Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

6 News United Kingdom Edition May 2014 T eeth are becoming the new indicator of social status, according to so- cial scientists Malcolm Glad- well. The writer of David and Goliath said that obesity and bad teeth will now define sta- tus and hamper upward mo- bility, rather than race and gender. He told The Times: “That’s kind of the way we’re moving, as the gap between the fit and unfit grows. The teeth thing and the obesity problem are the same: they are symptoms of the same set of inferences that are being drawn.” He also added that hav- ing bad teeth will mean that you are denied certain entry- level jobs, leading to a lower chance of success. This follows a poll con- ducted by Vision Critical last year that found people with whiter teeth were thought to earn £10,000 more on average than they actually did. Those surveyed thought their teeth made them look up to five years younger and improved their employment potential by 10 per cent. DT A new report from the World Health Organisa- tion (WHO) reveals the serious global threat of antibi- otic resistance. The report reviewed the levels of antimicrobial resist- ance in many types of bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, in 114 member states. It notes very high levels of resistance in all WHO regions in those that cause both community and healthcare-associated infec- tions; this includes E.coli, MRSA and TB among others. Dr Keiji Fukuda, WHO’s As- sistant Director-General for Health Security, said: “Without urgent, coordinated action by many stakeholders, the world is headed for a post-antibiotic era, in which common infections and minor injuries which have been treatable for decades can once again kill.” Some WHO regions were found to have very high lev- els of antibiotic resistance in many different bacteria, but this wasn’t the case in the UK; resistance to carbapenems, the antibiotics of ‘last resort’ for multi resistant ‘klebsiella’ has increased over the years but the number of isolates is still rela- tively low in the UK. There is an area of concern in the treatment for gonorrhoea, however, as the bacteria shows high levels of resistance across a range of antibiotics. This is coupled with sustained trans- mission and repeat infections. Dr Paul Cosford, Director for Health Protection and Medical Director at PHE, said: “Whilst the UK does not have the levels of antibiotic resistance seen in some parts of the world we do see patients with infections re- sistant to antibiotics. This is a trend that is increasing and we take this very seriously. “Combatting the develop- ment and spread of antibiotic resistance requires a multi- faceted approach and PHE is working very closely with its stakeholders to address this. Our work is contributing to the new cross-government national strategy that aims to tackle one of the biggest healthcare issues of our time.” . DT Antibiotic resistance is ‘serious worldwide threat’ Teeth are new sign of social status E -cigarettes can in- crease drug-resistant and potentially life- threatening bacteria, while decreasing the ability of hu- man cells to kill these bacte- ria, researchers have found. Researchers at the VA San Diego Healthcare System and the University of California, San Diego, tested the effects of e-cigarette vapour on live MRSA and human epithelial cells. Lead investigator Laura Crotty Alexander said that ex- posure to e-cigarette vapour increased the virulence of the bacteria, helping MRSA es- cape killing by antimicrobial peptides and macrophages. However, they found that when MRSA is exposed to regular cigarette smoke, their virulence is even greater. In a mouse model of pneumo- nia, cigarette smoke exposed MRSA had four-times great- er survival in the lungs, and killed 30 per cent more mice than control MRSA. E-ciga- rette vapour-exposed MRSA were also more virulent in mice, with a three-fold higher survival. Crotty Alexander said: “As health care professionals, we are always being asked by pa- tients, ‘Would this be better for me?’ In the case of smok- ing e-cigarettes, I hated not having an answer. While the answer isn’t black and white, our study suggests a response: even if e-cigarettes may not be as bad as tobacco, they still have measurable detrimental effects on health.” DT E-cigarettes increase drug-resistant bacteria O asis Healthcare has acquired Apex Dental Care for an ‘undis- closed sum’. Oasis also took over Smiles Dental in April 2014. The ad- ditions of Apex and Smiles to the Oasis portfolio will in- crease the company’s turno- ver by 40 per cent from £160 million to more than £225 million. Its practice network will have grown by more than 50 per cent from 204 to more than 310 in six weeks. Justin Ash, CEO at Oasis Healthcare Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Apex team to Oasis. Both com- panies share the same com- mitment to providing high quality, easily accessible den- tal care and have developed a patient-led culture. “Adding both Apex and Smiles to the Oasis portfolio rapidly transforms the size and scope of Oasis and under- lines the rapid progress we are making in building a strong, trusted and customer focused dental brand in a fragmented market. Our ambitions for growth do not stop here and we have a strong pipeline of acquisitions and new builds.” Ben Chaing, CEO at Apex Dental said: “We are pleased that Oasis will be taking for- ward the Apex practices and teams. Following initial dis- cussions with the Oasis team it soon became apparent that we shared the same vision for how the dental market should evolve. By combining Apex’s dental practices with Oasis the group will be well placed to continue improving the breadth and quality of our ser- vice to patients with the ben- efit of an expanded network and even stronger clinical support team.” DT Apex Dental Care bought by Oasis Healthcare