Download Tooth Talk Holidays 2012 Steven R. Fudge, DDS. 419-882

Tooth Talk
Holidays 2012
Steven R. Fudge, DDS.
419-882-6896
Holiday Hours
Because Christmas falls on a Tuesday this
year, we will have a limited number of
office hours during the holidays. If you’ve
been waiting to get the school kids or the
college kids in during break, call us soon.
Wedding Presents
More, please
Many thanks come your way for supporting
our practice. We’ve met many new friends
and neighbors in the past six months but still
have room for more new patients. Thank
you for your confidence in referring us.
Musically
Many opportunities exist for you to enjoy
performances by the UMS Choral Union, a
group in which Dr. Fudge is a member. On
December 1 & 2, the Choral Union will
present its annual performance of Handel’s
Messiah. Officially the start to the Christmas
season, these performances are in Hill
Auditorium in Ann Arbor. Tickets are
available at UMS.org.
On January 13, the Detroit Symphony and
the Choral Union will collaborate in one of
the many celebrations of Hill Auditorium’s
100th Anniversary.
McMillan’s Tu es
Petrus, a composition written to celebrate
Pope Benedict’s first visit to England in
2010, will be featured. If you like pomp and
circumstance, this concert is for you.
On February 21 through 24, the Choral
Union will travel to Orchestra Hall in
Detroit to sing the Beethoven Ninth
Symphony with the DSO. Many think there
is no greater choral work than the Ninth.
And finally, on April 4, the Choral Union,
University Orchestra, and School of Music
Choruses will present the Milhaud Orestean
Trilogy in a recorded session at Hill
Auditorium. The last time the Choral Union
recorded in 2005, four Grammys were the
result. Come join us.
Phone Lines
Many of you have taken to using your cell
phones and have abandoned your land line
phones at home. Often, your preferred
number in our computer system is that land
line.
Please let us know if you’ve
disconnected your land line phone number!
When one of our patients is getting married,
we offer them all the materials to do some
at-home tooth whitening. This also includes
your fiancé even if he/she is not one of our
patients. So if you’re getting married, let us
know and we will arrange for impressions,
bleaching tray fabrication, and bleaching gel
for the bride and groom to be. This is our
complementary wedding present for you.
Factoids
The average U.S. general dentist’s expenses
in the year 2009 were $459,860.
For the year 2010-2011, dental school
tuition in the U.S. averaged around $32,000
for state residents and $49,000 for nonresidents. Dental school is four years long
and follows four years of undergraduate
education.
Dental schools in the U.S. in the year 20102011 received an average of 2000
applications for their entering class. 44% of
the applications were female applicants.
80% of all U.S. dental hygiene programs
were located in public educational
institutions.
Completion times of postgraduate dentistry:
General practice residency—12 months.
Pediatric dentistry—24 months.
Dental Anesthesiology—25 months.
Endondontics—26 months.
Orthodontics—31 months.
Prosthodontics—32 months.
Periodontics—35 months.
Oral Surgery—54 months.
Medical History Apps
We routinely ask patients to bring their list
of medications to their first appointment and
to every checkup visit. To my surprise one
day, one of our new patients handed me his
Blackberry, opened to a file, which
contained a list of medications (properly
spelled) and their dosage and administration.
What a great idea! Then, to take it a step
further, I wondered if the patient’s medical
history could be put on their phone.
THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT! Several
apps exist for the Android phones and
there’s a good one for the iPhone.
Transferring all that information to our
office could be as easy as sending an email.
Check it out and use one.
Oral Cancer
Oral cancer, part of the head and neck
cancers, is a concern in every dental office.
The rate of oral cancer is 10.5 persons per
100,000 in the U.S. It affects males more
than females and more blacks and Hispanics
than Caucasians. 40,000 persons in the U.S.
will be diagnosed each year.
Once
diagnosed, 57% will survive 5 years. The
reason for the relatively low 5 year survival
rate is that it is often diagnosed in its late
stages and that the surgical treatment is
often complicated by the vital structures in
the region.
Dentists speak of the “terrible triad” of high
alcohol use, tobacco use, and lack of good
oral hygiene as risk factors. Other risk
factors are occupational and exposure to
HPV, human papillama virus.
Dental
offices are always on the alert for oral
cancer and examine for it at every checkup.
The most common areas for oral cancer are
the lateral border of the tongue, soft palate,
and tonsil area. If a suspicious area is
found, it is often biopsied to determine
whether a problem exists.
Once a
microscopic diagnosis is made that a cancer
exists, treatment can be initiated. Surgical
treatment is often performed by an ENT
cancer specialist; radiation to the area is
done
by
a
radiation
oncologist.
Chemotherapy for oral cancers is not often
effective. The general dentist is involved in
order to determine whether teeth in the line
of radiation should be removed and to
provide palliative relief for any of the
treatment side effects. Oral cancer is very
survivable if caught in the early stages. This
is why we do oral cancer exams at every
dental hygiene visit.
patient expect? How long should the teeth
be? Should they be age appropriate color or
toilet bowl white? How much tooth enamel
is left on which to bond? How much
grinding and destructive force do the teeth
experience every day? How much tooth
sensitivity does the patient have now and
what can be expected later? How much
treatment time is needed? Does the patient
want to go through a long, extensive
treatment? How long can these veneers be
expected to last? How much will it cost?
By now, you’re wondering why anyone does
this at all, except for the Hollywood types.
Veneers are an excellent way to accomplish
an esthetic result with a minimum of tooth
structure lost in the process.
A typical case would start with an interview
with the patient. Photos and models of the
teeth would be taken.
Sometimes, a
computer simulation of the finished smile
will be done. Other times, the case will be
done on the models and presented to the
patient. The patient may choose to do a
temporary veneer “mock up” in order to
determine the right shade and right look for
their mouth. The patient might wear the
mock up for a month. Then the appropriate
alteration to the teeth is done and an
impression taken. When the veneers are
back from the lab, they are trial bonded to
show the patient, then bonded to the
individual teeth in a very meticulous
process.
Achieving an incredible result takes precise
planning and a complete understanding of
the patient's desires and a complete
understanding of the process. Through lots
of hard work, time, and patience, much can
be achieved.
Veneers
Many times during your visits we hear of a
patient’s desire for “veneers.” So a little
discussion of veneers is indicated.
Veneers, also called laminates, are very
similar to the false fingernails that some
women wear. In our case, small, precisely
made porcelain coverings are made to be
bonded to individual teeth. Veneers can be
used to hide irregularities, change colors and
shapes of teeth, fill in gaps, and to replace
tooth structure that has been worn or broken
away. Patients’ typical thought on veneers
run toward the “smile makeover” that was
popular more than a few years ago.
The smile makeover requires a great deal of
planning and a thorough examination of
what the expections of the patient are. What
does the patient want? What color does the
Happy Holidays
Happy New Year