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Do We Need A Vaccine?

“The Tooth And Nothing But The Tooth”

By Chris “Dr Smile Maker” Branfield

Do We Need A Vaccine?

It’s not been a bad summer.  Getting a bit cold now as I write mind.  We took our caravan to Cornwall.  A bit of an adventure with some of the narrow roads.  Here to tell the tale though, phew.

What Vaccine Am I On About?

When I was at dental school (some 20-odd years ago now) and probably way before that there has been a search for a vaccine to prevent tooth decay.  We know that bacteria are involved and most of the type bacteria that are involved. We know that if you feed them sugar they produce acid that causes tooth decay.  We were taught that once the bacteria got through the enamel outer shell of the tooth they digested the collagen protein of the dentine underneath.

Back In The Big Smoke

Well, I was at a full day symposium at the Queen Elizabeth II conference a few Saturdays ago (what an anorak I am).   The theme of this was minimal interventive dentistry.  It was really good.  The current evidence suggests that the collagen breakdown in the dentine is not by bacteria but by our own enzymes in a reaction to the bacteria.  Almost like an auto-immune disorder.  How things change.

Natural Bacteria

Only 10% of the cells in our body are ours.  The rest are bacteria and we only know 10% of those.  How mad is that.  These bacteria have evolved with us and been with us for millions of years.  They are what we call commensal bacteria.  Now, if we wipe out some bacteria with a vaccine then that upsets the status quo and creates a pace for something else.  Now this something else may be horrible.  It’s a bit like ousting one government for a horrible dictator to take over and make people’s life a misery.

It’s A Lifestyle Thing

Now, modern day living involves a lot of processed high sugar foods.  We know this causes decay.  We also know that an acid environment increases tooth decay.  We know that Xylitol (a natural sugar substitute) prevents decay.  You can get 100% xylitol mints, sweets and gum as well as granules.  Fluoride (in toothpaste and professionally applied) and something called stabilised amorphous calcium phosphate help prevent and even reverse decay.  Even rinsing with bicarbonate of soda can help, believe it or not.

So, these poor bacteria get the blame but it’s our modern day lifestyle and diet that is the problem.  With some lifestyle advice, product advice and professional fluoride application to teeth we can control decay and prevent fillings even if decay has started.  No kidding.  This is exciting stuff and a real paradigms shift away from the just drill and fill dentist thing. I know I’m anorak again.

Out Of The Blue

I was on my hols in the caravan when I got a message that I had been nominated and short-listed for (get this) “Unsung Hero” in the Hull Daily Mail Awards in the Business In The Community section. Mad!!! Anyway, the whole team at Castle Park Dental Care all buzzed up and really proud so we’re all going to the awards. I’m actually in London doing part of a Mastership in Dental Lasers course until that day so will have to get there a bit later. Fingers crossed eh.

I’m listening to Hull City playing Belgium on the radio tonight. Come on Hull Let’s have another good season

Until next time. Take care and be good.

Chris 

Chris Branfield is Principal Dentist at Castle Park Dental Care, Castle Villa, 28 Castle Road, Cottingham, telephone 01482 772550.  He has been in dental practice for 21 years and has a special interest in life changing, pain free dentistry with dental implants, rapid teeth straightening and cosmetic dentistry. And, not only that Chris is founder member and trustee of Dental Mavericks charity- ending the daily dental pain of Moroccan kids. For more patient success stories and Chris’s charity work go here now www.castleparkdental.co.uk

 

Excitement at the Practice!

There's lots of excitement here today. 

John and Pete from Nuview are busy installing our latest investment in high end dental care - a brand new, state of the art Zeiss Microscope !!

Not sure what that is? Don't worry, we offer Free Smile Audits for all new patients. Click on the link below and complete the form.

http://www.castleparkdental.co.uk/free-smile-analysis/

"The Guys Hard At Work"

Let There Be Light

“The Tooth And Nothing But The Tooth”

By Chris “Dr Smile Maker” Branfield

Let There Be Light

Well, Elvis’ crown was in the building for a day.  We had some fun but more importantly did some free mouth cancer screening.  Mouth cancer screening is part of our 6 step smile audit at examination.  We use magnification and illumination followed by a fluorescence screening with a device called a Velscope Rx.

 

People came down for photos with the crown and health checks.

 

We were all dressed up with the crown.  My hands look massive in this picture and they’re only small really

 

Do My Hands Look Big In This Outfit?

 

How To reduce X-rays At The Dentist

 

A few weeks ago I was in London again.  I was actually a speaker at the Innovations In Dentistry Symposium held at Millbank Tower in Westminster.  I was really chuffed to be asked to speak about a cracking innovation that I am now using to detect decay without X-rays.

It’s called a DIAGNOcam.   It is absolutely fantastic for children, pregnant women and people who do not have loads of fillings. Having said that it is great for showing up cracks and monitoring early decay in teeth that do not need fillings it can get the decay process to stop with diet and lifestyle changes.  Xrays only show 2 dimensions so this can be used with xrays to give a third dimension to give a clear assessment.

 

Overcoming A Quandary

 

Xrays are really useful in dentistry.  With digital images doses now are reduced by about 90% to when I started in practice 20+ years ago.  But if we can decrease the dose further then that is great. 

 

One quandary I have is when to take xrays when somebody is low risk regarding tooth decay.  You don’t want take xrays just for the sake of it but you don’t want to miss anything and leave somebody at risk of losing a tooth when we may have been able to save it if we found the decay earlier.  I hope that makes sense.

 

Anyway, by using the DIAGNOcam we can do a screen and see if there is decay.  If everything is clear, brilliant.  If there is some early decay we may not need xrays, if the decay is deeper then we probably will.

 

It is a really good technology and is easy to show my patients.  It shines a special wavelength of light through a tooth and a sensor picks up the light transmission and puts a picture on the computer screen.  We actually see it as a live video and press a button for still pictures.  It is much easier to explain things and communicate.

Minimum Intervention/Minimum Fillings

This is my tooth. There is a small crack in the enamel towards the left with some slight shadowing. It doesn’t need a filling but just monitoring.  This is easy as we just take another picture and compare. I do need to stay off the sweeties and floss every day!

This one shows the premolar on the left being clear but there is a shadow on the molar tooth (right) where it touches the premolar.  The shadow does not go all the way through the enamel so this can be monitored and not filled at this stage. Advice is given on how to stop the decay from getting worse.

It’s holiday season now.  I’m off to Cornwall in my caravan with the family. My eldest, Edward, isn’t coming though.  He’s 18 next week and just got back from his first “mates” holiday.  Frightening!

Until next time. Take care and be good.

Chris

Chris Branfield is Principal Dentist at Castle Park Dental Care, Castle Villa, 28 Castle Road, Cottingham, telephone 01482 772550.  He has been in dental practice for 21 years and has a special interest in life changing, pain free dentistry with dental implants, rapid teeth straightening and cosmetic dentistry. And, not only that Chris is founder member and trustee of Dental Mavericks charity- ending the daily dental pain of Moroccan kids. For more patient success stories and Chris’s charity work go here now www.castleparkdental.co.uk

Investment in Patient Care

Last week Chris was invited to Manchester to give a presentation to other dentists about our latest investment in patient care. He is well know for telling it as it is - whether speaking to a patient or an audience of colleagues and received great feedback about the things he had to say.

Over the last few months, Chris has been making good use of Kavo's Diagnocam and was really keen to let other dentists know about the reality of this new diagnostic tool which is able to identify tooth decay sooner and more safely (without the use of x-ray).

Here at Castle Park Dental Care, We Don't Just Care About Teeth, We Care About People, Earning Your Trust One Smile At A Time.

If you would like to know more about us visit our website at:www.castleparkdentalcare.co.uk

 

Chris Giving His Presentation

 

June B1G1 Update

Castle Park Dental actively support the B1G1 charity.

Here is an update of how we helped in June.

 

Click on the image to enlarge

Dentist In Bits by Chris Branfield

 

Dentist In Bits

Wow, what a month. I managed the “Coast To Coast” bike ride from Barrow- in Furness to Whitby. By ‘eck it was hard work. Hill after hill after hill. All 3 days into the wind, often blustery and strong, some torrential rain and white out with mist at the top of Tan Hill. A well-earned half -pint at the top with some hot soup and chips. I’m really pleased to have raised about £900 for my Dental Mavericks Charity.

Working With The Eve Branson Foundation




Eve with children in Asni

Five days after the bike ride I flew out to Marrakech before my transport to Asni in the foothills of the Atlas Mountains. Here I met up with colleagues, most of which I had never worked with before and some I had never met until then.

 

This was a brand new project working with the Eve Branson Foundation getting children out of pain.

I have been to Northern Morocco four times before and was hoping that the teeth of the children in this different part of the country would be better.

This was not the case. There were so many decayed teeth and we had to use our limited resources to concentrate on getting children out of pain by removing bad teeth.

New Records Set


This little tot had 4 teeth out, no tears.
Just wanted to get on with her colouring in.
Amazing

On day one we were told that there were 30 children to see. We actually saw 130 kids. Word was out and they were walking 2-3 hours for teeth out to end daily pain. We were taking teeth out for children from as young as 3 years old up to 16 years. We soon worked together as a natural team and I am proud to have bee part of it. This was “pain free” dentistry at its best. In 2 days we saw 270 kids and we took 140 children out of dental pain and removed 325 bad teeth. Phew!

Emotion Nearly Got The Better Of Me



 

There was a young lad called Mohammed. He was early teens and had 2 adult molar teeth that were rotten down to bone and not a lot left. He was in pain and wanted them out. My colleagues tried but, unfortunately, couldn’t get near him to even put in the little cotton wool rolls with sleepy gel.

I was asked to “have a go”. I did connect with him and did manage to make a start getting him numb. It did

We did a lot of deep breathing together and I said “Cava?” a lot. We got 3 teeth out on one side. They were really tough but we went really gently and did not rush. Mohammed needed a rest, so did I. We hugged each other for a bit before getting the last tooth out. He was so appreciative. I nearly caved in and nearly blubbed when an interpreter said that Mohammed said I was a good man. We were all humbled by the appreciation we received.

A Great Platform To Work From

I am really pleased with the collaboration with the Eve Branson Foundation. We were looked after really well and they were really chuffed with us as we exceeded all expectations. This is a great platform to progress and we can support each other to provide a “Teeth For Life” programme for the community.

Until next time. Take care and be good.

transpire that Mohammed had had a head injury that did leave a bit of brain injury. We were doing really well before he got a bit agitated again. I thought that we would need to give in as I feared for our safety. Bless him though, he was adamant that he needed his teeth out and he filled up. I gestured to him ‘one more go’ and off we went again.

Chris

Chris Branfield is Principal Dentist at Castle Park Dental Care, Castle Villa, 28 Castle Road, Cottingham, telephone 01482 772550. He has been in dental practice for 21 years and has a special interest in life changing, pain free dentistry with dental implants, rapid teeth straightening and cosmetic dentistry. And, not only that Chris is founder member and trustee of Dental Mavericks charity- ending the daily dental pain of Moroccan kids. For more patient success stories and Chris’s charity work go here now www.castleparkdental.co.uk

Dr Chris Branfield Talks About His Latest Trip To Morocco With Dental Mavericks

Dental Maverick Chris Branfield Explains His 2014 Eve Branson Foundation Trip

 

The Tooth And Nothing But The Tooth

By Chris “Dr Smile Maker” Branfield

Elvis Is In The Building

Well, Hull City got to the FA Cup final! WOW! They had a fantastic go at it as well. They did the area proud. The fans were fantastic and a credit to the club.

We out sang the Gunners from start to finish (voice not back to normal). A real shot in the arm for the city, uplifting and positive. Well done lads. A day to remember forever. I went down with my son, Edward and we loved every minute.

‘The King’s Crown’ Is Coming To Cottingham

A porcelain crown that was made for Elvis Presley is on tour in the UK. I kid you not! You couldn’t make it up could you?

…AND…..wait for it… it’s coming to Castle Park Dental Care on 17th June. We are one of only 11 practices that will have the crown. Some of you may remember we had a John Lennon DNA necklace about 18 months ago.

Well the same Canadian Dentist, Michael Zuk, who bought John Lennon’s tooth has bought Elvis’ crown and loaned it out for a UK tour for a good cause. Elvis’ Crown 

We are having some fun with it and dressing up, having quizzes and stuff, but there is a more serious side to it.

http://www.castleparkdental.co.uk/elvis-tooth-tour-is-coming/        

A Completely Different 5-A-Day!

We are having the crown at the practice to help raise awareness of mouth cancer. This disease kills 5 people in the UK every day. There are about 6000 new cases every year. It is still on the increase. It has increased almost 50% in the last 10 years. Smoking and alcohol are the main culprits, but poor diet and lack of folic acid is another cause. The new kid on the block is Human papilloma Virus (HPV). They immunise young girls against some types of this virus to prevent cervical cancer. There is a cross over with oral cancer and there are some people wanting to immunise boys as well.

A Full Check Up

Lloyd’s Chemist in Cottingham are teaming up with us. As well free mouth cancer screens done by us you can also get your blood pressure and blood sugar tested.

During the mouth cancer screen we look at the lining of the mouth with a bright light and magnification as well as using a special instrument, the Velscope, that has a specific wavelength of light to test the fluorescence of the mouth lining as this can highlight suspicious looking lesions and catch cancer early. This can save lives!!! We also have a look for lumps or bumps.

Ready For A Challenge

Now, I’m not the fittest person on the planet by any stretch but I’ve got the Coast To Coast bike ride in 3 days time, so wish me luck. It’s to raise money for Dental Mavericks. The week after that I’m off to the High Atlas Mountains in Morocco with The Dental Mavericks, teaming up with the Eve Branson Foundation to get young people out of pain where there is little or no dental health provision.

A Big Thank You to Haltemprice Lions in Cottingham. They invited my wife and I to their anniversary dinner. I was so pleased to be presented with a cheque for £300 for the Mavericks after I had given a presentation a few weeks before. It was a lovely evening with some fantastic, friendly and interesting people.

Until next time. Take care, be good and don’t step on my blue suede shoes.

Chris Branfield is Principal Dentist at Castle Park Dental Care, Castle Villa, 28 Castle Road, Cottingham, telephone 01482 772550. He has been in dental practice for 21 years and has a special interest in life changing, pain free dentistry with dental implants, rapid teeth straightening and cosmetic dentistry. And, not only that Chris is founder member and trustee of Dental Mavericks charity- ending the daily dental pain of Moroccan kids. For more patient success stories and Chris’s charity work go here now www.castleparkdental.co.uk

Hull Dentist Dr Chris Branfield As Seen On TV!

Chris Branfield - Mr Sensodyne

Hull Dentist Dr Chris Branfield from Castle Park Dental in Cottingham is the new face of Sensodyne Tooth Paste. Chris has been chosen out of over 39,000 UK dentists to take part in a national TV advertisement. 

 

To find our more about Chris and the practice please visit-
http://www.castleparkdental.co.uk/about-us/

Gums, Healthy Hearts and Other Stuff

“The Tooth And Nothing But The Tooth”

By Chris “Dr Smile Maker” Branfield

Can Gum Disease Affect Your Health?

Well yes. Straight in there. Gum disease is inflammation of the gums, usually caused by plaque bacteria and affects most of the population to varying degrees. In a lot of cases it is limited to just the gums when they become red, can swell and bleed when you brush. In a smaller number of people this inflammation can go deeper and affect the bone, and indeed, there is bone loss around the teeth. Eventually the teeth can become loose and or abscess and require taking out or in extreme cases fall out.

Bacteria from the disease can get into the blood stream and cause all sorts of other stuff.

Gums And Cardiovascular Disease

There have been lots of studies now and they show that people with gum disease are far more likely to have coronary artery disease that can lead to heart attacks. Also people with gum disease have a greater risk of strokes.

When bacteria from the gum disease get into the bloodstream proteins are released that cause inflammation of blood vessels that can lead to blockages and clots being formed. This is what causes the heart disease and stokes. So healthy gums, healthy heart!  

“Dr Smile Maker’s” Rant

Oh dear what’s this all about. Well this is some thing I feel really passionate about. Gum Disease Is Treatable but you need to identify it, explain it and work as a team to sort it. The thing is gum disease is usually not painful so you may not know that it is there. The first you may know about it is when your dentist or hygienist tells you. Gum disease is the most commonly undiagnosed dental problem. We always do a proper gum health screen at each and every dental examination. It is so important that we check so that we can look after you properly. If you don’t look you don’t find. Over the years I have seen many people that I wished that we had seen many years before to try and sort out their gum problems.

Now, for one reason or another over the last year I have seen more than my fair share of undiagnosed gum disease and it breaks my heart. I am happy to say that the majority have responded well and as a team (patient, hygienist and dentist) we can improve gum health. It is old fashioned to not look or ignore it. You have the right to know and do something about it. After all, as we have already mentioned earlier it is not just about teeth and gums. Make sure that your dentist or hygienist does a gum health screen.

Well, that’s that of my chest.

Until next time. Take care and be good.

 

Chris 

Chris Branfield is Principal Dentist at Castle Park Dental Care, Castle Villa, 28 Castle Road, Cottingham, telephone 01482 772550. He has been in dental practice for 21 years and has a special interest in life changing, pain free dentistry with dental implants, rapid teeth straightening and cosmetic dentistry. And, not only that Chris is founder member and trustee of Dental Mavericks charity- ending the daily dental pain of Moroccan kids. For more patient success stories and Chris’s charity work go here now www.castleparkdental.co.uk

Castle Park Dental Cottingham

Hi there, welcome to our new blog.

We aim to use the blog to keep you up to date with the latest developments at the practice including our charity work, patient testimonials and special offers.

Patient Success Stories

B1G1 Charity Donations update