Dana L. Yeoman, DDS
Dentures and Implants
Dr. Dana's Blog
Site last published: 08/21/10
Aug 2008
EXTRA! EXTRA!
09/08/08 18:01
The
Mayo Clinic announced a shocking report by Dr. N.
Kumar, a neurologist who studied 25 patients
rapidly becoming disabled with a neurological
disorder called Copper Deficiency Myelopathy. Kumar
discovered three main causes of this debilitating
disease, one of which was ingesting too much
denture adhesive. When the patients stopped using
adhesive, their bodies quit deteriorating within
three weeks. However, their conditions did not
improve because the damage that had been done was
permanent. (Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a peer
reviewed medical journal) Read
More...
Denture Care 101
09/08/08 17:59 Filed in: Denture
Care
It is
easy for me to forget that not everyone grew up in
a family where dentures were the main topic of
conversation at the dinner table every night.
Working for my dad in this practice since I was 13
has made me take for granted some of the basics of
denture care. After explaining some fundamental
rules for cleaning and caring for dentures, I’ve
heard several patients exclaim, “How come no one
told me that before?” It made me wonder how many
more people out there have never heard it either,
and if putting into print would help.
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A Bone to Pick
09/08/08 17:54
Very
few people understand how their own bones work.
Most leave that job to a physician. Denture
patients, however, have a long list of problems
that are related to bone, but most don’t understand
it. Turning to the internet, it didn’t take long to
see why more people aren’t informed, particularly
about the bones in their mouths. All the
information is geared towards doctors. The big
fifty-cent words are so confusing that it would
take hours of researching to get the meaning of the
research. Therefore, I’m saving you the misery and
decoding the Latin for you, in hopes that you might
more thoroughly “know thyself.” Read
More...
Just Because it Doesn’t Hurt...
09/08/08 17:44
A 96
year old man named Harold came into the office
needing help with his full upper denture and lower
partial. He had just a few teeth left in the front
part of his lower jaw, and the partial denture hung
very precariously onto faltering teeth. He had the
obvious problems that he could tell me about, like
a broken tooth, a badly fitting denture and denture
teeth that do not meet up correctly in the back.
Looking in his mouth, I could see a bigger problem
that he did not know about. He only knew about the
tip of the iceberg. Read
More...
Meth Recovery and the Dentist
09/08/08 17:35
A young man came into
my office a year ago with an extreme amount of
decay and a story. Unashamed to share his
past with me, he described a long-term love affair
with Methamphetamines. Though he had been
clean for six years, the effects of the drug were
evident every time he laughed or smiled.
Often, people stared at his mouth while he
talked. He felt as if he lost credibility
with people as soon as they noticed the condition
of his teeth. As a result, he hid his smile,
the last shackle that kept him tied to an old way
of life. God helped him with his addiction; I
had to help him with his teeth. Read
More...
Have A Plan?
09/08/08 17:30
The
lesson universally taught in Dental Universities is
that decay, infection, tumors, cysts and other
serious problems must be addressed first before any
other concerns. This applies, for instance, where a
patient would like elective veneers to straighten a
smile, but refuses to have the fillings required to
stop the decay in the molars. I once had a patient
who only wanted to have cosmetic dentistry, and
insisted that I ignore the greater evil of decay
and periodontal disease. In spite of my description
of the inevitable root canals and tooth loss, the
patient remained unmoved. Faced with this dilemma,
I chose not to treat this kind of patient at all.
It is unethical to treat elective issues in the
presence of disease.
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An attractive smile - or an attractive denture
09/08/08 17:13
Every patient is
anxious to see what their new denture looks like,
and for good reason. But how can you judge if it's
really going to be grand? Read
More...
Breaking From the Past Meth Recovery and the Dentist
07/08/08 06:19
A
young man came into my office a year ago with an
extreme amount of decay and a story.
Unashamed to share his past with me, he described a
long-term love affair with Methamphetamines.
Though he had been clean for six years, the effects
of the drug were evident every time he laughed or
smiled. Often, people stared at his mouth
while he talked. He felt as if he lost
credibility with people as soon as they noticed the
condition of his teeth. As a result, he hid
his smile, the last shackle that kept him tied to
an old way of life. God helped him with his
addiction; I had to help him with his teeth.
Read More...
Stroke Scare
07/08/08 06:18
Recently a
favorite patient came in to see me very scared and
very depressed. Of all the hard knocks life had
dealt this sweet-natured lady, this seemed to be
the straw to break the camel's back. Having fought
a number of ailments, disabilities, and pain with
great courage and strength, she was horrified to
discover a recurring numbness on one side of her
face. She had no doubt that she must have had a
stroke. Read
More...
Myth of the Perfect Reline
07/08/08 06:17
Last
month I got a desperate visit from a desperate
lady. My patient had driven all the way from Oregon
to see me. Eight years ago, she had new dentures
made in this practice, and moved shortly thereafter
to Oregon. Lately, she found that her lower denture
was not fitting like it once did when she had left
Bakersfield. She told me that her dentures had been
getting old and she thought a reline would stretch
out a couple more years of use. Read
More...
Let Them Eat Cake???
07/08/08 06:15
Last
week my patient was overjoyed about a cucumber and
tomato salad. It was the first one she had eaten in
several years. As a diabetic, she had been
struggling to lose weight and eat in a healthier
manner for a long time. Unfortunately, desire was
not enough. Her old dentures were preventing her
from eating healthy foods. She had described a
terrible pain in her face when she wore the old
dentures. Because of the pain, eating good food
like raw carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, almonds,
oranges and apples were completely out of the
question. The soft foods that she could eat were
often sweets, like cakes, Twinkies, and donuts.
These were exactly what she was trying to
avoid. Read More...
Think you’re too young for dentures?
07/08/08 06:12
A young patient of
our office pleaded with me to write this article.
She is one of three patients that we are currently
treating under the age of 36, the youngest being
24. Professors told me in school, “Very soon nobody
will need dentures because advances have been made
in dentistry.” I wonder what the professor would
say to the girl wearing dentures who is my age. She
wants to know where she fits in and I can’t say I
blame her. All the advertising and marketing for
denture care is geared to people over 50, not
younger people. She does not identify with these
silver-haired ladies. She likes low-cut jeans,
bright hair colors, and loud music.
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Fear Factor The Dentist vs. The Cardiologist
07/08/08 06:11
In dental school, the
semester had not yet started until the students
complained about being required to study the entire
human body, when "in real life" all they need to
treat are teeth. While the mind of a dental student
makes this clear black and white distinction, the
experienced dental practitioner knows that the
lines between dentistry and medicine are
continually getting more blurred.
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Meth and the Smile the Bride Deserves...
07/08/08 06:11
I have been noticing
an unusual trend in my office. My practice is
primarily dentures and partials, so it breaks my
heart that a growing number of young patients have
shocking tooth decay. Though they are young,
they have little choice but to have their teeth
removed and replaced with dentures.
Read More...
No More Dentists???
07/08/08 06:10
The questions above
are only a few asked by patients each week. In my
practice, we see a variety of patients in many
stages of tooth loss. Here are my answers to some
commonly asked questions to help clarify the issues
and dispel some rumors.
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New Year...New Smile
07/08/08 06:09
Well, here we are, at
the beginning of a new year. Many look at this as
an opportunity to make resolutions they never
intend to keep. Most of those resolutions are for
our own well being but the kids (or grandkids, or
dogs, or whatever) get in the way of taking care of
ourselves. There is always next year, we say, to
lose the weight, get in shape, take care of those
teeth that have outlived their usefulness, or get
the new dentures you've been promising yourself for
years (The ones that will give you your lip back,
look more like you before life with dentures, or
let you eat again).
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Elements of a Good Denture
07/08/08 06:07
I recently got a
phone call from a rehab hospital. A daughter called
with the concern that her mother's lower denture
might need a reline. She explained to me that her
mom had been in for a check-up only 6 months
before. Suddenly her lower denture was very loose
and uncomfortable and she was unable to talk and
eat. The daughter was desperate to help her mom,
and thought an emergency reline would be a quick
and easy solution. In speaking to her a few more
minutes, I found out the reason mom is in the
hospital was due to a serious stroke. With this
information, I explained to her why the reline is
not the best answer for this problem.
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