So long America!

Haiti 2012

Tomorrow I'll be taking off on my first ever international outreach! Ever since I decided on a career in dentistry, international work has been something that I've wanted to do. We'll be departing from JFK at 9AM and landing in Port-au-Prince early afternoon. I'll be traveling with For Hope International, which is an agency that a friend of mine traveled with last year. Our team consists of 30 volunteers who will be providing medical, dental, optometry and physical therapy services. With the craziness of the holidays, I've learned a bit of Haitian Creole to speak to the natives. I've heard some speak English, and Spanish which is great and I hope I run into them! I'll be keeping something of a journal of the adventure, and plan to bombard blogspot with pictures and stories when I return.

In terms of prophylaxis I've already been equipped with the Hep vaccines, MMR and others from my entrance into dental school, so the only supplement I needed was a typhoid vaccine. I also began Malarone, for malaria prophylaxis yesterday. The pill makes me a bit lethargic but that also could be a side effect from the constant eating of the holiday...nonetheless it's nothing significant.

But for now, back to Christmas festivities, Happy Holidays to all!

D2.5

Fall Semester, FINALLY OVER, and it feels incredible. Here's what our Finals Week looked like for any interested parties:

While I still need to do the actual Course Evaluation Surveys, I figured giving my own two cents here would be fun also.

Indirect Restorations I

Super frustrating course for me at first. Crown preparations are extremely specific. We're talking 1/4mm, or a couple degree differences and your restoration fails, specific. And Dr. Kim really drove that point home with the grading as far as I'm concerned. Nonetheless you learn a ton if you seek to. Like most things in dentistry the only way to really improve is a ton of practice. And when it comes to Indirect, not just doing a ton of crown preparations, but also critically evaluating each one afterwards. What really made things clear for me was doing one practice a day, then evaluating each aspect of it according to the criteria sheet given. I was lucky enough to have a tutor and upperclassmen friends who could also take a look and let me know if my self evaluation was correct. Indirect made me realize dentists not only need to have "golden hands" but "golden eyes" as well. Before you can create, you need the vision. I'm not ashamed to say, I definitely came from humble beginnings in that class after the first practical, but after the last practicals and competency I definitely feel competent and able when it comes to crown preparations. We also do some inlay and onlay preps, and go through the whole casting process...but I think we know that's probably never happening outside dental school

Lectures I thought were okay in the beginning, but really interesting toward the end of the semester when we talked about treatment planning and complex prosthodontic cases. Overall, I'm sure there are many complaints about the class, but I think it comes down to how much work you want to put in and the people you trust to help you.

Direct Restorations - Amalgams

The heading pretty much says it all. I personally just love direct restorations. They're quick and fun. There's lots of faculty walking around during lab so help isn't usually far. After the course I'm not really sure if I prefer amalgam over resin, or viceversa. The faculty really make it clear that both have their advantages and indications. I think amalgam is a little more strenuous at first to work with because you really need to condense well, but resin takes work as well. Carving amalgam takes practice. That may have been the only struggle I can think of in this class, but practice and you learn by the end.  Direct ruled.

Regional Anesthesia

So this one hour per week class on Friday morning is easily one of the most important in dental school. Dr. Hall is great and stands by his words when he says "he does not lecture, he teaches" and in my case, scares you into learning. Anesthesia is serious business and the complications are potentially fatal if you aren't careful.   You also get to give your first injections which is awesome. You receive one as well, which is also..an experience :).

Removable Prosthodontics

I thought this was probably one of the best taught classes we've had. It felt like we learned the same things over and over, but that's really just because Dr. Pusateri really keeps things to the point and makes it clear what's important. The lab periods were really helpful since the faculty again were great, at least in my part of the room. I'd say the one thing that could sneak up on people in this class is the sign off sheet. Since we have graded projects that are due on certain dates you tend to focus on those. But there's also a list of projects you're expected to complete on your own for a sign off. I honestly had some fun making dentures. The afternoon lecture wasn't as well attended as it should have been, but I felt it was useful.  You'll probably get burned with wax, or hot instruments, or feel incredibly frustrated setting posterior teeth when you can't get simultaneous bilateral contacts, or passive contacts on the anterior, but you get through, and will look forward to the day you literally create someone's smile.

Oral Sciences

I don't have much to say about this one. Interesting subject matter at points, but I wasn't a huge fan. The long Monday afternoon lectures, then sometimes lab, and sometimes case study after were a little draining. Learned some cool things about the development of teeth though. 

Pathology

I liked this class. Dr. Nickerson really cares about the students and finds great lecturers. Dr. Heffner uses case studies a lot to teach diseases so that makes it a little easier to pay attention if you're not a morning person. Not much else to say about this one. The lab section with slide IDing wasn't popular with everyone. I enjoyed it because it was an opportunity to apply what we knew. But in general, just another science course where you study the notes, and memorize everything. 

We had a few rotations under "Clinical Dentistry" and "Integrated Dental Practice" and those are usually informative. Some moreso than others. I get the impression UBSDM really wants the students to get as much from their education and time here as they can and I'd say they're doing well. And so goes the Fall Semester,  I'll have pictures from the lab up soon. Happy Holidays everyone :)

West Side Community Center Outreach

Great outreach yesterday at the West Side Community Center in Buffalo! The Center holds health fairs every month or so to help educate, and raise awareness about health issues. Of course, there's some freebies to be had as well, but it's a great way that healthcare community here in Buffalo seek to reach more people. A dental hygenist from the University Pediatric Dentistry Clinic, a few other dental students and myself manned our table in the main room of the center, along with many other groups.  There was a large spanish speaking population so it was an awesome opportunity to interact with a unique population. Nadya, the hygenist was conducting oral health screenings for anyone interested, and there was definitely interest. We collectively informed patients about the services we have at the school, and what they can to do maintain superior oral hygiene  Of course there were free toothbrushes and floss.

I took some time to walk around and was enlightened by the different groups present. One doing cholesterols, a group of social workers, a kidney health organization and a representative from a smoking cessation group were present, to name a few. I almost always stop by the smoking cessation tables with the hope of learning something new to help future patients and friends quit smoking.

Fluoride-Free Toothpastes

No, no and no! For any patient in the market for a new toothpaste, the only thing that really, REALLY, matters if the product includes Fluoride! There's an increasing population of "green-minded", organic shoppers, which I personally can relate to, but on the issue of oral care, fluoride is essential. Here's why:

Our teeth are comprised of a hard outer coating of enamel, which is chemically made up of calcium and phosphate. When we consume carbohydrates, bacteria on our teeth ferment these carbohydrates, producing an acidic environment, which in turn begins to decay our teeth, creating what dentists call a carious lesion. These days, if carious lesions are caught early, they can be remineralized, naturally, or with the use of fluoride or calcium/phosphate products such as MI paste. So Fluoride not only protects our teeth from caries lesions, but it:

1. Increases the acid resistance of enamel
2. Has antibacterial properties - inhibits bacterial enzymes

On the topic of fluoridated water, this is also an essential for ideal oral health. While we can get fluoride from sources such as marine shellfish, tea and toothbrushing, the concentration of fluoride in water is so low that toxicity is unfathomable. In the United States, fluoridated water is kept at a concentration of 1ppm (part-per-million) or 1mg per 1L. Fluoride is only found to be toxic to humans at concentrations of 1500ppm, or 5mg/kg. At this rate you would need to drink more than 1000L of water to have a potential subacute poisoning! While this will continue to be a controversial topic, dental professionals will continue to advocate the benefits of fluoride in oral health. Nonetheless, the concerns of the public are heard, and if scientific data arose proving against what is currently supported, the  tides would change, but for now, fluoride is definitely a mainstay!