oral prophylaxis,,,,,scaling

it is very necessary for us to keep our oral invironment clean and tidy. Oral prophylaxis is very necessary for every one as it cleanes debris and plaques from your tooth surface.

Oral prophylaxis, when thoroughly done, gives so much satisfaction to the dentist, and the patient feels the difference instantly. In routine dental practice where six to eight oral prophylaxis cases have to be attended daily, sonic and ultrasonic scalers are of immense value

Sonic scalers use compressed air and water delivered through hose designed for high and low speed handpieces. Sonic units consist of a handpiece that attaches to a compressed air line and uses a variety of specially designed tips. Air moves rotor system within the scaler that vibrates the working tip in an elliptical pattern at a frequency of about 2,000 to 6,000 cycles per second(cps). To remove less tenacious deposits typical of patients treated frequently, this is well suited, though it is difficult to remove tenacious deposits. E.g.:- Sonicflex Lux (Kavo America Corp. and Densonic by Dentsply International).

Ultrasonic scalers are of two types.

1. Magnetostrictive (e.g.:- Cavitron by Dentsply Int’l) system where electrical energy is applied to coil in the special handpiece which magnetically changes dimension of a metal stack, creating elliptical movement of the tip at a frequency of about 25,000 to 30,000 cps. all the sides of the tip are active and will work when adapted to the tooth. Significant generation of heat necessitates water for cooling.
2. Piezoelectric (eg:- Piezon Master 400- Shofu and Suprasson P Max by Satelec) system where electrical energy is applied to a crystal which emits vibrations in a linear pattern at frequency of about 25,000 to 40,000 cps. In Piezoelectric units, the pattern of vibration of the tip is linear, or back and forth, meaning that only the two sides of the tip are active and will work when adapted to the tooth. There is almost no heat generation and water is for lavage only.

Ultrasonic scalers can remove tenacious deposits.

Advantages of using automated scalers:-

• Decreased chair time.
• Operator’s fatigue doesn’t come in way of providing a thorough prophylaxis.
• Increased patient comfort.
• Increased operator comfort.
• Simultaneous water lavage and scaling.
• Some systems allow to work with an antiseptic irrigating solution.

Disadvantages:-

• Ultrasonics may interfere with pacemakers.
• Reduced tactile sense.
• Less control in difficult access areas.
• Amount of water coolant necessary for magnetostrictive systems is more and can be difficult to suction.
• Cost of the system.
• Noise can be irritating to some people.

Suprasson P Max provides both non autoclavable and autoclavable handpiece and various instrument tips, which, apart from scaling, can do the functions of root planing, amalgam plugging, prosthesis loosening. root canal preparation and gutta percha condensation. It has provision to work with an antiseptic irrigating solution.

Myth about prophylaxis: In Asian countries, there is a widespread misconception= “teeth become loose after prophylasis”, this is not at all correct. Oral prophylaxis machine are hight speed and have special tips. In right hands they do not cause any harm whatsoever to teeth. Routinely this procedure is needed to be carried out every 6-12 months to keep your teeth and gums in healthy state.

every thing is nano…. NOW……NANO-DENTISTRY

AFTER NANOTECHNOLOGY,NANO CAR ,NOW ITS A  TIME TO BE A NANO DENTIST…..

The late Nobel Prize winning Physicist Richard P Feynman in 1959 proposed using machine tools to make smaller machine tools, which in turn, would be used to make still smaller machine tools, and so on, all the way down to the molecular level. Such nanomachines, nanorobots and nanodevices ultimately could be used to develop a wide range of atomically precise microscopic instrumentation and manufacturing tools. Attempts are going on at present to produce molecular computer components using molecular parts at the nanometer (10-9 meter or 1 billionth of a meter) scale.

Nanotechnology will have future medical applications leading to the emergence of nanomedicine and nanodentistry. Nanodentistry will make it possible to maintain a near perfect oral health through the use of nanomaterials, biotechnology, including tissue engineering and nanorobotics. The nanorobotic functions may be controlled by an onboard nanocomputer that executes preprogrammed instructions in response to local sensor stimuli.

Local anaesthesia: In the era of nanodentistry, to induce local anaesthesia, dental professional will instill a colloidal suspension containing millions of active analgesic micrometer sized dental nanorobot particles on the patient’s gingivae. After contacting the surface of the crown or mucosa, the ambulating nanorobots reach the dentin by migrating into the gingival sulcus and passing painlessly through the lamina propria or the 1-3 micrometer thick layer of loose tissue at the cemento dentinal junction.

On reaching the dentin, the nanorobots enter dentinal tubule holes that are 1-4 micrometers in diameter and proceed toward the pulp, guided by a combination of chemical gradients, temperature differentials and even positional navigation, all under the control of the onboard nanocomputer, as directed by the dentist.

Orthodontic treatment: Orthodontic nanorobots could directly manipulate the periodontal tissues (gingiva, periodontal ligament, cementum and alveolar bone), allowing rapid and painless tooth straightening, rotating and vertical repositioning within minutes to hours.

Natural tooth maintenance: The appearance and durability of tooth may be improved by replacing upper enamel layers with covalently bonded artificial materials such as sapphire or diamond, which have 20 to 100 times the hardness and strength of natural enamel.

A subocclusal dwelling nanorobotic dentifrice delivered by mouthwash or toothpaste could patrol all supragingival and sub gingival surfaces at least once a day, metabolizing trapped organic matter into harmless and odorless vapors and performing continuous calculus debridement.

Dentirobots could identify and destroy pathogenic bacteria residing in the plaque and elsewhere, while allowing the 500 or so species of harmless oral micro flora to be maintained in a healthy ecosystem. With this kind of daily dental care available from an early age, conventional tooth decay and gingival disease will disappear.

doing brushing after Drinking soda or coldrinks May Harm your Teeth

its a simple hot and effect …affecting your oral nerves…

If you rush to brush your teeth right after drinking soda (aerated cold drinks), think again. Doing so may actually do more harm than good, and it’s better to wait 30 or 60 minutes before brushing, according to new research.

Because carbonated drinks are highly acidic and have the potential to damage a tooth’s enamel, dentists at Goettingen University, Germany, conducted a study to determine the best time to brush after drinking such beverages. They found that later — rather than immediate — brushing is between three and five times more effective at protecting enamel from the erosive effects of carbonated drinks.

In the study, 11 volunteers wore a sterilized piece of tooth-like material in a removable prosthesis for three weeks. This was removed in the mornings and evenings and soaked for 90 seconds in a liquid similar in acidity to soda.

Afterward, the prosthesis was brushed using an electric toothbrush at different times after the ‘drink.’ Three weeks later, the researchers measured the thickness of the enamel to see how much damage had been inflicted on the ‘tooth.’

Professor Thomas Attin, director of the university’s department for tooth protection, preventative dentistry and periodontology, said, “The loss of material was less when the participants waited with cleaning for between 30 and 60 minutes.”

Professor Attin presented the research at the annual meeting of the German Association for Tooth Protection, where it was awarded a prize from chewing gum firm Wrigley.

He said tooth enamel appears to suffer less damage when brushing occurs after the tooth has had time to mount its own defence against acidic erosion.

Acidic substances attack tooth enamel, he said, and upper layers of the tooth can even be dissolved in some acidic drinks. However, protective agents in saliva may help repair and rebuild damaged tooth enamel.

Waiting for a while seems to give the teeth a chance to rebuild, the researchers said, while immediate cleaning of such teeth can increase the damage by literally brushing off the affected layers.