Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

PUBLISHED IN LONDON November 2013 VOL. 7 NO 13 Hygienist to walk 500 miles Through Mouth Cancer Ac- tion Month 2014, Christina will be walking ‘500 miles for 500 smiles’ from Scotland to Brighton and in doing so, raise awareness of mouth cancer. The campaign launched in Brighton on, and will mark the start of a remarkable journey for owner of Dental Health Spa Brighton and Dental Hygienist of the Year Christina. The walk will begin in Kirriemuir, Scot- land, where Christina’s career began, and conclude at her current practice in Brighton, passing through 32 destina- tions. The money raised will go towards Mouth Cancer Action Month. For further informa- tion about the campaign, visit www.500miles4smiles.org Dental nursing award Joan Hatchard, a dental nurse for over 30 years, has been awarded the 2013 Outstanding Contribution to Dental Nursing Award by the British Associa- tion of Dental Nurses (BADN). The award was presented by outgoing BADN President, Nicola Docherty, at the Nation- al Dental Nursing Conference at the NEC in Birmingham. Joan gained her initial dental nursing qualification in 1988, then gained additional ones in Dental Sedation Nursing, Dental Radiography and Oral Health Education. In 1989 she began teaching dental nurses, and became a fully qualified Further Education teacher. As well as teaching, she is an ex- aminer for the National Exam- ining Board for Dental Nurses for both the NEBDN Diploma and Oral Health Education qualifications. Magnetic fields could help smokers quit Magnetic fields that alter brain activity may help people quit smoking, according to a study. The study, carried out by a team of researchers at Ben- Gurion University in Israel, was presented at the Neurosci- ence 2013 conference in San Diego. The researchers used transcranial magnetic stimula- tion (TMS) to ‘undo’ nicotine addiction in the brain. Mag- netic fields at two regions of the brain associated with addiction to nicotine – the prefrontal cortex and the insula cortex – were targeted. Participants in the study were split into three groups – those getting high- frequency TMS, low-frequency TMS or no treatment at all. The smokers in the study who were given high-frequency TMS were found to have lower lev- els of smoking and were more likely to quit at the end of the six-month study. www.dental-tribune.co.uk Endodontic irrigants Gary Glassman discusses Happier patients Transforming lives with straighter teeth Water lines Are yours clean? News in Brief ClinicalPractice Management Endo TribuneNews NHS More ‘openness’ for health system page 2 pages 11-15 pages 19-20pages 8-10 D ental practices across the UK are being en- couraged to check pa- tients for signs of mouth can- cer and make people aware of the four main risk factors for the disease: smoking, drink- ing alcohol to excess, poor diet and the human papillo- mavirus (HPV) often transmit- ted through oral sex. The importance of the campaign is shown through latest figures which show that more than half of us are more frightened of developing mouth cancer (50.3 per cent) than other cancers. The research, conducted on behalf of the British Dental Health Foundation and Den- plan, also found that 75 per cent don’t think they’re at risk from mouth cancer. It is estimated that around 60,000 people in the UK will be diagnosed with mouth cancer in the next decade. Without early detection, an estimated 30,000 will die. Henry Clover, Deputy Chief Dental Officer from Denplan, said: “Given that more than half of people we asked said mouth cancer was more frightening than other cancers, I would hope this concern translates into action. “Mouth cancer can se- verely affect some of the very things we take for granted. Speaking, eating, drinking and breathing can all be af- fected by radiotherapy, chem- otherapy and surgery result- ing from the disease. “Throughout the campaign we urge everyone to take ac- tion and visit their dentist. They are in the best position to check your mouth thoroughly for signs and symptoms of the disease.” Dr Nigel Carter OBE, Chief Executive of the BDHF, said: “Tobacco use and drinking al- cohol to excess can increase the risk of developing mouth cancer by up to 30 times. Ex- perts forecast the human pap- illomavirus (HPV) will over- take smoking as the principle cause of the disease within the next ten years, and almost half of all cases in the UK have been linked to poor diet. “The campaign is a great opportunity for the public to learn about the risks and what to look out for. Ulcers that do not heal within three weeks, red and white patches and unusual lumps or swellings in the mouth should not be ig- nored. Our advice is clear – if in doubt, get checked out.” Turn to page six for more information about Mouth Cancer Action Month. DT Mouth cancer is ‘most frightening’ cancer November is Mouth Cancer Action Month, a campaign organised by the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) that aims to raise awareness of the risks and symptoms of the disease ‘It is estimated that around 60,000 peo- ple in the UK will be diagnosed with mouth cancer in the next decade’