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ePaper created 2018-04-25, 10:58:32 | version 1.38.0
| special When prophylaxis means everything and nothing By DTI Readers will likely remember Dr Klaus-Dieter Basten dorf from the first edition of prevention, which introduced the dentist from near Stuttgart in Germany and his modern views on prophylaxis. Six months later, the retired dentist shows no signs of quitting. Every day, he and his daugh- ter champion lifelong oral health together, explaining the importance of staining in biofilm management to peers, among other things. Few dentists speak so convincingly and with such scientific sense when it comes to air polishing and the use of erythritol as the powder of choice for biofilm re- moval. Few dentists profess with such passion that biofilm- induced diseases such as dental caries and peri- odontitis can be prevented relatively easily through a combination of recall, motivation and the latest powder technology. And few dentists know that any patient seri- ously questioning whether two professional tooth clean- ing sessions and four new toothbrushes a year are really necessary should look 10,000 km to the south-west first. While we in western Europe often stumble on our way to achieving modern prophylaxis, the road is much rockier in remote Pucyura, located in central Peru, almost 3 hours drive west of the city of Cuzco. In the Andean villages at an altitude of between 2,000 and 4,000 m, people still speak Quechua. Life seems wretched and modest—most of the inhabitants live in clay brick houses without glazed windows. The trip to school some- times takes 4 hours—each way. This remote location in South America experienced a dental miracle, in which Bastendorf played a significant role. However, it is Margit and Uwe Meyer who actually deserve the credit. The youthful couple from southern Germany have been working with children in need for 72 prevention 1 2018