Tooth Decay: The Primary Cause of a Toothache

Tooth decay is the primary cause of toothaches for most children and adults. Bacteria that live in your mouth thrive on the sugars and starches in the food you eat. These bacteria form a sticky plaque that clings to the surface of your teeth.

Acids produced by the bacteria in plaque can eat through the hard, white coating on the outside of your teeth (enamel), creating a cavity. The first sign of decay may be a sensation of pain when you eat something sweet, very cold or very hot. A toothache often indicates that your dentist will need to work on your teeth.

Self-care tips
Until you can see your dentist, try these self-care tips for a toothache:

• Rinse your mouth with warm water.
• Use dental floss to remove any food particles wedged between your teeth.
• Take an over-the-counter (OTC) pain reliever to dull the ache.
• Apply an OTC antiseptic containing benzocaine directly to the irritated tooth and gum to temporarily relieve pain. Benzocaine has been linked to a rare but serious, sometimes deadly, condition (methemoglobinemia) that decreases the amount of oxygen that the blood can carry. Don't use benzocaine in children younger than age 2 without supervision from a health care professional, because this age group has been the most affected. Never use more than the recommended dose of benzocaine. Direct application of oil of cloves (eugenol) also may help. Don't place aspirin or another painkiller directly against your gums, as it may burn your gum tissue.

Call your dentist

• When you have signs of infection, such as swelling, pain when you bite, red gums or a foul-tasting discharge
• If the pain persists for more than a day or two
• When you have fever with the toothache

mayoclinic.com

Humans May Evolve To Grow An Endless Supply Of Teeth

 

In the future, you--like the pufferfish--could have so many teeth that you'll wear necklaces made out of your spares. It'll be weird.

Friendly Pufferfish Wikimedia Commons

The pufferfish is a very curious animal for lots of reasons; it swallows air or water to make itself larger and more threatening, it combines its combining pectoral, dorsal, anal, and caudal fins into one set of fins (like a seahorse), and it is often super poisonous. But Dr. Gareth Fraser of Sheffield University is focused on the puffer for a different reason: its teeth.

The puffer, like lots of bony fish (meaning, not cartilaginous), constantly regrows its teeth. The puffer doesn't have delineated teeth like most other fish, though; instead, after its first set of teeth have fallen out (like human baby teeth), it grows a solid structure that looks like a beak. This beak is made of horizontally growing layers of dentite, the usual tooth material for fish, but appears as a single band.

Fraser managed to map the specific cells responsible for the constant regrowing of teeth in the puffer. That's of great interest to us, because humans, unlike lots of other animals, only grow two sets of teeth. Your baby teeth fall out, then you grow your adult teeth, and then...that's it. That's all you get. And that's less than ideal, as most any professional hockey player can tell you (through gaps in their teeth).

Interestingly, Dr. Fraser thinks humans may evolve, in millions of years, the ability to regrow teeth past that second set. "With our extended lives and modern diets, the limited supply of human teeth is really no longer fit for purpose," he said. By figuring out exactly how fish regrow teeth, he may be able to accelerate that process of evolution.

So play hockey without fear! A fix for your broken grill may be in the works.

By: Dan Nosowitz
July 12, 2013

Dr. James B. Miller - Offering LANAP (Laser Assisted New Attachment Procedure) for the Treatment of Periodontal Disease.

If you're like 100 million other Americans, you could be one of 50% of Americans who have periodontal disease, the major cause of tooth loss in adults. Periodontal disease starts off as plaque, an opaque film which eventually hardens, forming tartar or calculus.

Calculus deposits harbor bacteria which infect the gums. In early stages, this is called Gingivitis, characterized by red, swollen gums that bleed when you brush your teeth. Many people experience bad breath and an unpleasant taste in their mouths as well. Unchecked, Gingivitis progresses to Periodontitis, a much more serious form of the disease where periodontal pockets are formed, separating teeth from the gums and supporting bone structure. Without treatment, infection becomes severe and the pockets deepen, resulting in tooth loss.

The way to repair the damage is to get rid of the infection and close up the pockets. Until now, that meant surgery and sutures. But today, many dentists offer the LANAP® Protocol, a patient-friendly, minimally-invasive procedure that's a great improvement over standard gum surgery. 

WHY IS THE LANAP® PROCEDURE better for the treatment of gum disease?

• The LANAP® Procedure is about as easy as erasing a blackboard — there's no cutting and no suturing.
  
• There's much less discomfort with the LANAP® Protocol than with standard surgery -- during and after the procedure.
  
• It takes less time than traditional surgery. All it takes is two 2-hour visits to the dentist and two follow up visits. Traditional surgery requires four sessions of about one hour each, with subsequent visits for suture removal and additional check-ups.
• LANAP® gives better, longer-lasting results. In fact, 98% of LANAP® treated patients remain stable after five years.
• Your dentist will probably recommend a soft diet for a day or two, and common sense should prevail, but in most cases, patients feel good enough to eat anything they want right after the procedure.
• Following traditional surgery, recovery can take between to 2-4 weeks during which patients can experience considerable pain and swelling, where they may be restricted to liquid or soft diets.
• There's less than 24 hour recovery period, so you won't lose time from work.
  
• The LANAP® Procedure is safe for patients with health concerns such as diabetes, HIV, hemophilia, or those taking medications such as Plavix or aspirin.  lanap.com

For more information or to schedule a consultation to find out if you are a candidate for LANAP, contact our office at (480) 451-5435.

Now Offering the Newest Teeth Whitening System with ZERO Sensitivity - GLO!

Receive $100.00 Off on GLO Dual!

Call our office to schedule your consultation.

(480) 451-5435

TYPES OF GUM DISEASE

Untreated periodontal disease can eventually lead to tooth loss and other health problems.

GINGIVITIS

Gingivitis is the mildest form of periodontal disease. It causes the gums to become red, swollen, and bleed easily. There is usually little or no discomfort at this stage. Gingivitis is often caused by inadequate oral hygiene. Gingivitis is reversible with professional treatment and good oral home care.

Factors that may contribute to gingivitis include, diabetes, smoking, aging, genetic predisposition, systemic diseases and conditions, stress, inadequate nutrition, puberty, hormonal fluctuations, pregnancy, substance abuse, HIV infection, and certain medication use.

PERIODONTITIS

Untreated gingivitis can advance to periodontitis. With time, plaque can spread and grow below the gum line. Toxins produced by the bacteria in plaque irritate the gums. The toxins stimulate a chronic inflammatory response in which the body in essence turns on itself, and the tissues and bone that support the teeth are broken down and destroyed. Gums separate from the teeth, forming pockets (spaces between the teeth and gums) that become infected. As the disease progresses, the pockets deepen and more gum tissue and bone are destroyed. Often, this destructive process has very mild symptoms. Eventually, teeth can become loose and may have to be removed.

There are many forms of periodontitis. The most common ones include the following.

• Aggressive periodontitis occurs in patients who are otherwise clinically healthy. Common features include rapid attachment loss and bone destruction and familial aggregation.
• Chronic periodontitis results in inflammation within the supporting tissues of the teeth, progressive attachment and bone loss. This is the most frequently occurring form of periodontitis and is characterized by pocket formation and/or recession of the gingiva. It is prevalent in adults, but can occur at any age. Progression of attachment loss usually occurs slowly, but periods of rapid progression can occur.
• Periodontitis as a manifestation of systemic diseases often begins at a young age. Systemic conditions such as heart disease, respiratory disease, and diabetes are associated with this form of periodontitis.
• Necrotizing periodontal disease is an infection characterized by necrosis of gingival tissues, periodontal ligament and alveolar bone. These lesions are most commonly observed in individuals with systemic conditions such as HIV infection, malnutrition and immunosuppression.

perio.org

Should you suck on a pacifier before giving it to your baby?

A new study in Pediatrics, journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, reports that parents sucking their infant’s pacifier may reduce the risk of allergy development.

The ADA wants parents to be aware that licking a pacifier can transfer the cavity-causing bacteria from parents to children—increasing the possibility of tooth decay as they grow.

"A child's teeth are susceptible to decay as soon as they begin to erupt," said Dr. Jonathan Shenkin, a pediatric dentist in Maine and a pediatric dental spokesperson for the ADA. "Cavity-causing bacteria, especially Streptococcus mutans, can be transferred from adult saliva to children, increasing their risk of getting cavities."

Sharing eating utensils with a baby, or the parent sucking on a pacifier to clean it, can also increase the likelihood of transmitting decay-causing bacteria.

The ADA recommends that parents protect the dental health of young children by promoting a healthy diet, monitoring their intake of food and drink, brushing their teeth or wiping gums after mealtimes, and by having infants finish their bedtime or naptime bottle before going to bed. The ADA recommends that children receive their first dental visit within six months of eruption of the first tooth and no later than 12 months of age.

May 2013 - ADA.org

Office of Dr. James B. Miller - 
Offering Oral DNA Testing (Salivary DNA Testing) 

Our office is pleased to announce the availability of 3 laboratory tests relating to oral health. We think that some of our patients may benefit from these tests, but they are usually not covered by your insurance. Therefore, we will only perform them at your request. So, it’s important for you to understand the tests and their related conditions.

One of the conditions is gum disease, which can result in loss of your teeth. Bacteria and inflammation cause gum disease. More than 50% of Americans have gum disease. The other condition is oral cancer. Oral cancer can be caused by infection with a virus called HPV and by tobacco and alcohol use. HPV-related oral cancer occurs most often in people who don’t smoke or drink very much. A different kind of oral cancer occurs in smokers who drink a lot. About 36,000 Americans get oral cancer every year.

The MyPerioID^Ò PST^Ò test can tell if you have specific changes in your DNA. These changes might mean that you have a greater risk of getting gum disease.

The MyPerioPath^Ò test is for patients who actually have gum disease. It finds out which bacteria are triggering the gum disease. Once we know which bacteria are in your mouth and at what amount, we can come up with a treatment plan that’s right for you. For example, this information can help us select the right antibiotic for you. We highly recommend this test if you have gum disease that has not responded to previous treatment.

The OraRisk^Ò HPV test can tell if you have an HPV infection in your mouth. If you do, you might have a greater risk of getting HPV-related oral cancer. Like most cancers, it’s important to detect oral cancer early. If we know you have an HPV infection, we can watch you very closely for signs of oral cancer. We suggest you consider having this test if you are a non-smoker and don’t drink a lot.

All 3 of these tests are performed using a saliva sample, which is collected in our office. The sample is easy and fast to collect. Simply swish a sterile saline (salt) solution in your mouth and spit it into a container. The sample is then sent out for testing.

When the results come back, Dr. Miller will tell you what your results are and what they mean to your oral health.

If you are interested in Oral DNA testing, please contact our office at (480) 451-5435 for more information or to schedule an appointment.