I Don’t Need That, We’re Already Getting Good Results

Posted on November 29, 2019May 20, 2021 by Richard H. Nagelberg, DDS

The enemy of optimal patient care is complacency. Why would anyone settle for good results when optimal results are so easily achieved? Put yourself in your patient’s place in the exam chair: would you then want only good enough? Patients trust their dental professionals to provide the voice in decision regarding their care. If given the choice between practicing blindly, with no information about the specific bacterial cause of their individual case of periodontal disease, and having the ...

Identify & Destroy! Synergistic Pathogenic Biofilm Management

Posted on November 22, 2019May 20, 2021 by Karen Davis RDH, BSDH

Synergy is the combined effect of two things being greater than either one independently. As a veteran of managing periodontal diseases, that is how I view salivary diagnostics and Guided Biofilm Therapy (GBT). With salivary diagnostics I can identify specific pathogens thriving in my patient’s biofilm, and through the process of GBT I am able to dismantle and destroy those pathogens. This is synergy at its best. Quick review of pathogenic biofilm, then we can focus on GBT and salivary...

Systemic Inflammation, Elevated hs-CRP, and Oral Bacterial Pathogens Decrease After Two Years of Natural Dental Health Treatments: A Case Study

Posted on November 8, 2019May 20, 2021 by Cass Nelson-Dooley MS, Ellie Campbell DO

Heart Disease Begins in the Mouth High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) is the most clear, quantifiable, and readily accessible marker of the oral-systemic connection. We present a case study of an otherwise healthy 62-year-old woman with elevated hs-CRP who had abundant numbers of pathogenic oral bacteria. A natural dental health treatment over two years lowered hs-CRP and lowered oral pathogens. Given the links between oral disease, inflammation, and heart disease, it is wise to ...

How do you speak Joint/Musculoskeletal Health and Periodontal Disease to your patients?

Posted on November 1, 2019August 14, 2024 by Jill Wade DDS, MAGD

Dr. McGlennen: Like periodontitis, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory condition. But unlike periodontitis, where the genesis of the inflammation is the complex infections in the gingival sulcus, the cause of RA is unknown. Recent studies, however, provide insights that, in part, oral bacteria play a role in evoking an abnormal immune response that then leads to joint disease. In a recent meta-analysis of 21 separate studies, there was a significantly increased risk of per...

Be the Guide, Not the Hero

Posted on October 11, 2019May 20, 2021 by Debbie Ozment DDS MS, NBC-HWC, ABAAHP

We care deeply for our patient family and are oral-systemic experts. Because we have invested enormous amounts of time and money in quality education, we know best what people need for strong teeth and a long health span. Our patients appreciate this and always listen intently to what we tell them they need to do. They happily reach into their wallets and hand us their credit card. Right? In my 34 years of clinical experience: Wrong! People buy what they want, not necessarily what they ...

Nobody Has Ever Done that Before

Posted on September 27, 2019May 20, 2021 by Lee Sheldon DMD PA

In this era of trying to differentiate yourself from the provider down the street, a simple solution is incorporating OralDNA® salivary testing services. Imagine a patient who has had periodontal disease and has seen several dentists and periodontists in the past. They may have been told they have pockets, but what do pockets mean to a patient? Perhaps a lot, but only if they have been properly educated about the consequences of a pocket deepening. Let’s look at this from another persp...

What’s Your Excuse?

Posted on August 30, 2019May 20, 2021 by Richard H. Nagelberg, DDS

It is difficult to understand the resistance by dental professionals to test for the bacteria that cause gum disease. The excuses are numerous including, “I’ve always done it this way”. A variation on this notion is “We were always taught”. Other excuses shift the decision to the patients. “My patients won’t accept it”. Equally unsupported excuses include “We’re already getting good results”, or “I don’t need that”, or “What difference will it make?” Claims of insufficient time are very comm...

Why I Teach Salivary Testing as a Dental Hygiene Instructor

Posted on August 16, 2019May 20, 2021 by Lisa Proffitt, RDH, BS

I am a dental hygienist and have spent most of my career in a periodontal practice. Most recently I split my time at Dr. Steven Peiser’s office and serve as a faculty member at Goodwin College in Connecticut teaching Oral Pathology to dental hygiene students. It has been so exciting to teach this course and share my knowledge and experience. Specifically, I most enjoy teaching about the relationship of pathogenic bacteria to the oral-systemic link which is crucial to understand wh...

Periodontal Disease, Perio Pathogens & Rocket Science

Posted on July 5, 2019May 20, 2021 by Richard H. Nagelberg, DDS

Risk factors for heart attack include; age, tobacco, high blood pressure, lipid profile, diabetes, family history of heart attack, lack of physical activity, obesity, stress, illicit drug use, history of preeclampsia, history of autoimmune condition such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis and so on and so on. Why have all these risk factors been identified? Because it is better to prevent a heart attack than it is to have one. Risk factor identification and modification is the cornerstone of p...

A Periodontist’s Nonsurgical Approach to Periodontal Disease: Part 2

Posted on June 21, 2019May 20, 2021 by Lee Sheldon DMD PA

Last week I wrote on how MyPerioPath® testing impacts patient diagnosis. Now I will address another aspect of the report, the systemic antibiotic option. There are some “purists” out there who say they don’t need antibiotics, and that they only need clinical evaluation to treat a periodontal infection. I can’t see the bacteria. I don’t know the involvement or virulence of these pathogens. While I strongly believe that antibiotics are overused in health care, when there is a true infection of...