The New Millennium: time for a major paradigm shift!

Now that January 1, 2000 has come and gone, and we are still standing without having been Y2KO'd, let's reflect on how this fresh new era can influence our dentistry. How's this for starters, "Out with the Age of Amputation...in with the Age of Augmentation!" In restorative treatment there are multiple therapies designed to preserve & build up tooth structure rather than cut it away. Likewise, in periodontal therapy the trend is away from resective surgery and towards regenerative GTR techniques to regain tissues lost to disease. We have membranes and bone substitutes for furcation and infrabony defects, as well as processed acellular dermis and connective tissue for my main area of interest, plastic surgery for root coverage and ridge deficiencies. Patients need to know that our treatment goal for this new era is not just arresting disease, it is also to regenerate what was lost. An added bonus to help promote this mode of thought is that GTR procedures are typically less traumatic than the resective therapies, which should remain stuck in the just passed second millennium.

Where there's smoke, there's fire:

During a recent "annual" physical, my physician provided a little pearl of medical wisdom that had direct application to my practice. It is a pearl you might use in your discussions with patients. As my doc was going through the questions of the history update, and checking off the various lab tests to be taken, he waxed eloquently about seeing himself as a "smoke detector, sniffing out potential or early problems that could be averted or at least nipped in the bud, rather than being perceived as a fireman, responding to the ravages of disease." His philosophy was not about the choice of internal medicine as a career instead of fire fighting, but a mission statement for maintaining good health and acting preemptively when you "smell smoke." So, envision a detector at your next patient consultation as you point out the wisdom of a new crown to upgrade a 15 surface pin amalgam with open margins!

Orgasmic Frequency:

Kids are known to "say the darndest things, " but some of my patients have also come up with some real gems. Consider these comments: When asked how much time he spent cleaning his teeth, Mr. P replied, "Come on, only hygienists really spend time cleaning their teeth. I mean it isn't like sex, you know!" Then there was Mr. S who explained how he makes up his mind about having dental treatment. "I get three opinions - I ask my dentist friend, then I ask you (that's me), and then I get a third opinion!" I was a little surprised, but I hadn't heard the last part. Mr. S goes on to say, "so if everyone agrees, then I check with my cardiologist to see if I'll live long enough to make it worthwhile!" Finally (and to show it is not only men that have novel ideas,) there was Ms. S (no relation to Mr. S) who claimed that her mouth was not feeling up to par lately despite the regularity of scalings and flossing, etc. Her theory was that it was the paucity of her quality orgasms..... I'm currently checking the Web to find additional references for the association she observed.