flossing is the best way to maintain oral hygiene.
Once a daily is the necessary frequency for flossing.
As early as 1819, Levi Parmly wrote of dental floss, “ It is to be passed through the interstices of the teeth, between their necks and arches of the gums to dislodge that irritating matter which no brush can remove & which is the real source of disease.”
