Don't do this at home...

Most of my friends and colleagues know that I've been a volunteer member of Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team for many years. All team members have to be trained appropriately and must keep their skills up to date. As a team, we go out and practice twice monthly, and today we had a "Special"!!

Whilst we spend most of our time on the mountains and fells in the northwest Lakes, the disastrous floods that wrecked parts of Cockermouth in 2009 proved that as a rescue organisation we also need to be prepared for just about anything. Whilst the Fire and Rescue services would normally be expected to deal with people falling into iced over lakes and ponds, it is possible that we may end up having to deal with just this situation as well. So it seemed like a good idea to work off some turkey and pudding in Bassenthwaite lake today by practicing - seeing as its iced over at the moment.

We have a variety of ropes, stretchers, inflatable rafts, boats and so on designed for water rescue and we spent a couple of hours in near freezing water working out how best to extricate team members acting as casualties.

This done, getting as many of us as possible into the hole was just too good an opportunity to miss....and yes we were in dry suits!

If you'd like to know more, please check out the team's website at www.cockermouthmrt.org.uk

Advent Smiles - an offer for you!

York Place Dental is doing its bit to brighten the winter mood and raise a few smiles! For each day of advent, we are offering one person whiter teeth for Christmas at a half price.

That means:

Home whitening for only £180...

Power Whitening from only £300...

So you or a friend could have the smile you've always wanted sooner than you think!

This offer is open to anyone - but once its gone - its gone. If you know anyone who might be interested - let them know. Just enter your details in the box on the right to send us an email, or ring Ruby or Diane on 01228 533431.

There are only 18 days to go....

Our Cockermouth flood story.wmv

Whilst I don't think its healthy to dwell on the downsides in life, I came upon this short film by Chris Freer today. It's almost exactly a year since my home town was flooded so dramatically, and as a member of Cockermouth Mountain rescue team I was able to do something that directly helped the rescue and recovery effort.

Whilst films and pictures of the events of those few days are readily available, this piece shows quite neatly the way that Chris and his young family were affected by what happened.

In the meantime, the town is nearly fixed and most of the building work is complete.

Are you interested in sailing?

A different story this time - and its a positive sort of feel good non dental one one - so stay with me.

I've been a frustrated sailor - i.e. I cant do it, but want to do it - for 45 years, and finally this year I got off my rear end and did what I'd always intended to do, and got myself some sailing lessons. A couple of days in the Lakes where we live and then a week in Cornwall at Percuil (www.paddleandsail.com) and me and the Son And Heir Ed were at least vaguely competent with some certificates to our names.

We're at the point now where we need to get some time on the water, and a friend suggested that we buy a Mirror Dinghy. These are small wooden sailing boats, ideal for a couple of people and a cheap way of developing our skills without killing ourselves. So, I checked on the web and we found a promising looking boat on Ebay being sold by a company called Wirral Ark Dinghies (www.wirralarkdinghy.co.uk/home) in Birkenhead, Liverpool, which we eventually bought.

Wirral Ark Dinghies is a Social Enterprise company, linked to a Charity called Wirral Ark, that houses homeless people in the Birkenhead area. They have a hostel, 6 "Move on" houses and the Dinghy Enterprise. Residents strip down and refurbish old Mirrors as a work therapy. Because most Mirrors were built in the 60's and 70's, and because there were tens of thousands of them made, there are now a lot of sad old boats sitting in corners of the UK slowly rotting away. Bob, a retired bank manager who runs the business, told me that most of the dinghies that they refurbish are donated and that he has picked them up from all over the UK - ours apparently came from Abersoch.

Ruth and I drove down to collect our purchase (no name yet...) a couple of weeks ago, and we met and thanked the team who had worked on her. I think sometimes its quite easy to forget that there are people who don't have a home, have had massive social or health issues, and have lost their ties with the things that perhaps we take for granted. Our little boat is blue, has orange sails and we took her home on the roof of the car and she's now filling the garage. As soon as I can get a launching trolley we'll be out on the water, and I'll be thinking of that small group of lads down on Merseyside that breathed life back into her.

If you've thought about getting into sailing, and want a cheap way in, I can't recommend Wirral Ark Dinghies enough....and if you've got an old Mirror that you don't need any more, or if you know someone else who has, get in touch with Bob via the website, he'd be very grateful.

the link again: www.wirralarkdinghy.co.uk/home

Thanks!

Straight teeth without the wires

Living and working in what I believe to be the most beautiful counties in the UK has its good sides . The best back yard ever (the Lake District ) is right outside the window, theres are good schools for the kids and in 15 minutes we can be climbing a fell or picnicking by a lake.

It also has its downsides - it does rain quite a lot and we don't have that many Starbuck's. Professionally, as a dentist in a private practice in Carlisle we haven't had the option of the specialist dental referral services for our patients that are commonplace in the big cities. In the most part dentists have filled in these gaps by going on extra training courses and buying the necessary equipment, but one area that has been a big frustration until recently has been orthodontic treatment - the straightening of crooked teeth to you and me.

When we ask our patients what they would change to get a perfect smile, most say that they wished their teeth were either straighter or whiter. Most of us are familiar with wire braces and many will have worn them as a child, to varying degrees of success.

The good news is that orthodontics has moved on, its far more predictable and there is now a choice of the method that leads to the result.

Whilst there has been and continues to be an NHS orthodontic service for the under 18's (with the right degree of crookedness), there is only a very limited referral service on a private basis for either children who don't fit the NHS criteria, or for adults.

In smile design cases one of the most effective tools that we have in the dental toolbox, apart from veneers, plastic resins and tooth whitening is orthodontic therapy. It's safe, it lasts pretty much a lifetime, and the result is 100% natural.

The good news is that with products including Invisalign, Clearstep and Inman Aligners, an experienced dental practitioner with the correct training can now straighten misaligned teeth in their own practice with no need to refer out. So no long journeys and no absences from work.

Better still - the devices used are just about invisible, they're easy to wear and they give great results.

Don't get me wrong - it takes at least 18 months to complete in most instances. However, I will be blogging and posting pictures of two cases as they progress through their journeys..so watch this space.

At York Place we're using the Clearstep system and were bowled over by it. If you'd like to know more, contact me directly on richard@yorkplacedental.com or check out our website.

Best wishes

Richard

One of those lightbulb moments: whitening teeth

You know when something happens and you've just got to shout about it? I think its just happened to me...

Most people know that you can have your teeth whitened - its been around in various forms for about 20 years or so and like most things in life, its become more refined and there are now different techniques which suit different needs. There are also cheap imitations - beware and stay clear - at best they don't work and at worst they dissolve your teeth. Really.

You can have your teeth whitened in as little as one hour - so it can be quick and convenient, suiting our sadly too busy lifestyles.

Truth is, most people could also get the same result with the less sexy but still effective home whitening - applying the right gel to the teeth in dentist made bespoke trays, usually for two to four weeks. Its a bit of a faff, it takes time, and it really does matter that your trays are made the right way and that you are using the right gel, so results can be very variable.

We also see a fair number of patients who have brown or grey or spotted or flecked or chalky (or all of the above) teeth - usually because of being given inappropriate antibiotics as a kid. Its a real downer and these people are rightly keen to get it sorted. Until today, but they would need to wear home trays for up to three or even six months. Thats an hour a day for 180 days. No quick fix, just gooey trays for ever.

Back to the lightbulb moment.

I have trained with a guy called Wyman Chan at Smile Studio in London on a couple of occasions, most recently in May of this year. He knows pretty much everything about tooth whitening there is to know, and he's stumbled across a superb idea. Using the same safe gel that we use in the home trays, and applying it in a different way and using a simple heat source to warm it, patients can home whiten in about one fifth of the time - ie this is five times quicker.

What nailed it for me was that a patient came in yesterday having been told that three months was the order of the day, and ten days later she's nearly done. When we have a few more cases completed we'll post photos of them here.

The system is called Get 2 Smile, we're doing it, and I think that the days of tray whitening are numbered.

If you've got heavily stained teeth, or if you've tried whitening before but didn't get the result you wanted, why don't you get in touch?

Prevention is better than a cure

As with most things in life, a stitch in time saves nine…

We also know that whilst dental techniques are constantly improving you cant beat what mother nature gave you.

So it makes sense to look after it, and hers a bit of basic but important advise.

Most of the diseases of the mouth are easily preventable and it is part of the dental team’s job to get the preventive message over.

We recommend:

Reducing sugars in your food:

Sugar feeds bacteria living in your mouth. In turn this can create damaging acids which dissolve tooth enamel, and toxins that attack your gums and cause gum disease, or create smelly compounds and bad breath.

Having a healthy balanced diet and taking regular exercise.

Evidence shows a clear link between poor diet, lack of exercise and gum disease.

Stopping smoking

Smoking has a variety of effects, from staining of the teeth and bad breath to poorer healing (it affects the tiny blood carrying arteries in the gums and reduces the bodies ability to heal) , to mouth cancer in the most sever cases.

Visiting your dentist and hygienist as often as they recommend.

Most people need to be seen once or twice a year. Your teeth, your gums, the skin in and around your mouth need to be checked for disease. The dentist or hygienist will measure how well you are cleaning, and if need be give corrective advice or treatment.

Brushing your teeth with a fluoride toothpaste twice a day for two minutes

A large proportion of the population brush less than once a day. YUK!

So: whats a hygienist?

Dental hygienists are specialist team members who run the preventive services in a practice. They train, educate and mentor their patients and can provide quite complex therapy to remove bacteria from the tooth surfaces.

In my experience a good hygienist does things a dentist can’t - and I’m happy about that.

About 10% of the population are high risk for gum disease and need to be seen regularly, usually 4 or more times a year. Hygienists can take x rays, monitor progress and carry out treatment plans which they are free to develop under the prescription of a dentist.

Now that you’ve seen my list of suggestions, how can you incorporate them in to your own life? What changes can YOU make today to help keep your teeth for life?

If you’d like any more advice then just give us a call on 01228 533431 today because we are here to help.

Whats your BPE?

I'd like to share a tale that might help save a lot of grief in the future. Its about periodontal (gum) disease. One of my personal nightmares (like the one about falling) is my teeth falling out - and I don't think I'm alone.

A guy came to see me for the first time recently. When we sat down to talk he explained that his gums had been bleeding for years, he had a bad taste in his mouth and he wasn't so sure about his breath. He'd been going to his last dentist regularly every six months. At his recent last visit he was told everything was fine.

Lets just stop there:

• Blood coming from anywhere in a body would worry most people
• Bad taste and dodgy breath - so that's acceptable?

So , we moved on to the examination, did all the usual stuff that dentists do, including the thing I want to highlight: the BPE.

BPE stands for Basic Periodontal Examination. Its a quick screen, a sorting of the wheat from the chaff. The dentist takes a small measuring device, rather like a pointy stick with a ball on the end. By gently (honest) poking the gums we can very quickly see what state a clients gums are in and if gum disease is present. Its not new - its been around since I was at dental school in the 80's at least, and it should be carried out on every adult patient (with teeth!) at least once a year. To be safe I just do it every time. Scores go from zero (=perfect) up through 1,2,3,4, to "star" (=seriously bad news).

Needless to say, this guy had problems. He had a couple of areas where there were stars and the rest were threes. A scanning X ray quickly showed that more than 50% of the bone that once attached his teeth to his head had gone.

I had to tell him that he was likely to lose some of his teeth in the medium to long term, and we have started a program of gum care to try and rescue the rest. After my hygiene team have stabilised his disease they will be seeing him for checks and catch up treatment every three months, possibly for life.

So whats the moral in the tale?

• If the last dentist had performed BPE's he would have picked up the problem years ago.
• Its possible that there might have been a lot more bone still present if the disease had been picked up sooner.
• And the patient might have had a much better chence of keeping all of his teeth

My advice to you?

• Every dentist knows about the BPE and they know that they should use it.
• "But this is NHS" is not an excuse - NHS regulations state that the dentist should check the gums at every examination - and the best way of doing it is with the BPE.
• If the pointy stick isn't being used at your examinations - ask the dentist what your BPE is.
• Don't accept bleeding gums as normal - its a clear sign of disease.
• If you don't get a straight answer - get a second opinion.

The picture attached neatly sums it up - a great ad used a while ago by a mouthrinse manufacturer.

Doing Hygiene The Right Way

Would you like to retire from having fillings?

Would you like to be confident that you will keep your teeth for life?

If the answer is yes, read on.

I’m sure that you would accept that prevention is always better than a cure, and at York Place we are seeing improved oral health in those patients who are seeing our hygiene team at the right intervals.

I’ve been a dentist for over 20 years, and whilst I delight in fixing your root canals and painlessly removing teeth that have seen better days, my biggest buzz is seeing the smile on my patients faces when I say “nothing do do”.

We are the only practice in Carlisle that allow our hygienists the time and freedom with you both to clean your mouth and to mentor you in excellent mouth care. We call this Doing It Properly. The old quick 15 second whizz around the mouth by a dentist sounds appealing but is usually pointless and of no benefit.

Beware practices that advertise cheaper prices - for shorter time slots. It is always true that you get what you pay for. Our unique Membership plan makes all of this affordable, as well as giving you access to our unique Dental Health Assessments.

The benefit to you?

Confidence that you are more likely to keep your teeth for life.

Confidence that you have a fantastic smile and fresh breath

If you would like to know more

Give us a ring on 01228 533431 or go to our website at www.yorkplacedental.com

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