Xerostomia, or dry mouth, is not so much a disease but rather a symptom of disease. It often is a result of medications that a person is taking. There tends to be an increase in xerostomia with age, but many feel that is due to the medications older people tend to take.

Normal saliva flow is based upon complicated chemical and nerve reactions. When the mouth or taste buds are stimulated and or smell is stimulated, the body produces or shuts off saliva production.

 Functions of Saliva

There are many things that saliva does for us. It keeps the mouth from being too acidic which can cause cavities. It functions to remove food debris, lubricate the tissues, prevent wounds, and it is antimicrobial to boot.

 Problems due to xerostomia

Anything that impairs the functions of sailva, will cause problems. Tooth decay can soar in the mouths of people without healthy saliva. Dry foods can be difficult to eat and swallowing in general may be tough. Oral ulcers and oral fungal infections, like candidiasis may flourish. Bad breath is likely to be more common as saliva plays an important role is cleansing the body of dead tissue that add to the volatile sulfur compounds (VLC’s) responsible for bad breath.

 Medications responsible for dry mouth

Many different types of drugs can cause dry mouth. They include diuretics, antihistamines, anorexiants, antihypertensives, antipsychotics, anti-Parkinson agents, anticholinergics, antidepressants, and sedatives. Other drug classes that commonly cause xerostomia include antiemetics, antianxiety agents, decongestants, analgesics, antidiarrheals, bronchodilators and skeletal muscle relaxants.

 Oral Cancer and radiation therapy

Radiation as a way of treating cancer cells in the mouth, can cause permanent damage to salivary cells impairing the ability to produce saliva. Often these patients will describe a thick ropey saliva and a difficulty with swallowing. Occasionally the damage is temporary and sometimes there is an improvement over time. Oral Hygiene is critical for these patients.

Treatment of Dry Mouth

Unfortunately, if the underlying cause can not be addressed we need to deal only with the symptom. Symptomatic treatment typically includes four areas: replacing lost secretions, increasing existing saliva flow, control of dental caries and specific measures such as treatment of infections.

 Advice to patients with xerostomia

• Review the self-care measures discussed earlier in this article (with emphasis on minimizing caffeine and smoking).

• Give suggestions about good oral hygiene.

• Encourage adequate fluid particularly water intake, avoiding caffeine and sugar-containing products and alcohol.

• For her allergic rhinitis, suggest nonsedating antihistamines and avoidance of products containing decongestants.

• Quit smoking.

• Consider the use of an artificial saliva and/or OTC saliva stimulant.

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Diseases that are transmitted through sex are called STD’s (sexually transmitted diseases) The diseases are passed on through intimate contact (oral, anal or vaginal) and bodily fluids. Some have great health implications for life and you should understand

what the problems are and know how to protect yourself, should you engage in any high
risk activity.

You can   not get an STD from a person who does not have one. Having multiple partners with unprotected sex is the way you catch an STD. Contrary to what many people think, you can catch an STD by having unprotected oral sex.

STD’s That You Can Catch

There are four main categories of diseases. Bacteria, Fungal, Viral, Parasite and Protozoal. Each is contracted and treated differently and there are many factors affecting your chances of catching it. Below are the most common STD’s.

Chlamydia – Is a bacterial infection and can be cured with antibiotic, ONCE it has been diagnosed. Unrepairable damage however, can be done before diagnosis. It can be transmitted to babies during childbirth causing great health issues or premature birth and blindness to the baby. Main symptoms are discharge and pain upon urination.

Gonorrhea –Is a bacterial infection, known as  “the  clap” and treatable with antibiotics. However, there are many strains today that do not respond anymore, making this a problematic disease with no treatment available in many cases. Symptoms are pelvic pain, discharge and pain on urination. Left untreated it can cause permanent damage and heart valve damage.

Syphilis – Is a bacterial infection that is treatable with antibiotics when caught in time. It have 4 states that are not always easy to detect. some of the symptoms are skin ulcerations, rash and ultimately years after contraction neurological disease including dementia. It has many bad symptoms including pain, eye and vision problems,kidney problems and more.

Candidiasis – Is a fungal disease that affects mucosal membranes and causes great discomfort, pain and itching. While it rearely causes complications it can be a source of discomfort.

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As described in part one, many different disease types can be passed from one person to another during unprotected sex with a person carrying an illness. One of the more important categories of disease are viruses.

There are a number of common viruses that one can catch .

Viral Hepatitis B – causes inflammation of the liver. If the body is not able to fight it, in close to 15% of the cases it becomes a chronic disease and is an STD. It can cause cirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer. A vaccine exists for hepatitis B

Herpes – is a viral infection. The virus lives in nerve cell bodies and when the become periodically reactivated, the will once again produce symptoms. The oral form of herpes is called a cold sore or fever blister. It presents as a blister or sore on the lip.  It exists in the body for life. This STD can be painful.

HIV – is a virus and is the cause for  AIDs. AIDS allows for the failure of the human defense system and for opportunistic infections to thrive.

HPV – Human Pappiloma Virus. can cause warts on skin or mucous membranes. It has been associated with various cancers including cervix,vulva, penis and the oropharanx . A vaccine does exist for this virus.

STD’s are an important category of diseases greatly affecting human kind. Transmission can be prevented if proper protective measures are used.

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Wisdom teeth are the 3rd molars that erupt into our mouths from about age 18. These are the back teeth in each quadrant of the mouth. Often times, there is  not enough room in the mouth for the wisdom teeth, and a host of problems can occur.

Pericoronits

When the wisdom teeth erupt, there is usually a little flap of gums that covers the back of the tooth. This little pocket of tissue  makes it very easy for food and debris to get caught underneath it and this can create an infection. Initially, it is tender and may bleed when brushed. People will nit clean it since it hurts. However, that only makes the problem worse, by allowing the bacteria to flourish. This causes a swelling of the gums over the wisdom teeth that can be very painful. Sometimes, patients complain of earache, neck ache, and even fever as a result of a pericoronitis.

The treatment for most of these painful wisdom teeth problems is conservative. Cleaning the soft food debris away from around the wisdom teeth will minimize the inflammation. So every time you eat, while you have the pain, you must brush the area gently to make sure it is clean. This minimizes the bacterial load. We also suggest a mouth rinse of salt water or a chlorohexadine mouthwash like Tarodent or Corsodyl. If the area is cleaned like suggested it can begin to improve in 12-24 hours.

Impacted Wisdom Teeth

Since many times there is not sufficient room in the mouth for these teeth, they erupt in all sorts of angles and locations.  There is a need for extraction many times. We often will refer them to an oral surgeon for the surgery, as it can be quite extensive. Post operative sweeping and infection is often a concern and the area must be kept clean for optimum healing. We often find a large defect in the bone after extracting wisdom teeth. We sometime will place a bone graft in the socket to ensure optimum healing.

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We have one autoclave running at all times for your safety. Our dental sterilization protocol is rigorous and completely sterilizes all bacteria.
Cleanliness  and infection control of our office for all dental equipment is one of the most important aspects of what we do to protect you.

What is Autoclave Sterilization and infection control ?

Autoclave usage is the heart of our infection control system. An autoclave is a machine that uses high temperature and steam pressure (up to 270 F) to kill bacteria effectively. The autoclave heats items above the boiling point for a time until the equipment is clean and free of germs.

Autoclaves are designed for safety, and due to the heavy pressure built up inside the machine , it has an auto-lock mechanism when it is turned on and unlocks when sterilization is finished. Dr. Greenspan is exceptionally diligent in proper dental office procedures to ensure your safety. Just come into our office and ask us to show you how careful we are in this matter of infection control

Every item we use is either disposable or goes through an infection protocol. We wear disposable cloaks and go through hundreds of pairs of gloves a day in the course of treating our patients

We are always donning fresh gloves , masks and wearing safety glasses.
As you can see Dr.Anderkvist and his staff go to great lengths to be certain your visit to our office is not only enjoyable, but also SAFE!

Clean and Dirty

The CDC (centers for disease control) suggests having an area for dirty and clean (not yet sterilized equipment. We adhere to this and go to extreme lengths to guarantee your safety in our office.

Where items can not go through an autoclave without being destroyed we employ liquid sterilization.

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Dr. Larry Lockerman is an expert in treating head and face pain ,sleep apnea, snoring TMJ (Temporomandibular Joint Disorders). He is Board Certified as a Diplomate of both the  American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine and the American Board of Orofacial Pain . He has be a lecturer in both Harvard Medical School and the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Dr Lockerman is a consulting dentist in sleep apnea with sleep centers in the  Tel Aviv and Jerusalem regions for Sleep Dentistry. He is a Clinical Instructor of Oral-Facial Pain at Tel Aviv University Dental School TMJ Clinic.

Dr. Lockerman has been a member of the medical staff at the Yale New Haven Hospital Pain Management Center in the Department of Anesthesia (New Haven, CT), the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Headache Center in the Department of Neurology (Boston, MA)) and had an appointment as Instructor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School. He was a member of the dental resident teaching staff at Mt. Sinai Hospital (Hartford, CT), St. Francis Medical Center (Hartford, CT), Yale New Haven Medical Center, and the Rehabilitation Hospital of Connecticut.

Dr. Lockerman is currently a member of the medical staff at the Fairlawn Rehabilitation Hospital (Worcester, MA), director of the UMass Memorial Medical Center TMJ/Headache Center and a member of the medical staff at the UMass Sleep Disorders Center (Worcester, MA) dealing with sleep apnea , Instructor of Surgery at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. I am on the medical staff of the Sleep HealthCenters in Boston (affiliated with Brigham and Women’s Hospital) He is a dental consultant for several hospital based sleep centers.

Dr. Lockerman is a member of several professional organizations dedicated to helping people with pain, headache and sleep disorders. He is a Board Certified as Diplomate by the American Board of Orofacial Pain and the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine, a Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry and a member of the American Headache Society and am on the editorial review Board of the American Journal of Pain Management. He has published articles in journals and  medical books.

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      Laser treatment for canker sores can help with the suffering.  It feels bad, it looks bad, and it tastes bad. For those who suffer from cold/canker sores, it is an agonizing problem when these sores form inside your mouth. You can often feel like crying, because you know you are in for a couple of weeks of torture while nature takes its course.

Canker sores are a virus often happen by trauma, a lack of vitamins, poor nutrition, or whenever stress levels spike. There might also be a problem with your immune system. And the foods that you eat – like acidic fruits and vegetables – can also trigger an outbreak of canker sores.

Once that happens, it is only a matter of time before a full-blown sore appears, and then it could take as long as two weeks before it is healed.

It is vital to begin treatment before the sore has a change to fully develop. If you can catch it in time – generally within the first 48 hours – you can prevent the cold sore from breaking out.

What is the solution that relieves the pain immediately, and soon gets rid of it altogether?

Laser treatment for canker sores

Lasers are not science fiction weapons as they were 20 years go. Now they can be found in most dentist offices as an integral part of the technology used in today’s science and medicine.

The carefully controlled laser energy beam of light is precise and painless, focused directly at the damaged tissue that then destroys the virus causing the sore.

It is a painless procedure, so you don’t have to worry about anesthesia – there are no shots in the mouth.

Laser treatment for canker sores is a much safer and more comfortable method than traditional tools. Each treatment takes only a few minutes, and afterward there is immediate relief. The sore will progress no further as the lip returns to normal quickly, perhaps in a matter of days, instead of the two weeks it would have taken without the laser treatment. It is a smart way to deal with the common problem of canker sores.

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