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Dental Phobics Spared the Drill
| Article
# : |
10878 |
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Section : |
LIFE
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| Issue
Date : |
7 / 1986 |
1,515 Words |
| Author
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Nancy L. Wolfe
Nancy Wolfe has been living in the Washington area for the
past fifteen years covering national and international news
for radio and television. |
Genowefa Fiuk off crucial dental work for years because she used to panic in the dentist's office. She is one of the estimated twelve million dental phobics in the United States, and, according to the American Dental Association (ADA), thirty-five million more people are so nervous about going to the dentist that they only show up when they have a real emergency.
"Phobic or not, no one likes shots or to be drilled on," says Ms. Fiuk. She, as well as the rest of us who only mildly hate having dental work done, should be glad to hear about two new procedures aimed at reducing discomfort in the dentists chair. One, already on the market, is a chemical solution that dissolves away decayed matter. The other, still in the research stage, uses "Star Wars" technology to vaporize decay or unwanted tissue.
Both procedures are employed only on the affected area of the mouth, eliminating damage and discomfort to surrounding areas. The chemical method was marketed last June under the name of Caridex. The "Star Wars" method uses laser beams. Both discoveries could drastically change public attitudes about going to the dentist.
Tooth decay occurs when bacteria-produced enzymes and acid from food deposits destroy a tooth. Dentists now use a high-speed drill to dig out the decayed matter from the tooth, and anesthesia is still frequently needed to deaden the pain. The drilling and the needle to administer the anesthesia are the most feared procedures in the dentist's office, ADA studies have shown.
After ten years of investigation, researchers at Tufts
... (1992 of 8873 Characters)
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