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TOOTHBRUSH CARE
LETTERS
LETTERS JADA welcomes letters from
readers on topics of current interest in dentistry. The Journal reserves the right to edit all communications and requires that all letters be typed, doublespaced and signed. The views expressed are those of the letter writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or official policy of the Association. Brevity is appreciated.
DOING IT ALL
Kudos to Dr. Mary ZolnowskiCasey for her Clinical Directions article, “An Infection Control Procedure That Is the Patient’s Responsibility” in the May issue. Although the content was interesting, I was most impressed by the author’s creative combination of career and family. Dr. Zolnowski-Casey managed to contribute to her daughter’s science project, improve the safety of her home, share her career with her family, educate the community about oral hygiene and add to the dental literature in one fell swoop. As a dentist and a dad, I applaud the author’s novel approach to our profession! Wayne W. Maibaum, D.M.D. New Rochelle, N.Y. AN OMISSION
The Brown and Lazar article on dental service capacity between 1982 and 1995 (May JADA) presents extremely important new information on the evolving ability of the profession to deliver dental services. But their report omitted 1072
a necessary further step—to view the total picture—when the authors failed to consider population increases during this period. While the treating hour capacity of all dentists in private practice during the 1982-95 period increased by 25.4 percent, in terms of treating hours per person in our country, the overall increase for the period was 10.2 percent. This more complete picture of the ability of private practicing dentists to deliver services to the general population would add to our appreciation of the impact of the “23.1 percent decrease between 1986/1987 and 1996/1997 in the number of dental school graduates.” H. Barry Waldman, D.D.S., Ph.D. Stony Brook, N.Y. TOOTHBRUSH CARE
I read with great interest and enthusiasm the article by Dr. Mary Zolnowski-Casey in the May issue on the importance of good toothbrush care. I would like to point out several areas in the article which need further attention. First, Dr. Zolnowski-Casey states that in 16,000 articles on the toothbrush, she found only two articles that pertain to sanitation. Having been the first investigator to address the problems of disease transmission by the toothbrush, I would cite 18 articles and abstracts that I have personally authored dealing with the topic of toothbrush care. Second, several of the above articles address the magnification of the toothbrush problem by allowing the toothbrush to be stored in the bathroom, as
Dr. Zolnowski-Casey suggested. Our studies, which have been confirmed by other investigators, have found that the bathroom is the most contaminated room in the house. Conversely, our studies have also found that the contamination of the bathroom can be prevented by using an ultraviolet light toothbrush storage device such as the Purebrush Antibacterial Toothbrush Storage System (Murdock Laboratories). Third, when our studies looked at aerobic, facultative anaerobic, obligate anaerobic, yeast/fungal and viral microorganism contaminated toothbrushes, we found that the only way to have uniform killing of all microorganisms was to use an ultraviolet light toothbrush storage device. Chemical treatments (such as Dr. ZolnowskiCasey’s suggestion), dishwashing, boiling, autoclaving and even microwaving either did not kill large numbers and groups of microorganisms or rendered the toothbrushes unusable. The one caveat is that we were able to sterilize toothbrushes with ethylene oxide; however, this carcinogenic chemical has an affinity for the plastics of the toothbrush and the bristles and would therefore be inappropriate to use on a regular basis. Again, let me compliment the Journal of the American Dental Association and Dr. Zolnowski-Casey for publishing this article on a very important subject for every dental professional and every dental patient. R. Tom Glass, D.D.S., Ph.D. Tulsa, Okla. NEEDY CHILDREN
The article on child dental ser-
JADA, Vol. 129, August 1998 Copyright ©1998-2001 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.
LETTERS JADA welcomes letters from
readers on topics of current interest in dentistry. The Journal reserves the right to edit all communications and requires that all letters be typed, doublespaced and signed. The views expressed are those of the letter writer and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or official policy of the Association. Brevity is appreciated.
DOING IT ALL
Kudos to Dr. Mary ZolnowskiCasey for her Clinical Directions article, “An Infection Control Procedure That Is the Patient’s Responsibility” in the May issue. Although the content was interesting, I was most impressed by the author’s creative combination of career and family. Dr. Zolnowski-Casey managed to contribute to her daughter’s science project, improve the safety of her home, share her career with her family, educate the community about oral hygiene and add to the dental literature in one fell swoop. As a dentist and a dad, I applaud the author’s novel approach to our profession! Wayne W. Maibaum, D.M.D. New Rochelle, N.Y. AN OMISSION
The Brown and Lazar article on dental service capacity between 1982 and 1995 (May JADA) presents extremely important new information on the evolving ability of the profession to deliver dental services. But their report omitted 1072
a necessary further step—to view the total picture—when the authors failed to consider population increases during this period. While the treating hour capacity of all dentists in private practice during the 1982-95 period increased by 25.4 percent, in terms of treating hours per person in our country, the overall increase for the period was 10.2 percent. This more complete picture of the ability of private practicing dentists to deliver services to the general population would add to our appreciation of the impact of the “23.1 percent decrease between 1986/1987 and 1996/1997 in the number of dental school graduates.” H. Barry Waldman, D.D.S., Ph.D. Stony Brook, N.Y. TOOTHBRUSH CARE
I read with great interest and enthusiasm the article by Dr. Mary Zolnowski-Casey in the May issue on the importance of good toothbrush care. I would like to point out several areas in the article which need further attention. First, Dr. Zolnowski-Casey states that in 16,000 articles on the toothbrush, she found only two articles that pertain to sanitation. Having been the first investigator to address the problems of disease transmission by the toothbrush, I would cite 18 articles and abstracts that I have personally authored dealing with the topic of toothbrush care. Second, several of the above articles address the magnification of the toothbrush problem by allowing the toothbrush to be stored in the bathroom, as
Dr. Zolnowski-Casey suggested. Our studies, which have been confirmed by other investigators, have found that the bathroom is the most contaminated room in the house. Conversely, our studies have also found that the contamination of the bathroom can be prevented by using an ultraviolet light toothbrush storage device such as the Purebrush Antibacterial Toothbrush Storage System (Murdock Laboratories). Third, when our studies looked at aerobic, facultative anaerobic, obligate anaerobic, yeast/fungal and viral microorganism contaminated toothbrushes, we found that the only way to have uniform killing of all microorganisms was to use an ultraviolet light toothbrush storage device. Chemical treatments (such as Dr. ZolnowskiCasey’s suggestion), dishwashing, boiling, autoclaving and even microwaving either did not kill large numbers and groups of microorganisms or rendered the toothbrushes unusable. The one caveat is that we were able to sterilize toothbrushes with ethylene oxide; however, this carcinogenic chemical has an affinity for the plastics of the toothbrush and the bristles and would therefore be inappropriate to use on a regular basis. Again, let me compliment the Journal of the American Dental Association and Dr. Zolnowski-Casey for publishing this article on a very important subject for every dental professional and every dental patient. R. Tom Glass, D.D.S., Ph.D. Tulsa, Okla. NEEDY CHILDREN
The article on child dental ser-
JADA, Vol. 129, August 1998 Copyright ©1998-2001 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.