Donate your child's teeth and save lives

The next time your child's milk tooth is about to fall, instead of summoning the tooth fairy, donate it to a stem cell bank -- which could help treat a range of diseases including parkinsons and alzheimers in adults.

Stemade has opened their first dental stem cell bank in the city where it is now possible to freeze your dental stem cells for future use. The bank, which is functioning in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Bangalore and Hyderabad, has now opened a facility in Chennai, too.

Dental surgeon and oral pathologist, Dr K Ranganathan said that adult stem cells are of two types, hematopoietic stem cells that form blood cells and mesenchymal stem cells that form connective tissues. "Dental stem cells are mesenchymal stem cells that can be potential treatment options in diseases like parkinsons and alzhemiers," he said. He also added that dental stem cells, because of their place of origin, were more versatile than hematopoetic cells. "The jury is out on this, but we feel dental stem cells are more competent," he said.



Dr Ranganathan also said that the biggest advantage of the dental stem cell banking was that it was a non-invasive procedure and the teeth would be of no use to the person who would anyway throw them away. "Besides it is a great opportunity for people who have missed out on banking their cord blood cells to bank their dental stem cells, as dental stem cells can be extracted at any stage," he said.

Managing director of Stemade Shailesh Gadre said that unlike umbilical cord cells which are used to treat blood-related diseases like leukaemia and thalessemia, dental stem cells have the ability to treat certain forms of cancer, heart disease, periodontal diseases and can also be used to grow replacement teeth and bone. He added that the procedure of extraction would have to be done while the milk teeth was about to fall or when the wisdom teeth were about to be extracted. "The dental pulp of the teeth is the source of these stem cells and the pulp is more usable when they have a blood supply," he said. He also added that dental stem cells have high regeneration capacity and multiply fast.Stemade has partnered with seven dental clinics in the city which are equipped with all the facilities to perform dental stem cell extraction. The cost, said Gadre, would work out to Rs 1.5 lakhs for the 15-year period for which the dental stem cells were being stored. "The processing fee is Rs 60,000 and the banking cost is Rs 6,000 per year," he said.

Whole teeth grown from molar stem cells in mice

     Few months ago in my blog , i had discussed about how close researchers are to develop technique of growing teeth by genetic engineering. Friends that time has come really fast ......

actual photgraph of implanteed mandibular teeth

Researchers in Japan have grown functional teeth using cells taken from a mouse molar as starting material. The group grew these cells for a few days in the lab, then placed them into a tooth-shaped mold and implanted the mold into the mouse kidney where they were left to grow for about two months.

What the group found after that time looked like a tooth, had the normal structures of a tooth and was able to implant normally into the jaw of a mouse. The mouse was able to chew normally using the engineered tooth.

The work was published on July 12 in the journal PLoS ONE. In a Reuters story about the work,Takashi Tsuji, who led the research, said two things are needed before dentists can replace artificial bridges with teeth that implant and function just like the original set. One is learning how to grow the teeth in a lab rather than inside the kidney.

The other is finding the human equivalent of the cells they took from mouse molars. Molars contain a lot of cells, only some of which have the ability to create entire new teeth under the right conditions. In the Reuters story Tsuji said:

"In this case, entire tooth units could be grown because the stem cells were taken from molar teeth of mice -- where they later grew into enamel, dental bones and other parts that comprised a regular tooth unit."

As is often the case in medical research, translating discoveries from mice or rats to humans can be slow going. However, if the scientists are able to find the right cells and work out conditions to grow those cells in the lab, in could mean a future of easier chewing for older people.

DENTAL PHOBIA

It is a fact that many people are still frightened to go to the dentist but dental phobia is the main cause of deteriorating dental health.

Causes of dental phobia:

Uncomfortable or traumatic past dental experience:

The most common cause of dental phobia; and it is thought to be the most difficult to overcome if it happened in early childhood and contributes to a deep-seated fear of dental intervention.

Lack of communication:

Anxious dental patients need continuous explanation and reassurance. If adequate time is not taken to explain, respond to concerns and answer questions; patients often become disillusioned, confused and unsure about the nature and outcome of treatment. Consequently, anxiety and fear increase to the extent that the patient would not return to the dentist, or visit any other dentist!

Invasion of personal space:

The mouth is a body cavity; it is an intimate personal space, therefore, some individuals feel extremely anxious about a very close “invasion” of such a personal space.

Fear of needles:

Also known as needle phobia. Individuals with needle phobia will not seek dental treatment, as they are frightened of the dental injection (or any form of injection).

“I let my teeth deteriorate, I am ashamed of them, I think I am going to have false teeth”:

Some patients who neglected their dental health for reasons other than fear (demanding work, caring for children, elderly or disabled family member..Etc.) believe that the dentist would be astonished and would remove all their remaining teeth and replace them with dentures. These individuals have a morbid fear of losing their own teeth and having dentures.

Negative or exaggerated remarks from friends or relatives who may not have had a bad experience themselves!

5 TOP TIPS TO OVERCOME THE FEAR OF DENTISTS

First, you have to realise that there are thousands of individuals like yourself; dental phobia is like any other fear; for example fear of heights or closed spaces. You are not on your own.

Second, you also have to realise that there are professionals who can help you overcome your fear. Through good communication, explanation and reassurance, your fears will tend to reduce, and you will be more in control of your anxiety.

Third, dental anxiety management techniques are now well developed and highly successful. Dental practitioners who practice anxiety management would help you overcome your fears through the administration of certain medications.

Forth, Find an understanding and sympathetic dental practitioner. Usually you would sense the mannerism in the practice from the front desk. If the atmosphere is welcoming, relaxed and courteous, and the staff provide you with enough information and respond to your enquiries; the chances are that you are in the right place.

Fifth, let the staff and dentist know of your dental anxiety, and enquire if they practice anxiety management techniques.

Finally, I  MYSELF FEARED DENTAL TREATMENTS INSPITE BEING A DENTAL STUDENT BUT  I have to assure all of those who are reading this article and suffer from dental phobia, that help is available, it just takes this first step; making contact, and you may be surprised how confident and comfortable you will feel afterwards :)))