Robert S. Gurmankin, DMD

Dental News of Interest Go To Links

Surgeons Implant Tooth To Recover Woman's Sight

Sharron Kay Thornton Was Blind For 9 Years, Now Can See Thanks To Lens In Implanted Tooth

Surgeons in Miami have performed an unusual operation that has given the gift of sight back to a 60-year-old woman who had been blind for the
last nine years. The surgeons removed a tooth, drilled a hole in it, inserted a plastic lens into the hole, and implanted the tooth-lens combination into her eye.

The first of its kind operation in the United States has restored Sharron "Kay" Thornton's vision to 20/70. She can now recognize faces and
read a newspaper with a magnifying glass, reports CBS station WFOR-TV in Miami.

Thornton lost her vision nine years ago to Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. The disease destroys the cells on the surface of the eye which left
Thornton's cornea scarred. Thornton wasn't a candidate for a cornea transplant or an artificial lens because the eye was so badly damaged by the reaction. Thornton's doctors at Miami's Bascom Palmer Eye Institute had previously tried a stem cell procedure to fix her vision.

That's when she was referred to Dr. Victor Perez, a cornea specialist at Bascom Palmer and professor of ophthalmology at the University of
Miami's Miller School of Medicine. Perez had trained under a doctor from Rome who developed a modified version of the tooth-lens procedure.

The procedure is known as modified osteo-odonto-keatroprosthesis. Doctors in Miami chose Thornton's eyetooth (canine) and then shaved and sculpted the tooth before implanting the tooth and lens into the skin. A doctor will then prepare the surface of the eye by removing scar tissue surrounding the damaged cornea.

One month later, mucous material is collected from inside of the patient's cheek and used to cover and rehabilitate the surface of the damaged
eye. Finally, doctors removed the prosthesis from under the skin and implanted it into the eye. The prosthesis is aligned with the center of the eye
and a hole is made in the mucosa for the prosthetic lens. The new lens protrudes slightly from the eye and enables light to re-enter the eye allowing the patient to see.

"I'm so thankful that the doctors at Bascom Palmer never gave up on me; they kept searching," Thornton said. "I'm looking forward to seeing my
seven youngest grandchildren for the first time."

Thornton's vision is expected to improve past the 20/70 mark where it currently stands. "Without sight, life is really hard. I'm hoping this surgery will help countless people," Thornton said.

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Gum Disease Linked To Head & Neck Cancer

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – The health hazards associated with chronic periodontitis (gum disease) extend way beyond the mouth. For years people have been warned that persistent periodontitis can cause heart disease. Now a new study suggests that gum disease may also be a risk factor for cancers of the head and neck.

As reported in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention, the study included 266 patients with cancers of the head or neck treated between 1999 and 2005, and 207 control subjects.

Periodontitis was determined by alveolar bone loss seen on x-rays, Dr. Mine Tezal, from The State University of New York, Buffalo, and colleagues note. Alveolar bone is the ridge of bone that surrounds the roots of the teeth, holding them in place. Loss of this bone is typically seen with severe periodontal disease.

With each millimeter of alveolar bone loss, the risk of head and neck cancer increased more than 4-fold, the report indicates. (One millimeter is about the size of the head of a pin.) The link was seen even in subjects who had never used tobacco and alcohol.

"Confirmatory studies ... are needed," Dr. Tezal said in a statement.

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Sports Drink Consumption Can Cause Tooth Erosion, Study Finds

While sipping on sports drinks all day may provide an energy boost, this popular practice is also exposing people to levels of acid that can cause tooth erosion and hypersensitivity, NYU dental researchers have found.

In a recent study, the researchers found that prolonged consumption of sports drinks may be linked to a condition known as erosive tooth wear, in which acids eat away the tooth's smooth hard enamel coating and trickle into the bonelike material underneath, causing the tooth to soften and weaken. The condition affects one in 15 Americans and can result in severe tooth damage and even tooth loss if left untreated.

"This is the first time that the citric acid in sports drinks has been linked to erosive tooth wear," said Dr. Mark Wolff, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cariology & Comprehensive Care at New York University College of Dentistry, who led the study. The findings were presented today at the annual meeting of the International Association for Dental Research in Miami.

Dr. Wolff's research team cut in half cow teeth, which were used for the study because of their close resemblance to human teeth. They immersed one half of the specimens in a sports drink, the other half in water, then compared the two halves and discovered that the one exposed to the sports drink displayed a significant amount of erosion and softening.

"Five teeth were immersed in each drink for 75 to 90 minutes to simulate the effects of sipping on sports drinks over the course of the day," Dr. Wolff said. The researchers evaluated the effects of a range of top-selling sports drinks on the cow teeth.

According to Dr. Wolff, brushing teeth immediately after consuming a sports drink can compound the problem of tooth erosion, because softened enamel is very susceptible to the abrasive properties of toothpaste.

"To prevent tooth erosion, consume sports drinks in moderation, and wait at least 30 minutes before brushing your teeth, to allow softened enamel to re-harden," Dr. Wolff advised. "If you frequently consume sports drinks, ask your dentist if you should use an acid-neutralizing remineralizing toothpaste to help re-harden soft enamel."

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Links

American Dental Association

Dental Health Topics from Oral-B

Academy of General Dentistry - Know Your Teeth

Healthy Teeth (a site for elementary school age children)

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