A new study suggests that many British parents and young people are unaware of one of the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs), the human papillomavirus (HPV). The virus has been linked to cervical cancer and mouth cancer transmitted by oral sex. Experts predict HPV will overtake the current main risk factors for mouth cancer—alcohol and tobacco—within the next ten years. Without early detection, an estimated 30,000 people in the UK will die from mouth cancer in the next decade.
Archive for: ‘October 2011’
Halloween is busiest night of year for the Toothfairy
Halloween is just around the corner, and the Toothfairy’s nightmare is about to begin. Believe it or not, Halloween is the busiest night for the Toothfairy, and it marks the beginning of the tooth season. “I know kids will be eating lots of candy, and I am certainly going to have my work cut out for me this year,” remarked the Toothfairy in a recent interview.
Fruits significantly more dangerous for teeth than carbonated drinks
Eating fruit such as apples could do up to four times the damage to teeth than carbonated drinks, new research has found. In a study led by Prof David Bartlett at the Dental Institute, King’s College London, scientists looked at links between diet and tooth wear at several sites in the mouth, in more than 1,000 men and women aged 18 to 30.
Tooth movement could be an alternative to bone transplants
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg’s Sahlgrenska Academy have found a way to replace lost teeth without building up the jaw artificially. With the researchers’ method, existing teeth are moved into the toothless area using a brace, which offers clinicians a less complicated and painful option for giving patients their lost teeth back.
