Our Dental Hygienist, Grainne, attended the Irish Dental Association Annual meeting in the Lyrath Estate Hotel in Kilkenny on the 17th May 2014. Sheila Galvin, Specialist Registrar in Oral Medicine (Dublin Dental Hospital) discussed The Diabetic Patient.
1. A diabetic patient has three times greater risk of getting Gingivitis Periodontitis and has higher plaque levels compared to a non-diabetic patient.
2. A diabetic patient has increased sugar in their saliva and poorer glycaemic control.
3. They have impaired immunity which means they cant fight gum disease as well as non-diabetic patients.
4. Dental abscesses spread more quickly in patients with diabetes.
5. A diabetic patient needs an appointment with the dental hygienist every three months. Our dental hygienists, Grainne and Michele, will give you the skills, tools and techniques to remove plaque from all the surfaces of all the teeth everyday.
6. Diabetic patients can use Bio-xtra / Biothene products to help with dry mouth and Corsodyl or Bio-Kin as an anti-bacterial mouthwash.