…passionate about teeth
Archive for August, 2008
August 26, 2008 at 7:58 am by Ian Kerr
Filed under Behind the Headlines
Seeing the dentist with a tarantula of course!
These photos are from a fantastic family day out at Wingham Wildlife Park, which I cannot recommend highly enough. The family had a blast and experienced some fantastic moments with the animals from the park.
And if you’re wondering, no, those aren’t two ginger caterpillars crawling across my face, they really are my eyebrows!
Any one looking for a really fun and informative day out for the kids should head straight to Wingham Wildlife Park, they won’t be disappointed.
August 26, 2008 at 7:47 am by Ian Kerr
Filed under Behind the Headlines
How far would you for a better smile. The answer in some cases is many thousands of miles. An article in yesterday’s Sunday Times on the rise in tooth tourism shows that there are patients prepared to travel abroad to save money on their cosmetic dentistry. As a dentist in the UK you might imagine that I would be dead against this sort of behavior but in fact I can see how it is inevitable and would offer only a few words of caution.
1) The figures quoted in the article reflect (inevitably) extreme cases and should not be considered average.
2) The costs for a single tooth implant once travel, hotels, time of work etc are costed in make any savings now very minimal. (The rising cost of travel and a strengthening Euro will further balance these costs).
3) The choice of the right dentist for the job should be based on several visits and discussions to ensure that you are both in agreement to how the work should be carried out and that you feel comfortable and can trust the clinician involved. (Clearly, as the distance and inconvenience of travel increases the number of visits are likely to decrease making it increasingly difficult to build a good working relationship with the dentist).
4) Complex cases involving the reconstruction of a full jaw of teeth can often require 6-9 visits, spread over many months to complete. The cost of this many visits (travel, hotels, time of work) needs to be considered. If the number of visits is reduced then the risk of complication increases.
5) Complications in treatment are common and the likelihood increases with the complexity of the case. The ability to “pop” back in and check if everything is OK or to make minor adjustments is lost, which can at best be frustrating, at worst can jeopardize the success of a case.
6) The long term maintenance of the case will, more than likely, involve your regular UK dentist and there will be fees associated with this. (These will usually be higher than if the UK dentist had done the work as it is harder to maintain other peoples work than your own).
7) Notes, radiographs, photographs etc relating to the case need to be transfered from the treating dentist in a form that the UK dentist can understand if he/she is to have any chance of maintaining the work adequately.
8) Finally I suppose we should consider our carbon foot print. Clocking up thousands of miles of air travel is probably not the greenest way of building our smiles.
You may notice that I have not commented on the level of care provided abroad. I have no direct knowledge of any of the dentists involved in over seas clinics, much as I do not have direct knowledge of thousands of dentists who provide care in this country. My view is that there is a vast range in the level of training, clinical competence, ethical approach and communication skills in all dentists and I would not stroll into any dental clinic in the world and ask for any restorative dentistry without first getting to know the team involved and making sure that they were the right team for me.
August 22, 2008 at 12:08 am by Ian Kerr
Filed under Clinical Cases
The short answer is “Of course we can” but the next bit is “How would you like me to go about it?” It is so important that we involve the patient in this decision making process because both of these cases could have been treated with anything from 2 crowns each to 10 veneers each and every combination in between. Both patients did not want this. They wanted the teeth looking nicer but with out any damage being done. So, of course, we were happy to oblige with a little bit of well placed composite filling material with out any drilling and no need for local anaesthetic.
If you are unhappy with how you smile looks and would like to see if we can help you, then please do not hesitate to call us on 01580 752202 and we will be only too happy to help.
August 21, 2008 at 11:46 pm by Ian Kerr
Filed under Clinical Cases
It is fair to say that the growth in cosmetic dentistry in this country over the last 10 years has been astronomic. Dentistry is a multi-billion pound industry and cosmetic dentistry is the fastest growing part of it. Helping someone enhance their smile is a wonderful part of our job and their is no doubt that it can transform peoples lives. Sounds live there’s a “but” coming, and there is. It can be great to do “but” we need to consider every aspect of the patients dental health before we embark on any changes.
This case highlights a problem, not with the veneers per se, but with the fact that they were put in a mouth which suffers great damage from a clenching and grinding habit and in a bite that had no room for them. The result was multiple de-bonds with the veneers re-cemented so many times that they became chipped, stained and poor fitting. At StoneRock we were able to correct the problem by adjusting the patients bite (with direct white fillings onto the backs of the front teeth) so they were protected from further damage from the grinding and their was sufficient room created to be able to fit well retained crowns. Fortunately we work with a wonderful technician, Ross Liversidge at Precedental Laboratory in the Midlands who was able to match the porcelain beautifully.
If you, or anyone you know, is suffering with problems such as these then please do not hesitate to contact the surgery on 01580 752202 and find out how we can help.
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