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