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| HEALTH & FITNESS |
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Crooked, crowded and irregular teeth
Shoulder joint is vulnerable to injury
Faster, cheaper technique to detect malaria
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Crooked, crowded and irregular teeth Crooked, irregular, projecting in or out teeth, called mal-occlusion by dentists, affect considerably the looks of an individual and thus a matter of concern. Parents are worried about the placement of the teeth of their children even at a very young age, particularly that of girls. The correction of teeth into proper alignment, besides looks, is important for the long-term health of the teeth set. First, because of an overlap in the crowded teeth, it is difficult to optimally clean the entire tooth surfaces; thorough cleaning is essential to check dental caries and gum disease. Second, the protruding teeth are more likely to fracture in contact sports and falls, which are not uncommon during childhood. Last but not the least, well-occluding teeth leads to efficient chewing and also to longevity of the whole masticatory system. Most of the time, overcrowding is the result of lack of space in the jaws for the available number of teeth. It is just like four people trying to adjust on the rear seat in a car meant for two or three people. Sometimes late shedding of the milk teeth results in the eruption of permanent teeth away from their proper place. This also leads to irregular placement of teeth. Oral habits like thumb or finger sucking and mouth breathing contribute to mal-occlusion. Apart from a few of the environmental reasons mentioned above, the hereditary factor also plays its role in some mal-occlusions. From the causes mentioned above, it can be deduced that if parents find that there are some bad oral habits in their child, an attempt should be made to talk over to the child to stop this habit, but in no way through punishment. There are simple habit-breaking appliances that are given by the dentist to get rid of such habits. Secondly, if the child sleeps with his or her mouth open and breaths through his mouth, again he needs to be taken to a dentist so that a check-up is done for any obstruction in the nose or adenoids. In the case of no nasal obstruction, there are appliances that can be given to check habitual mouth-breathing. Third, extensive cavities in the milk teeth should be checked in time, particularly involving the sides of the teeth, as these shorten the dental arch length available for the permanent teeth lying underneath the milk teeth. All these are preventive and interceptive measures and, if taken in time, can prevent malocclusion It is advisable to start showing the child to a dentist as soon as the child starts shedding the milk teeth and getting permanent dentition, or even earlier, for there are methods/procedures to guide the teeth to occupy proper positions which can save the child from complicated teeth straightening appliances (the braces). It is normally asked, “what is the right time for orthodontic treatment?” Any time is the right time; the teeth can be moved at all ages. The straightening of teeth that is done early in the life is definitely more retentive. It is important to know that teeth can be moved from their improper positions to the right position without any ill effect on the health of the teeth or the jawbone. There are basically two types of appliances that are used to move the teeth to their aesthetic position in the mouth: (i) the removable appliances which the patient can remove and place back in the mouth and (ii) fixed appliances commonly known as braces. Here the braces are fixed on the teeth with an adhesive. The individual cannot remove these by his own will. Each appliance has its own indications and the dentist alone can decide on its selection. On an average, it takes between six months and three years for the final correction of the teeth into their right alignment. During the treatment period two important factors are very important. First is the regular visit to the dentist for timely activation of the wires. Second is the oral hygiene which needs special care, as apart from the teeth, there are braces and wires which also need to be cleaned. Lack of cleaning would lead to formation of cavities and development of gum disease. What is the idea of having well-aligned good-looking teeth which are going to get spoiled and lost because of cavities and gum disease? It is important to know that the treatment does not finish after straightening, but retention of the teeth into their corrected position is very important. For this purpose, the responsibility rests on the patient himself as the retention appliances are the removable plates and their wearing depends upon on a patient’s cooperation. Omission of not wearing the appliance can nullify the whole hard work of the patient and the dentist. Though well-aligned teeth can be maintained better, care needs to be taken to prevent cavities and gum diseases by the regular use of brushing, dental floss and an interdental brush. The writer is Head, Dental Department, The Apollo Clinic,
Chandigarh.
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Shoulder joint is vulnerable to injury The shoulder joint is one of the most mobile joints in the body. However, it is also an unstable joint owing to the wide range of motion permissible. It is vulnerable to injury as the ball of the upper arm (humerus) is larger than the shoulder socket that holds it. For the joint to remain stable, it is mandatory that the shoulder remains anchored to its muscles, tendons and ligaments. Most of the time shoulder problems occur as a result of injury, overuse and degenerative mechanism due to ageing. Workouts in a gym undertaken incorrectly with the aim of building up the muscles in a short period cause injuries. Sports which entail the overuse of the shoulder and occupations requiring frequent overhead reaching cause irritation to the rotator cuff muscles. The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles which facilitate shoulder rotation and elevation. Symptoms:
Types of shoulder injury
Its treatment depends on the cause of the problem. The diagnosis is extremely important.
Rehabilitation: The goal is to re-establish a full range of motion of the shoulder joint and regaining muscle strength. The following exercises help achieve the above.
The conservative treatment is often effective for treating chronic shoulder pain and a supervised regimen of physical therapy is the mainstay of the treatment. Arthroscopic/surgical treatment is indicated only if a patient fails to make progress after a minimum of eight weeks through physical therapy. There-fore, correct evaluation and starting the treatment early can prevent chronic shoulder pain and disability. The writer is a former doctor/physiotherapist, Indian cricket team.
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Faster, cheaper technique to detect malaria
Washington: Soon, it will be possible to detect malaria in less than a minute, thanks to researchers from the Universities of Exeter and Coventry, who have developed a new malaria-diagnosing technique able to challenge the current rapid diagnostic tests
(RDTs) and high-power microscopy. The results have indicated that this technique could be as effective as RDTs but far faster and cheaper, making it a potentially viable alternative. Currently the team is working on a non-invasive version of the device, which will soon go under trail in Kenya later this year. The technique took two years in the making, and uses magneto-optic technology (MOT) to detect haemozoin, a waste product of the malarial parasite, in the blood. Haemozoin crystals are weakly magnetic and have a distinct rectangular form. They also exhibit optical dichroism, which means that they absorb light more strongly along their length than across their width. When aligned by a magnetic field they behave like a weak Polaroid sheet such as used in sunglasses. The new method makes use of all these properties to come out with a precise reading of the presence of haemozoin in a small blood sample. In fact, the team has also created a device, which gives a positive or negative reading for malaria in less than a minute. The new device has a totally different approach from RDTs and high-power microscopy for malaria diagnosis. While high-power microscopy is time-consuming and requires expensive equipment and specialist medical skills, RDTs allow for faster diagnosis in the field, but these are too costly to be viable for developing countries. —
ANI
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Health Notes LONDON: Breastfeeding their baby for six months after giving birth cuts a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer, states a review of almost 100 scientific studies. The review was carried out in January by the American Institute for Cancer Research. Researchers found “convincing” evidence that breastfeeding lowered the risk of women developing breast cancer. “The evidence on this is convincing and this is why we recommend that — if they are able to — mothers should aim to breastfeed exclusively for the first six months and then continue with complementary feeding after that,” The Telegraph quoted Lucie Galice, from the WCRF, as saying. — ANI
Gene therapy improves vision in near-blind patients
Washington: Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have successfully restored vision among patients with a rare form of congenital blindness using gene therapy. Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a group of inherited blinding diseases that damages light receptors in the retina. It usually begins stealing sight in early childhood and causes total blindness during a patient’s twenties or thirties. “This is the first gene therapy trial for a non-lethal paediatric condition,” said Dr Albert M. Maguire, Associate Professor, Department of Ophthalmology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and a physician at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. —
ANI
Excessive intake of aspartame may damage your brain
Washington: Excessive intake of aspartame, an artificial sweetener may stall the ability of brain enzymes to work normally, say scientists. A new review by researchers from the University of Pretoria and the University of Limpopo has revealed that high doses of the sweetener may lead to neurodegeneration. The review also revealed that high dosage of aspartame can extensively disturb the metabolism of amino acids, protein structure and metabolism, the integrity of nucleic acids, neuronal function and endocrine balances in the brain, reports Environmental News Network. —
ANI
Two cups of coffee a day may keep breast cancer at bay
Washington: Having at least two to three cups of coffee a day can either reduce the risk of developing breast cancer, or delay its onset, depending on which variant of the gene CYP1A2 a woman has. The research was conducted by boffins at Lund University and Malmö University in Sweden, who found that coffee is related to the female sex hormones. According to the researchers, various components of coffee can alter the metabolism so that a woman acquires a better configuration of various estrogens. — ANI
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