Oral cancer is one of the fatal diseases. Unfortunately, it
is not discussed in the way it should be. If you look at the stats, you will
know that 25 persons die every 24 hours in USA. That means one person dying due
to this issue in every hour.
While there are treatment options available for oral cancer,
prevention is the best way. And the best thing about prevention is that it is
not only easy but it is very cost effective too. All you have to do is to brush
and floss your teeth on daily basis. Moreover, you will have to make sure that
you are visiting your dentist twice in every year.
Oral cancer risks
There are some misconceptions about the oral cancer
circulating through rumors not only in the real world but also in the online
world. However, the facts need to be kept in mind. The demographics may have a
major role in the prevalence of this oral health condition but people need to
focus more on the basic risk factors. Those risk factors may include the
following.
Tobacco use is one of the biggest
reasons for oral cancer. Smoking, chewing tobacco and using other tobacco
products can also result in other quite serious oral health issues.
Ageing is another reason for the
prevalence of oral cancer. There are some specific types of DNA proteins which
can switch off the process of protective cell-cleaning and maintenance
processes.
Specific ultraviolet rays from sun
can also result in cancer. Skin cancer is the most common type of disease which
happens due to UV rays. However, oral cancer can also prevail due to this
reason.
Alcohol consumption is another
risk factor which can result in oral cancer. Alcohol consumption can impact DNA
compounds negatively. The process can lead to the poor regulation of cell
growth.
Preventing oral cancer
To prevent oral cancer, you will have to make sure that you
are with preventative dental care.
First you have to make sure that
you brush and floss your teeth on daily basis. You need to brush your teeth
twice in every day. And flossing at least once is quite important. The clean
mouth will help you maintain the health of your immune system.
If you want to prevent oral
cancer, you will have to quit smoking and alcohol consumption. Tobacco has the
toxins which can be dangerous for the oral health. And alcohol can affect
immune system quite badly.
Prevention of oral and all other
types of cancer is hugely associated with the good health of your immune
system. In this scenario, it is quite important to make sure that you engage
yourself in a physical activity. This would regulate the blood flow in your
body.
If you want to prevent oral cancer
and other oral health conditions, you will have to cut down the consumption of
processed foods.
Apart from everything you do to prevent oral cancer, you
will have to make sure that you are not visiting any of your dental visits.
During these dental visits, you will be able to know about any issue well ahead
of time of the issue’s escalation.
Loss of teeth is a common phenomenon. Although there are
ways one can take care of their teeth, not everyone manages to retain their
teeth for a lifetime. This is the reason that tooth replacement options exist,
and there are many of them. Among those options, dental bridge is the one which
many of the people with lost teeth go for.
What is a dental bridge?
There would be many people who might have no knowledge about
what a dental bridge is. As the name suggests, dental bridge is a device which
is used to bridge the gap which is left by a missing tooth. A traditional
dental bridge consists of two abutment teeth with a faux tooth between those
teeth. Filling this empty gap is important also because if you leave this gap
open, the teeth around this gap will tend to drift towards the empty space, creating
misalignment in the entire jaw. This misalignment does not only affect your
bite but it can also lead to TMJ problem which can be quite painful and
troublesome for oral as well as overall health. With the help of bridges, you
will not only be able to prevent the misalignment but you will also be able to
chew your foods.
Types of dental bridges
Dental bridges fall into three different categories. Let’s
discuss them briefly.
A standard or traditional bridge
consists of two crowns with a pontic tooth between them. The crowns are
adjusted on the teeth on either side of the missing tooth or teeth. The
supporting teeth around the missing teeth are known as abutment teeth. The
pontic tooth or teeth fit in the gap.
Maryland Bridge consists of a
pontic tooth with the wings which are usually made of metal or porcelain. These
wings are bonded with the teeth on either side of the missing tooth. These
bridges are ideal for the front teeth which are not used for regular chewing of
foods. And it is pretty conclusive that these bridges are not made to withstand
extensive pressure of chewing.
Cantilever bridge is the right
option for the restoration of teeth which do not have abutment teeth on one of
their sides. Hence, this bridge seems to replace the missing molar which lies
at the back of the mouth. However, these bridges are not very commonly used due
to the fact that a porcelain tooth is not quite capable of withstanding the
pressure of chewing.
Caring for the dental bridge
Dental bridge cannot be removed since it is bonded to the
teeth with the help of special cement. However, taking good care of these
bridges is very important. For this purpose, you can get a special brush and
floss. Proper dental hygiene is extremely essential in this regard.
The use of radiography is considered important in
diagnosing the hard tissues in the mouth, for example, the bones; however, the
role of a dentist is crucial for determining the success of radiography. The
skill of a dentist is significant for proper positioning and getting desired
results of radiography and oral tissues. This means that the dentist has to
take precaution to use radiography for diagnosing the root causes of disease in
the mouth. In other words, the quality of radiography is dependent on the
quality of radiograph to assess the disease in a proper way, and the use of
radiography must be taken with care because it can have harmful effects on the
sensitive parts of the mouth.
In terms of the proper use of radiography, the role of a
skilled dentist is crucial. For example, it is the dark areas in x-ray, which
can determine the soft tissue from the hard tissues. If you change the kV, it
changes the density of radiography. When kV decreases, it reduces the density
by making it lighter. Similarly, if one increases the kV the darkness of the
radiography increases by making it darker. So, it is required for determining
the root cause of dental issues, especially if it is not visible with naked
eye. Hence, the dentist uses the radiography for diagnosing the internal
diseases.
The contrast of radiograph is the level of darkness in
the radiograph, in simple words. This helps in indicating the borders of the
tissues in the mouth. It is beneficial for over viewing the PDL widening, which
is usually not visible if the contrast is light or dark. In terms of sharpness
of radiography, the image of x-ray is largely dependent on sharpness for
getting an accurate image of the oral tissues. Moreover, the quality of x-ray
is required for diagnosing and clearly indicating borders and outlines of
teeth. So, the sharpness of radiograph is essential for the getting a clear
image of the mouth along with bones.
The foreshortening of image means that the image in x-ray
is very small. It happens because of vertical angulations of the x-ray tube
while using the radiography. Its use can become tricky in endodontic treatment,
where working length is different due to the differences in the size of teeth.
Moreover, the elongation of an image implies the image of teeth and surrounding
structure of teeth can appear longer than their original size. So, it is
difficult for the dentist to get correct length in endodontic treatment and
other procedures to diagnose the different diseases and to underline the hidden
parts of the mouth.
In some cases, some teeth are longer than the others,
which can cause bending of teeth when the x-ray is placed in the mouth of a
patient. The area of teeth, which is subject to x-ray, should not bend too much
on a bed of teeth. Rather it should be bend gently for a film to capture the
image of intra-oral parts and the mouth including palate and floor oral cavity.
The chances of x-ray film rolling around premolar areas can increase, because
of the contours of the palate in the mouth. So, the best way to avoid is to use
it with caution in order to get a clear image of the mouth.
If you have the overlapping proximal, you cannot get the
clear image from radiograph because x-ray is impractical. The overlapping
occurs because either x-ray is placed too near or too far from the beam of
x-ray. Ideally, the occlusal must be parallel to the margin of the x-ray. If it
is slanting, then getting the clear image is not possible, because a film is
not placed properly in the mouth of the patient. Furthermore, the alignment of
x-ray film in the mouth is vital for getting the desired results in form of the
clear image of the mouth. In other words, the clarity of the image is required
for diagnosing the root cause of the problem.
If the occlusal portion of teeth is not clear or the the
placement of x-ray film is not proper while putting it in the mouth of a
patient, the visibility of the x-ray between the occlusal and incisal can be
balanced with the margin of the x-ray and to record the image clearly. The
coronal part of teeth can be recorded in form of x-ray image to get the
complete image of the whole teeth. Moreover, the clarity of image in x-ray is
essential for the dentists in performing the dental procedure effectively.
The periapical image is usually not clear if radiograph
is not used in proper way. The clarity of the image is essential for making the
diagnostic useful and effective. If the image is unclear or distorted, it may
create confusion for a dentist in diagnosing the root cause which can
eventually affect the patient. So, the reason behind blur or distorted image
has either to do with the movement by patient or misplacement of x-ray beam
while taking the image of your mouth. If the image is a blur, one cannot get
the clear image of adjacent structures of the mouth in a better way.
The cone cut image is the clear area in the radiograph.
It is more clear than other parts because of the beam of x-ray is not
perpendicular to the film of x-ray. The term pial angioma is used for the
appearance of fingers image in the x-ray. It happens when the film is not placed
in right place and a right angle may create an image of the fingers on the
x-ray. When there is exposure, one can hold x-ray with fingers to avoid the
disruption of the image taken by radiograph. You can also take help of dentist Eagle Rock for using radiography.
To conclude, one can say that the use of radiography is
beneficial for treating and diagnosing different hidden problems in the mouth.
The exposure of light and darker part in x-ray is required for highlighting the
different parts of the mouth and for getting the clear image. The placement of
x-ray film is vital because if it is bending too much, it will destroy the x-ray. Therefore, one should be careful with the
film placement and its coordination with caution, in addition to getting the
desired results. Hence, the ideal method for using radiograph can be achieved
if you go to a trained dentist.
