Westchester Oral Surgery March 2019
2975 Westchester Avenue, Suite G02, Purchase, NY 10577
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Finding Enough Time in Only 24 Hours STRIKING A BALANCE A mericans are notoriously terrible at maintaining a work-life balance. When compared “
... THE MOST IMPORTANT ELEMENT IN THE
to certain European countries, like France or the Netherlands, American work habits
‘LIFE’ PART OF A WORK-LIFE
BALANCE IS JUST BEING THERE FOR YOUR LOVED ONES.
look like we’re all heading for inevitable burnout. In 2016, half of all vacation days in the United States were left unused. It’s very difficult for most people to strike that work-life balance in America, and I’m certainly no exception.
couldn’t keep it up and deliver the excellence our patients and referring doctors deserve if we didn’t make an effort to find that elusive work-life balance, even if we can only do so occasionally. As business partners, we respect each other’s time. We are always willing to cover for each other to afford us time to decompress and be with our families. When I’m away from the offices, there’s nowhere else I want to be but at home. Most weekends we have family time. This could mean skiing in the winter or going to my kids’ baseball games in the spring, but I also really love playing board games at home. For me, the most important element in the “life” part of a work-life balance is just being there for your loved ones. We really try to make an effort to spend time together and enjoy each other’s company, no matter what we’re doing. Of course, vacations with my wife and kids are also a highlight. I’m not going to pretend like I have all — or any — of the answers for striking a work-life balance. That’s something I’m still working on myself, and when I figure it out, I’ll let you know! But I think it starts with loving the work you do. When you enjoy your job, it makes it easier to dig into work when you have to. And that hard work makes the time spent on your personal life at home that much more valuable.
Anyone who runs their own business knows it’s all-consuming. When Dr. Graffeo and I opened our first practice, we knew there would be some sacrifices. Long weeks and late nights come with the territory. When we opened our second office, those demands only became greater. Though, I can say without question that the good still outweighs the bad. The truth is, it’s not just the responsibilities of owning two offices that keep us busy. Caring as much as Michael and I do keeps us perpetually pushing to give our patients and referring doctors the best experience possible. There’s a great deal of trust involved in what we do. When new patients come in, they’re nervous and rely on us to help them feel comfortable. When doctors refer someone to our offices, they are counting on us to treat their patients right. We recognize the responsibility we carry when referring doctors give us their seal of approval, and we work hard to earn that responsibility again and again.
–Dr. Harrison Linsky
The dedication we have for our work means that a lot of business time spills into personal time. While we love what we do, we
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ManageYour JawPain Tips for Easing the Symptoms of TMD
symptoms than splints. A physical therapist can show you similar exercises that will reduce your TMJ pain. The effectiveness of surgical treatments to address TMJ disorders is still unclear, so talk to your dentist or medical provider to see what kinds of less invasive treatments are available. While there is such a thing as a TMJ specialist, there are many treatments that come from varying schools of thought and are not always based on scientific evidence. Working with your general dentist may be just as effective for you. Some patients have found relief through the TruDenta treatment program, which combines massage therapy, cold laser therapy, microcurrents, and ultrasound to treat the symptoms of TMD. Others have found acupuncture and other forms of alternative medicine to be effective.
It’s a strange feeling for anyone who’s experienced it: waking up to find that your jaw is extremely sore, maybe even to the point where you can’t fully open or close your mouth. Sufferers report various degrees of discomfort, but anyone who knows how it feels agrees that temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain hurts. When it becomes chronic, it is referred to as temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). There are still no definitive answers as to what causes TMJ, though doctors believe stress, anxiety, bruxism (an unconscious grinding of the teeth), and joint imbalances may all contribute. Most cases last a fewweeks, but if you suffer from TMJ for longer than that, you should consult your dentist or physician. If you’re waking up with jaw pain, there are a few things you can do to manage the symptoms at home. Here are some suggestions from the Temporomandibular Joint
Association (TMJA) and the Mayo Clinic:
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Apply a moist heat compress to the jaw to reduce pain and increase function. ● Apply an ice pack to ease the pain and reduce inflammation (wrap it with a thin cloth to keep it from touching the skin).
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• •
● Try sleeping on your side.
● Relax the jaw by consciously unclenching and taking deep breaths.
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● Eat soft foods.
Some medical professionals prescribe an oral splint to stabilize the jaw and reduce pain. But in one recent clinical trial at the Tokyo Medical and Dental
Given all the options, the first step to address your jaw pain is to educate yourself so you can make the TMJ treatment decision that is right for you.
University, they found that therapeutic jaw
exercises helped patients recover faster from TMD
The Evolving Art of Dentures A BITE OF HISTORY M odern dental care works hard to help patients keep their natural teeth, but for most of human history, losing
In Japan, dental technology was making huge strides. In the 16th century, Japanese doctors invented wooden dentures, which were made by making an impression of a person’s teeth using beeswax. Then an artisan would use the impression to carve a new set of teeth out of wood. Soft beeswax would then be used to keep the dentures in place. This was an incredibly advanced technique for the time, one that would not be replicated in the west for another 200 years. School children across America can tell you that the most famous wooden dentures in history belonged to President George Washington himself. Except this legend is as false as the president’s teeth themselves. Although our first president did lose all but one of his adult teeth before taking office, none of the false teeth he used were made of wood. They were made of ivory, gold, lead, and, in some cases, even other human teeth.
The myth of Washington’s wooden chompers likely came about due to this Founding Father’s love of wine. Washington’s ivory dentures became stained overtime, until they looked almost wooden in appearance. Unfortunately, it would be a couple hundred years before dentists could start offering advanced whitening techniques. Much like our teeth whitening technology, dentures have come a long way since Washington’s day. Porcelain dentures would soon come into fashion, followed by dentures made out of Vulcanite in the 1850s, and acrylic resin in the mid-20th century. Today, there are numerous materials available to craft dentures. And instead of struggling with the discomfort of removable dentures, patients now have the option to enjoy the stability of fixed implant dentures. Quite the improvement over wolf teeth.
adult teeth seemed like an inevitability. It’s no wonder our ancestors got a little creative when it came to making replacements. The oldest known dentures date back to 2500 B.C. and were found in Mexico. Excavators found a prosthetic device made of what they suspect are wolf teeth. On the other side of the world, dentures wouldn’t become popular until around 700 B.C., when the Etruscans began making dentures out of human and animal teeth, fastening them together with gold bands. These early dentures deteriorated quickly but were easy to
make. This technique would be borrowed by the Romans in the 5th century B.C. and remain popular in Europe until the 18th century.
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Should Dental Professionals Do More to Screen for HPV?
The human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States. There are an estimated 14 million new cases each year. Fortunately, most cases of HPV are fought by the body’s immune system before they cause health problems. However, some strains of HPV affect the mouth and throat and can become associated with certain oral cancers. The Centers for Disease Control reports that HPV is associated with 9,000 cases of head and neck cancers in the United States each year. Much like with cases of sleep apnea, dental professionals are in a unique position to identify possible cases of oral human papillomavirus long before the patient’s primary physician has an opportunity to screen for the illness. However, due to the sensitive nature of HPV, many question whether it is a dentist’s “place” to screen for such things. A study published in the February 2019 edition of The Journal for the American Dental Association looked into the feasibility and acceptance of HPV detection in the dental office. The study, conducted with the practices of The National Dental Practice-Based Research Network, evaluated responses from patients
and practitioners regarding screening and testing procedures for HPV. The results showed that 85 percent of patients were “comfortable being asked about their cigarette use and their sexual behavior.” Over 90 percent of the practitioners who responded stated they were “comfortable with study procedures except the extra time required for patient participation.” These results suggest that patients would not be averse to appropriate HPV screenings as part of regular dental visits, but they do not address the advisability of such routine screenings. There are some resources available to dental professionals to screen for HPV in- office, but there is still a distinct lack of training and protocol that would empower dentists to successfully address the risks of HPV with their patients. As the threat of HPV and oral cancers continues to rise, it may become necessary for dentists to take a more active role in screening for HPV. In order for this to happen, it’s clear there needs to be more information and training about HPV for dental professionals, so they can better serve their patients and care for their overall oral health.
First Line of Defense
Have a Laugh
Asparagus and Avocado Soup
INGREDIENTS This hearty soup is the perfect meal for those late winter days when you think spring will never come. It can be made vegetarian by substituting vegetable broth for the chicken stock. DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 425 F.
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12 ounces asparagus 1 tablespoon olive oil
2. On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss asparagus and garlic with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast for 10 minutes. 3. Transfer asparagus to blender. Add remaining ingredients and puree until smooth.
2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
2 cups chicken stock
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cubed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon ghee or coconut oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
4. Season to taste and serve.
Inspired by CookEatPaleo.com Westchester Office • 914-251-0313
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INSIDE This Issue
PG 1
Why You Should Care About What You Do
PG 2
Tips for Managing Your TMJ Pain
History’s Most Famous Fake Teeth
PG 3
Should Dentists Screen for HPV?
Asparagus and Avocado Soup
PG 4
Celebrate Dr. Seuss
members in towns throughout the country. They chose that date to pay homage to one of the most beloved children’s authors who was born that day: Theodor Geisel. That name may sound unfamiliar to you, but “Dr. Seuss” should ring a few bells. His name alone is so associated with literacy that in 2007, the author of an article in U.S. News & World Report that chronicled the history of 1957 — the year “The Cat in the Hat” was published — wrote, “Greece had Zeus — America has Seuss.” In 2001, Publisher’s Weekly released a list of the bestselling hardcover children’s books of all time in the U.S. Of the books in the top 100, Seuss authored 16, which is more than any other author on the list by a long shot. But Seuss did not break into the children’s literature industry easily. Seuss and his nearly 50 children’s books almost never got off the ground. His first children’s book, “And to Think I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” was denied by more than a dozen publishers. Legend has it that Seuss was on his way home to burn the manuscript when he ran into an old friend who suggested another publisher. The rest is history.
Association chose his birthday to mark a day dedicated to celebrating reading. After all, he’s often quoted as saying, “You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild, to pick up a book and read with a child.”
Given the enthusiasm for reading Dr. Seuss has fostered in children for the past eight decades, it’s no wonder the National Education
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