Parking a Problem?

Many of you will have seen the piece about parking in the town centre in this week's Leamington version of the Courier and I have been quite staggered by the reaction. I believe Augusta Place is an excellent location for our dental centre as we are close to the enough to the centre of town to ensure that our patients to combine a visit to the dentist with a visit to the shops. One is probably more enjoyable than the other, and I am not a fan of shopping!

We are reliant on people being able to get into town ands we are fortunate to have on-street parking just outside the door, a street-level car park between Augusta Place and Bedford Street, as well as the St Peter's multi-storey car park at the end of the road. However, there have been discussions about the possible redevelopment of the street-level car park, but it is the recent decision to dramatically increase the car park charges that has really caused people to comment. In isolation the charges are probably not a barrier to people coming into town, but as part of "it all adds up", they simply increase the burden on everyone.

It will be interesting to see how our little campaign develops, but if we can ease an ever-increasing load on our patients just a little, then it has been a success.

Would You Tell A Friend?

Halitosis, or ‘oral malodour’ or simply ‘bad breath’ is a remarkably common condition and surveys indicate that it affects between 22% and 50% of the population worldwide – that is millions of people. Even so, it is the elephant in the room and no-one wants to talk about it, but it is the third most common reason for going to see a dentist, after tooth decay and gum disease. It does have a significant impact both personally and socially on those who suffer from it, or believe they suffer from it.

In the majority of cases (85-90%), the ‘bad breath’ originates from the mouth, partly a result of the presence of certain bacteria in the mouth and partly from their reaction with certain foodstuffs. The bacteria in the mouth have a role at the start of the digestive process, but on occasions these bacteria can react with certain foodstuffs to produce volatile sulphur compounds and it is these compounds that produce the characteristic odour. Often the malodour is worse in the morning as the saliva in the mouth dries out and the bacteria and proteins have longer to interact – remember only 53% of the population brush their teeth morning and night

The first stage of treatment is the most difficult and that is coming in to see the dentist and ask the question about halitosis. Once you are over that hurdle, treatment can be extremely simple; the first step is to minimise the amount of bacteria present, this may involve a professional cleaning with the dentist or hygienist to remove all of the calculus or tartar. Most importantly it is refining your tooth brushing technique to reach that gold standard; here electric toothbrushes are excellent as they usually have a built-in 2 minute timer to ensure the teeth are cleaned properly. For some people a simple tongue scraper is really good to minimise the reservoir of bacteria that are present on top of the tongue.

Mouthwashes are often advocated as a way of overcoming halitosis, but in reality most do little more that mask the smell and they are no substitute for brushing your teeth. However, there are now some new and exciting products emerging and CB12 works by actually neutralising and preventing the formation of the volatile sulphur compounds (VSCs).

The ingredients in CB12, zinc and chlorhexidine, eliminate VSCs from exhaled air, thus preventing bad breath. CB12 uses zinc acetate to neutralise and prevent the production of VSCs. Zinc ions bind to the VSCs, and in this way prevent and reduce bad breath. Zinc has a particular affinity for binding to hydrogen sulphide. Zinc ions in a solution interact with sulphur to form insoluble sulphides that do not smell.

Now you have got something to tell your friend.......

Useful Website:
www.cb12.co.uk

4 minutes a day

At the start of every year, a lot of resolutions are made and then rapidly broken. The majority of these resolutions will relate to improving the body image, so there is an increase in gym membership (although not attendance past January), adoption of the latest diet and attempts to cut back, or more ambitiously, eliminate smoking and alcohol. However, the simplest thing we can resolve to do and make the world a better place is just smile a bit more. We can all improve on our smile by brushing the teeth twice a day for two minutes each time – just 4 minutes a day.

I would like to think that this is ‘old news’ and everyone knows this, but surveys tell us that the average time spent brushing the teeth is just 40 seconds and only 52% of the population brush their teeth twice a day. I am now a fan of electric toothbrushes as they have a built in timer and you feel really guilty if don’t complete the full 2 minutes. I used to think that electric brushes were a bit of an indulgence but there is now evidence to suggest that everyone will brush their teeth more effectively with an electric brush as opposed to a manual brush. Everyone using the conventional manual brush will improve their brushing by timing their brushing and bringing in an egg timer into the bath room – just 4 minutes a day.

Enquiries about tooth whitening always increase in January and people are always keen to explore all the options. Traditionally the choices have been limited to home whitening with trays or surgery with the stronger whitening gel. Home whitening can be very effective as a gentle gel is applied to the teeth over a prolonged period of time. However, many patients don’t like the impressions, using the trays or the requirement for repeated applications. Surgery whitening uses a stronger gel and the appointments usually last about 90 minutes; however, even though the results can be unpredictable, it is not possible to use the stronger gel for prolonged applications because possible sensitivity problems.

We are now pleased to offer the new Wy10 Get2SmileTM ‘Laser’ Home Whitening Kit. The Get2Smile Kit is designed for patients who prefer to carry out whitening at a time and place best suited to them. This is an alternative to the tray system with a nice twist. It is a complete whitening solution that does not require taking impressions. It can be prescribed by a dentist straight after a consultation. It eliminates the need for impressions and a tray-fitting second appointment, saving dentists’ and patients’ time. It is simple to use and comes with clear instructions and illustrations. The Get2Smile is a lower power and simpler version of a chairside system – surgery whitening at home. A new whiter smile for the New Year.

Progress and Changes

We are fast approaching out first anniversary at Augusta Dental Centre and what a fantastic year it has been. However, the pursuit of excellence continues and we are going to introduce a couple of changes.

I am particularly pleased to welcome Dr Sheila Glaze to the practice, who is a trained, general and cosmetic dental surgeon, with over 20 year’s experience, Sheila is expert in the physiology of the head. As a consequence facial aesthetics has been a very natural professional progression. Over a number of years and following extensive training in Harley Street, she has been accredited and has undertaken many procedures including Botox, Restylane Perlane, Sculptra, Isolagen and Chemical Peels.

The second change will see the introduction of the Denplan Scheme to our practice. Denplan is an award winning payment plan specialist; it is a preventive programme, with a special emphasis on prevention through advice, therapy, counselling and regular attendance. Membership covers a range of options and plans, which are listed on our website (www.augustadental.co.uk). Denplan offers numerous advantages but one of the key features is the Supplemental Insurance that includes out of hours cover, 24 hour emergency helpline when away from home and worldwide emergency cover. I should stress that there has not been an increase in the fees and we now have a Membership option that includes the Supplemental Insurance from only £3.69.

As we approach our first anniversary, it would be easy to sit back and reflect on what we have achieved so far. I would rather continue to strive for excellence and look forward to what we can to improve our services. Roll on 2011.

A Whiter X Factor

I must confess that I am not a regular follower of the ups and downs of the X-Factor television programme, but I was fascinated to read that as the show enters the final stages, some of the contestants are rushing out to get their teeth whitened. Clearly a white, confident smile is an essential part of the all-important image package, but why is this the case? Image and how you see yourself in front of others is crucial to your self-confidence, which has to be paramount for any performer. You can’t go up on stage and try and hide your smile, as your smile is an essential way of expressing yourself, and how you feel, and you can’t perform without that emotion. At one extreme you have the at least one of the X Factor judges who has had extensive dental work done; the net result is a brilliantly white smile, which looks a bit false. At the other end there are aged rockers who are infamous for their lack of teeth. In between are the rest of us, who want a natural-looking and lovely smile for those all-important first impressions.

Research has shown that colour is the most important factor in determining the attractiveness of a smile. Tooth whitening is a quick, safe, painless procedure that restores the natural colour of the teeth with no structural change to the teeth.

Smile and give yourself your very own X Factor boost.

Useful Websites
http://www.augustadental.co.uk/dental-treatments-warwickshire-dentist/tooth-whitening-leamington-spa-dentistry.html

http://wy10.com/

Crooked Teeth and Newspapers

It is always interesting when dentistry hits the news, well as a dentist it is sometimes interesting how stories are portrayed. This weekend I had a 'features' article pushed under my nose about using clear braces to straighten crooked teeth and the newspaper made mention of the television series 'Ugly Betty'. I am told that the title partly refers to her ugly metal braces. Orthodontics, which is the movement of teeth to the correct position, has made some tremendous advances over the past few years. As a student, admitedly a little while ago, I only saw one adult patient, but now I am seeing people in their 60s for treatment with clear braces. The more conventional metal braces are still important, but in certain cases we are able to move the teeth using clear braces such as Invisalign, which has even been mentioned in 'Ugly Betty'.

Invisalign can be used to treat upper and lower arches to close spaces between teeth and to help overcome crowding of the teeth. The key features of Invisalign are:

Invisible, no-one will know that you are in treatment
Removable, eating drinking and cleaning don’t present any problems
Comfortable, no brackets or wires.
Convenient, shorter and less frequent appointments.
Teeth remain intact and natural

We do offer a free consultation to assess suitability for treatment with clear braces and answer any questions you may have about the treatment.

The next bit of news was BBC Radio's Chris Evans' newspaper review that included a pievce on the importance of good toothbrushing for a healthy body. As we enter 'National Smile Month' we tend to focus on importance of a confident smile, but the start point always has to be a healthy smile.

Keep smiling

Denture Problems

This week's hot topic seems to be dentures and problems with dentures. The loss of teeth can create all sorts of difficult functional, aesthetic and emotional problems, so it is probably no coincidence the one of the common recurring nightmares is teeth falling out. One of the great driving forces to seek dental treatment is the desire to avoid dentures - teeth in a jar by the bed is the stuff of nightmares for most people. But I gather that there has been an increase in the number of acrylic dentures under the NHS contract.

I am amazed by the resilience of people and how they will struggle on with dentures that don't fit and and don't stay in place. There seems to be a perception that dentures are a thing of the past but it is estimated that by 2038, 6% of the UK population will have no teeth at all, that will be millions of people. People are living longer and whilst at my age this incredibly good news, it does mean that denture wearers will also have complex medical issues.

What does all this mean? Dentures are going to be around for a long time and we going to need to our utmost to help these patients. Fortunately we now have modern techniques such as mini implants which are design to help stabilise and retain dentures at a fraction of of the cost of more conventional implants. More importantly it is a huge leap in the quality of life for the denture-wearer. This week someone told me they had not be able to bite into an apple for over 20 years since they lost their teeth. I can't wait to get started and I will have a Cox's Orange Pippin all lined up.