- Email: [email protected]
WOMEN FEAR DENTAL VISITS MORE THAN MEN
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ORAL RINSE PREDICTS BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT EFFECTIVENESS
imple analysis of a bone marrow transplantation patient’s oral rinse can indicate the transplant’s effectiveness and predict whether an infection will develop, according to an article in the June 6 advance online publication of the journal Bone Marrow Transplantation. Three University of Toronto researchers monitored the oral rinses of 29 pediatric bone marrow transplantation patients. They tested the basic sodium bicarbonate solutions for the return of neutrophils—specialized white blood cells that fight infection. Their test was able to detect the white blood cells about a week earlier than the blood test that commonly is used to confirm a successful bone marrow transplantation. The gap between the time the test showed the presence of white blood cells in the patients’ mouths and the time the cells appeared in a blood test also indicated the patients who likely would be prone to infection during their recovery. A difference of less than four days was an excellent indicator of patients who were susceptible to infection, said the researchers. “It shows promise as a noninvasive way to track a patient’s recovery,” said corresponding author Dr. Michael Glogauer. “We are using mice to study the underlying mechanisms at work here to help us better understand white blood cell recovery and function during bone marrow transplant therapy.” Researchers also are experimenting with ways to make the test applicable at the bedside by
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developing a reaction that will cause the rinse to change color when the presence of white blood cells is detected. INFLAMMATION LINKED TO ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
xposure to inflammation early in life quadruples one’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, said researchers in a presentation on June 19 at the first Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Prevention of Dementia in Washington. A research team led by Margaret Gatz, Ph.D. (a professor of psychology at the University of Southern California) and including researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, sifted through data on the 20,000 participants in the Swedish Twin Registry and found 109 “discordant” pairs of twins in which only one twin had been diagnosed with dementia. Previous studies by Dr. Gatz and colleagues have shown that Alzheimer’s disease is strongly genetic; if one twin has the disease, his or her identical twin has a 60 percent chance of developing it. Information about participants’ education, activities and health histories came from surveys they completed in the 1960s, when the registry was created, as well as from hospital discharge records. The surveys included questions about loose or missing teeth. Researchers used the answers to the dental-related questions to build a crude indicator of periodontal disease. They concluded that an inflammatory burden early in life, as represented by chronic
E
periodontal disease, might have severe consequences later. “If what we’re indexing with periodontal disease is some kind of inflammatory burden, then it is probably speaking to general health conditions,” said Dr. Gatz. If the link between inflammation and periodontal disease is confirmed, researchers said it would add inflammatory burden to the short list of preventable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. WOMEN FEAR DENTAL VISITS MORE THAN MEN
omen are two and one-half times more likely than men to fear a visit to the dentist, according to a study published in the June issue of the journal Anesthesia Progress. Researchers at the University of Toronto surveyed 1,1000 Canadians. They found that 5.5 percent of those surveyed were very afraid of seeing a dentist, and about one-half of those had canceled or avoided a dental appointment as a result, compared with only 5.2 percent of those people who reported having low anxiety. When researchers extrapolated the data to the adult Canadian population, they found that more than 400,000 people may not have visited the dentist last year owing to fear or anxiety. In addition, more than 1.5 million may have canceled or avoided an appointment at some time in their lives. “People may get by, but cavities and gum disease can lead to infection and to a serious, systemic health issue,” said study co-author Dr. Daniel Haas. “It’s not just a cosmetic issue.” One potential remedy is increased use of general anes-
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www.ada.org/goto/jada August 2005 Copyright ©2005 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.
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thesia or sedation. The survey data indicate that 12.4 percent of those surveyed were definitely interested in those options, with another 42.3 percent expressing interest if the cost were not prohibitive. “Both dentists and the general public need to be aware that these options are available,” said Dr. Haas. “Consider comparable medical procedures—people never even question whether there’s a need for sedation, it’s simply accepted practice.” CORRECTIONS
dIn the June JADA article “Intensity of Quartz-TungstenHalogen Light-Curing Units Used in Private Practice in Toronto” by Omar El-Mowafy, B.D.S., Ph.D., F.A.D.M., and colleagues, the first name of one of the co-authors was misspelled. The correct spelling is Avedis Encioiu. dThe last Appointments/ Elections/Awards item on p. 726 of June JADA contains an error. The organization is the USA Section of the International College of Dentists. Compiled by Amy E. Lund, editorial coordinator.
MEETINGS
dThe Austrian Dental Congress 2005 will be held Oct. 5-9 in Vienna. For more information, contact Mrs. Hedwig Schulz by phone at 011-43-1405-13-83-10, by fax at 011-431-405-13-82-23 or by e-mail at “[email protected]”. dThe National Association of Dental Laboratories will hold NADL Vision 21 East Oct. 6-8 in Orlando, Fla. For more information, contact Adrienne Tooley by phone at 1-800-950-1150 or by e-mail at “meetings@ nadl.org”. 1086
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dThe First Meeting of the Latin America Federation of the International Association for Dental Research will be held Oct. 13-15 in Mar del Plata, Argentina. For more information, visit “www. latinamericanfed.org”. dThe American Academy of Implant Dentistry will hold its 54th Annual Meeting Oct. 19-23 in Scottsdale, Ariz. For more information, contact Laurie Storen by phone at 1-312-3351550, by fax at 1-312-335-9090 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.aaidimplant.org”. dThe American Society for Dental Aesthetics will hold its 29th Annual International Aesthetic Conference Oct. 20-22 in Dallas. For more information, contact Dr. Dan Ward by phone at 1-888-988-2732 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.asdatoday.com”. dThe Fifth Vietnam Scientific Dental Congress & Exhibition will be held Oct. 20-22 in Hanoi. For more information, contact Dr. Pham Duong Chau by phone at 011-84-4-285-349 or by fax 011-84-4-258-348. dThe 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Maxillofacial Prosthetics will be held Oct. 23-25 in Los Angeles. For more information, contact Dr. Glenn E. Turner by phone at 1-352-846-2684, by fax at 1-352-846-2683 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.maxillofacialprosth.org”. dThe 28th Annual Meeting of the Society of Craniofacial Genetics in conjunction with the 55th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics will be held Oct. 25 in Salt Lake City. For more information, visit “craniofacialgenetics.org”.
dThe 2005 American College of Prosthodontists Annual Session will be held Oct. 26-29 in Los Angeles. For more information, contact Edward J. Cronin, Jr. by phone at 1-312573-1260, by fax at 1-312-5731257 or by e-mail at “ecronin@ prosthodontics.org” or visit “www.prosthodontics.org”. APPOINTMENTS/ ELECTIONS/AWARDS
dDr. Marc Balson, Livingston, N.J., was elected president of the American Association of Endodontists. Other officers are Dr. John Olmsted, Greensboro, N.C., president-elect; Dr. Shepard S. Goldstein, Framingham, Mass., vice president; Dr. Louis E. Rossman, Philadelphia, secretary; Dr. Gerald N. Glickman, Dallas, treasurer; and Dr. Sandra Madison, Asheville, N.C., immediate past president. dDr. Allen Carrell, Shenandoah, Iowa, was elected president of the Iowa Dental Association. Other officers are Dr. P.T. Grimes, Marion, president-elect; Dr. Richard Hettinger, Sioux City, vice president; and Dr. Heyo Tjarks, Dubuque, speaker of the house. dDr. Gordon Christensen, Provo, Utah, received the Irwin Smigel Prize in Aesthetic Dentistry from the New York University College of Dentistry. dDr. B. Melvin DeSoto, Shreveport, La., was elected president of the American Association of Orthodontists. Other officers are Dr. Donald R. Joondeph, Bellevue, Wash., president-elect; and Dr. William C. Gaylord, Flagstaff, Ariz., secretary-treasurer. dDr. H. Pitts Hinson,
www.ada.org/goto/jada August 2005 Copyright ©2005 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.
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S
ORAL RINSE PREDICTS BONE MARROW TRANSPLANT EFFECTIVENESS
imple analysis of a bone marrow transplantation patient’s oral rinse can indicate the transplant’s effectiveness and predict whether an infection will develop, according to an article in the June 6 advance online publication of the journal Bone Marrow Transplantation. Three University of Toronto researchers monitored the oral rinses of 29 pediatric bone marrow transplantation patients. They tested the basic sodium bicarbonate solutions for the return of neutrophils—specialized white blood cells that fight infection. Their test was able to detect the white blood cells about a week earlier than the blood test that commonly is used to confirm a successful bone marrow transplantation. The gap between the time the test showed the presence of white blood cells in the patients’ mouths and the time the cells appeared in a blood test also indicated the patients who likely would be prone to infection during their recovery. A difference of less than four days was an excellent indicator of patients who were susceptible to infection, said the researchers. “It shows promise as a noninvasive way to track a patient’s recovery,” said corresponding author Dr. Michael Glogauer. “We are using mice to study the underlying mechanisms at work here to help us better understand white blood cell recovery and function during bone marrow transplant therapy.” Researchers also are experimenting with ways to make the test applicable at the bedside by
S
1084
JADA, Vol. 136
developing a reaction that will cause the rinse to change color when the presence of white blood cells is detected. INFLAMMATION LINKED TO ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE
xposure to inflammation early in life quadruples one’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, said researchers in a presentation on June 19 at the first Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Prevention of Dementia in Washington. A research team led by Margaret Gatz, Ph.D. (a professor of psychology at the University of Southern California) and including researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, sifted through data on the 20,000 participants in the Swedish Twin Registry and found 109 “discordant” pairs of twins in which only one twin had been diagnosed with dementia. Previous studies by Dr. Gatz and colleagues have shown that Alzheimer’s disease is strongly genetic; if one twin has the disease, his or her identical twin has a 60 percent chance of developing it. Information about participants’ education, activities and health histories came from surveys they completed in the 1960s, when the registry was created, as well as from hospital discharge records. The surveys included questions about loose or missing teeth. Researchers used the answers to the dental-related questions to build a crude indicator of periodontal disease. They concluded that an inflammatory burden early in life, as represented by chronic
E
periodontal disease, might have severe consequences later. “If what we’re indexing with periodontal disease is some kind of inflammatory burden, then it is probably speaking to general health conditions,” said Dr. Gatz. If the link between inflammation and periodontal disease is confirmed, researchers said it would add inflammatory burden to the short list of preventable risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. WOMEN FEAR DENTAL VISITS MORE THAN MEN
omen are two and one-half times more likely than men to fear a visit to the dentist, according to a study published in the June issue of the journal Anesthesia Progress. Researchers at the University of Toronto surveyed 1,1000 Canadians. They found that 5.5 percent of those surveyed were very afraid of seeing a dentist, and about one-half of those had canceled or avoided a dental appointment as a result, compared with only 5.2 percent of those people who reported having low anxiety. When researchers extrapolated the data to the adult Canadian population, they found that more than 400,000 people may not have visited the dentist last year owing to fear or anxiety. In addition, more than 1.5 million may have canceled or avoided an appointment at some time in their lives. “People may get by, but cavities and gum disease can lead to infection and to a serious, systemic health issue,” said study co-author Dr. Daniel Haas. “It’s not just a cosmetic issue.” One potential remedy is increased use of general anes-
W
www.ada.org/goto/jada August 2005 Copyright ©2005 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.
N E W S
thesia or sedation. The survey data indicate that 12.4 percent of those surveyed were definitely interested in those options, with another 42.3 percent expressing interest if the cost were not prohibitive. “Both dentists and the general public need to be aware that these options are available,” said Dr. Haas. “Consider comparable medical procedures—people never even question whether there’s a need for sedation, it’s simply accepted practice.” CORRECTIONS
dIn the June JADA article “Intensity of Quartz-TungstenHalogen Light-Curing Units Used in Private Practice in Toronto” by Omar El-Mowafy, B.D.S., Ph.D., F.A.D.M., and colleagues, the first name of one of the co-authors was misspelled. The correct spelling is Avedis Encioiu. dThe last Appointments/ Elections/Awards item on p. 726 of June JADA contains an error. The organization is the USA Section of the International College of Dentists. Compiled by Amy E. Lund, editorial coordinator.
MEETINGS
dThe Austrian Dental Congress 2005 will be held Oct. 5-9 in Vienna. For more information, contact Mrs. Hedwig Schulz by phone at 011-43-1405-13-83-10, by fax at 011-431-405-13-82-23 or by e-mail at “[email protected]”. dThe National Association of Dental Laboratories will hold NADL Vision 21 East Oct. 6-8 in Orlando, Fla. For more information, contact Adrienne Tooley by phone at 1-800-950-1150 or by e-mail at “meetings@ nadl.org”. 1086
JADA, Vol. 136
dThe First Meeting of the Latin America Federation of the International Association for Dental Research will be held Oct. 13-15 in Mar del Plata, Argentina. For more information, visit “www. latinamericanfed.org”. dThe American Academy of Implant Dentistry will hold its 54th Annual Meeting Oct. 19-23 in Scottsdale, Ariz. For more information, contact Laurie Storen by phone at 1-312-3351550, by fax at 1-312-335-9090 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.aaidimplant.org”. dThe American Society for Dental Aesthetics will hold its 29th Annual International Aesthetic Conference Oct. 20-22 in Dallas. For more information, contact Dr. Dan Ward by phone at 1-888-988-2732 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.asdatoday.com”. dThe Fifth Vietnam Scientific Dental Congress & Exhibition will be held Oct. 20-22 in Hanoi. For more information, contact Dr. Pham Duong Chau by phone at 011-84-4-285-349 or by fax 011-84-4-258-348. dThe 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Maxillofacial Prosthetics will be held Oct. 23-25 in Los Angeles. For more information, contact Dr. Glenn E. Turner by phone at 1-352-846-2684, by fax at 1-352-846-2683 or by e-mail at “[email protected]” or visit “www.maxillofacialprosth.org”. dThe 28th Annual Meeting of the Society of Craniofacial Genetics in conjunction with the 55th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics will be held Oct. 25 in Salt Lake City. For more information, visit “craniofacialgenetics.org”.
dThe 2005 American College of Prosthodontists Annual Session will be held Oct. 26-29 in Los Angeles. For more information, contact Edward J. Cronin, Jr. by phone at 1-312573-1260, by fax at 1-312-5731257 or by e-mail at “ecronin@ prosthodontics.org” or visit “www.prosthodontics.org”. APPOINTMENTS/ ELECTIONS/AWARDS
dDr. Marc Balson, Livingston, N.J., was elected president of the American Association of Endodontists. Other officers are Dr. John Olmsted, Greensboro, N.C., president-elect; Dr. Shepard S. Goldstein, Framingham, Mass., vice president; Dr. Louis E. Rossman, Philadelphia, secretary; Dr. Gerald N. Glickman, Dallas, treasurer; and Dr. Sandra Madison, Asheville, N.C., immediate past president. dDr. Allen Carrell, Shenandoah, Iowa, was elected president of the Iowa Dental Association. Other officers are Dr. P.T. Grimes, Marion, president-elect; Dr. Richard Hettinger, Sioux City, vice president; and Dr. Heyo Tjarks, Dubuque, speaker of the house. dDr. Gordon Christensen, Provo, Utah, received the Irwin Smigel Prize in Aesthetic Dentistry from the New York University College of Dentistry. dDr. B. Melvin DeSoto, Shreveport, La., was elected president of the American Association of Orthodontists. Other officers are Dr. Donald R. Joondeph, Bellevue, Wash., president-elect; and Dr. William C. Gaylord, Flagstaff, Ariz., secretary-treasurer. dDr. H. Pitts Hinson,
www.ada.org/goto/jada August 2005 Copyright ©2005 American Dental Association. All rights reserved.