Make a Resolution for a Healthy Smile

While many of us make New Year’s resolutions to lead healthier lifestyles by eating right, exercising more, or engaging in stress reducing activities, we may forget to include maintaining good oral health in that list.  The most frequently cited reasons for not maintaining a regular dental check up schedule is fear.  Many people are flat out afraid of visiting a dentist.  The reasons vary from a bad prior experience, to watching a movie with an evil dentist, to a true case of needle phobia. The good news is that for these patients, we offer sedation options that can help alleviate fear, and make the visit, from a  simple cleaning to a complex procedure, as comfortable and pain-free as possible.

The story of one of our favorite patients is a perfect example of how deeply ingrained fears can be overcome.  She saw me on a WGHP FOX TV” Your Turn” segment in which I am featured as  a guest doctor every other month. She had not been to the dentist in over twenty years because she was very  dental phobic with high anxiety due to a horrible childhood experience, and literally had a seizure when she saw a needle. She also happened to be my postal carrier, and when she was delivering mail to my house one day, saw my wife, and asked  if our practice offered sedation dentistry.

My wife, Anita,  encouraged the patient to call us. We had a personal consultation in which we listened to her fears, and understood that she would be unable to be treated in our office due to her situation. We suggested that the work be performed at Moses Cone Medical Center, where I have had privileges for the past 23 years.  My dental assistants have helped with many cases in the operating suite.  

The patient had a physical examination to confirm that she was a candidate for sedation dentistry, and when that was established, we scheduled the work to be completed in the operating suite at the Hospital.  On the morning of the surgery, The patient was given a dose of valium to help her relax, and the anesthesiologist administered a general anesthesia so that she would be completely sedated for the duration of the work.  During the procedure, which took from 7 am until 1 pm, we put in 24 crowns, performed several extractions, and did periodontal work on all four quadrants to treat the gum disease that her lack of cleanings had produced.

The result was overwhelming. Our patient was elated with her new smile. Due to this experience, she has overcome most of her anxiety about visiting us.  She now comes to our office for her regularly scheduled hygiene visits, and is given a dose of nitrous oxide and the opportunity to listen to her  favorite music on headphones.   So, if you find that you or a family member have been putting off visiting us because of deep-seated, rational or irrational fears, consider making 2010 the year that you defeat these, and embrace good dental health.

Stay warm! Dr. Mark Hyman