Surgery? Have a dental visit first

Are you having surgery soon? 

Make a dental appointment!

If you have concerns about your oral health, such as tooth pain or bleeding gums, it's important to have a dental visit prior to your surgical procedure. Dental disease may not hurt and can go undetected, so even if you don't have concerns, having a dental visit before your surgery is a good idea.  This way you can be confident your mouth is healthy while you focus on your recovery.

It's also important to ask your surgeon if you will require any medication, such as antibiotics, prior to dental visits after you have had your surgery. Procedures such as total joint replacements and some heart procedures, as well as other procedures, will require you to remain on medications for a period of time. You may even need to remain on medications post-surgery for a prolonged period or for life.

If you are prescribed blood thinners, you will be required to obtain medical clearance from your doctor or specialist prior to having any dental treatment. You may need to stop or remain on your medication, or take premedication, depending on the type of dental treatment you need. Tell your dental professional what medications you are taking.

Always update your dental hygienist and dentist with any planned procedures, any medical changes, medication changes, allergies, or new medical conditions.

The mouth is the gateway to the body! Anything that affects your body can affect your oral health. Your dentist and dental professionals are partners in keeping you healthy and happy.

Good luck with your surgery! 

This blog and its posts are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure, or advise about any dental or medical condition. Please see your dentist or doctor for any treatment or information you need regarding your health.

The truth about toothpaste

As a dental hygienist, I get LOTS of questions about toothpaste. Companies make a lot of claims about what their toothpastes do, from whitening to enamel protection. Basically, so long as a toothpaste has some kind of fluoride in it, that's what should be used. Fluoride is necessary to remineralize and protect teeth. 

Some toothpastes have ingredients such as stannous fluoride and potassium nitrate that can help with sensitivity. Potassium nitrate has worked for me personally. Since sensitivity can be caused by various dental issues including receding gums, cavities, and dry mouth, sensitivity should be discussed with your dentist or dental hygienist. 

I work at two dental offices and the toothpaste samples given to patients vary. I rely on my colleagues and my professional network to learn about any problems or issues with toothpastes rather than claims from the companies that make them. For example, there was a toothpaste on the market that had blue beads in it. When hygienists began finding these beads embedded in people's gums, the alarm was sounded and the manufacturer corrected the problem. Stannous fluoride has had issues as well. It was found to stain the teeth and manufacturers have since added ingredients to counteract this. 

In addition to stannous fluoride, sodium fluoride and sodium monofluorophosphate can be found in toothpastes. They are all effective and essentially do the same thing: provide some fluoride directly to the teeth and into the saliva. A dentist may prescribe a toothpaste with a higher amount of fluoride if a patient needs it due to their dental condition.

Finally, teeth must be brushed regularly regardless of the type of fluoride in the toothpaste. It seems simple, but people rarely brush for long enough, or brush only once a day. Brushing and flossing physically removes plaque germs from the teeth and gums. While toothpaste is important, this is the most important aspect of caring for the teeth. Brushing the teeth 2 to 3 times a day for 2 minutes (set a timer) will clean teeth and create a healthy mouth.

These blog posts are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure, or advise about any dental or medical condition. Please see your dentist or doctor for any treatment you need. 

Happy World Oral Health Day 2022!

Taking care of your teeth has huge payoffs for overall health and takes only a couple of minutes a day!

 

Hamsters, Cocoa Krispies and COVID

I haven't posted in a while, but this study on how and why COVID causes loss of smell, called anosmia, caught my eye. Apparently, hamsters are really fond of Cocoa Krispies. Researchers took advantage of this to see how long it would take hamsters infected with COVID to find the treats in their bedding. Turns out, hamsters who weren't sick and hamsters with the flu could find them within seconds, but hamsters with COVID didn't even bother to look. Couldn't smell them. COVID clogs their little sniffer systems with gunk due to inflammation, causing confusion in the nose nerves. The nerves aren't damaged but temporarily too busy to pick up scents. The same process is thought to happen in humans. Cocoa Krispies aren't my thing, but it was a bummer to not be able to smell my morning coffee when I had COVID. If you want to read a more scientific explanation of all this, here is the link to the article in Scientific American: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/covid-smell-loss-and-long-covid-linked-to-inflammation1/

LA is hip on teeth

Lights, camera, action! Los Angeles may be known as the movie capital of the world, but did you know they are so 'with it' when it comes to tooth health? LA County has embarked on a massive campaign around tooth health on social media, TV, and radio. Included are great videos and engaging materials to bring the health of the mouth, especially for children, top of mind. 

Here is an adorable video they created:

  

Check out the entire campaign here:

https://choosehealthla.com/Teeth/