Nasal Spray Could Benefit Dental Patients

Nasal Spray Could Benefit Dental Patients

Written by Dentistry TodayTuesday, 25 June 2013 15:16

Those anesthetic injections for dental procedures may become a thing of the past.

A new anesthetic nasal spray is currently undergoing clinical trials. If proven to be successful, it may be used instead of lidocaine injections.

The information from the study appeared on the Internet and will be published in the July issue of the Journal of Dental Research. The next phase of the trial included 45 adults and the final phase was concluded as the study was awaiting publication.

The second and third phases were considered successful and the spray may soon be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. It’s conceivable that the drug becomes available in the next year.

The drug was created and developed by St. Renatus and is called Kovocaine Mist. The amount of anesthesia is equivalent to that of a lidocaine injection. It could be extremely helpful for patients who refuse to visit the dentist based on a fear of needles.

The spray possesses tetracaine and oxymetazoline hydrochloride, a decongestant that lowers inflammation and bleeding. The formula comes from medicine used by ear, nose and throat doctors.

Louisiana Doesn’t Have Enough Dentists

Louisiana Doesn’t Have Enough Dentists

Written by Dentistry TodayWednesday, 26 June 2013 15:07

Louisiana has a dental shortage that can rival any other state in the United States.

The new report released by Pew Charitable Trusts showed that more than 24 percent of the state’s population is underserved by dentists. The dentist shortage in Louisiana is tied with Alabama, behind only Mississippi.

The problem is exacerbated by the fact that around 42 percent of these dentists are older than 55.

The information came to light as the state Department of Health and Hospitals is reducing reimbursement rates to dentists that stem from Medicaid. Dentists say this will lower access to services.

But the DHH doesn’t believe this will have a major impact on dentists.

The information from this study—and many previous ones—indicates that people without early exposure to dental care will encounter more serious dental problems that could have been prevented easily, if only they had prior routine dental care.

The $2.8 million reduction for Medicaid payments comes in addition to the 14 percent for some of the more frequently billed procedures, according to the Louisiana Dental Association.

Based on information from the DDH, however, 43 percent of children on Medicaid received dental treatment in the 2011-12 fiscal year. That’s a 13-percent rise from where the numbers were in the 2007-08 fiscal year.

The way things transpire in the future is anyone’s guess. More dentists may back out of the Medicaid program or more changes may be made to lure them back in.

Stomach Cancer Detection in the Dental Office

Stomach Cancer Detection in the Dental Office

Written by Dentistry TodayWednesday, 21 August 2013 14:45

The UCLA School of Dentistry recently received 5 million dollars in funding from the National Institutes for Health to study biological markers in saliva to detect stomach cancer.

There are hopes that this study could advance salivary diagnostics, potentially leading to evidence that saliva can be used to detect other types of cancer, such as pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, and ovarian cancer, as well as diabetes.

The ultimate goal is this: Patients give a saliva sample at the dental office, have it analyzed within minutes, and then are able to find out if they are at risk for stomach cancer.

The research is slated to last five years, and Dr. David Wong is leading the study. As the dentistry school’s associate dean of research, he is considered a pioneer in the field of salivary diagnostics.

Dr. Wong’s team will conduct a prospective study to develop a salivary biomarker panel that would validate stomach cancer detection. The team hopes to capture RNA in saliva samples secreted by stomach cancer cells. This would confirm whether a patient is at risk for stomach cancer.

Certain Bacteria Aids in Periodontal Treatment

Certain Bacteria Aids in Periodontal Treatment

Written by Dentistry TodayThursday, 22 August 2013 10:01

Researchers may have discovered a new way to effectively treat periodontitis patients.

A double-blind, placebo-controlled study of chronic periodontitis patients indicated that Lactobacillus reuteri Prodentis can improve efficacy by 53 percent.

The information appears in the online publication Journal of Clinical Periodontology. The study included 30 patients.

The goal of the study was to analyze the impact of Lactobacillus reuteri Prodentis on scaling and root planing, some of the basic treatment for chronic periodontitis patients.

At the end of the study, about 53 percent of patients with deep dental pockets supplemented by Lactobacillus reuteri Prodentis needed surgery as compared to the placebo group. When the intervention period was over, about two-thirds of the patients in the placebo group were considered at high risk for disease progression. The patients provided with the antibiotic were only at 27 percent.

There was more pocket depth reduction and attachment gain for the group supplemented with Lactobacillus reuteri Prodentis.

The results from this study indicate that Lactobacillus reuteri Prodentis could save people money and prevent them from experiencing pain.

More Evidence of Poor Oral Health Leading to HPV

More Evidence of Poor Oral Health Leading to HPV

Written by Dentistry TodayFriday, 23 August 2013 12:57

If a person needed more incentive to maintain good oral health, now he or she has it.

The American Association for Cancer Research concluded that poor oral health leads to the human papilloma virus infection. HPV produces about 40 to 80 percent of oropharyngeal cancers.

The study appears in Cancer Prevention Research, the journal of the American Association for Cancer Research.

The information indicated that the people who reported oral health issues were at a 56-percent higher risk of HPV infection. People with gum disease were at higher risk by 51 percent and those with basic dental issues were at 28 percent. There was also a correlation involving HPV infections and the number of teeth lost.

The two kinds of oral HPV infection include (1) low-risk types that do not result in cancer but cause benign tumors or warts in the oral cavity and (2) high-risk HPV that produces oropharyngeal cancers.

The information comes from the 2009 through 2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 5,000 people from around the United States took part in the study.

There were four measures of oral health in the study, including (1) self rating of oral health, (2) presence of gum disease, (3) utilization of mouthwash during the last week to treat dental problems and (4) the total number of teeth lost. Other demographic questions and lifestyles habits were taken into account.

The research demonstrated that the following people were at a higher risk for HPV infection: males, cigarette smokers, marijuana users and people who engage in oral sex.

More research is necessary to fully understand why poor oral health leads to HPV.