A n Irish dentist has been honoured or her sensitive handling of patient’s needs.

Dr Freda Guiney, a dentist who practices in Classes Lake, Ballincollig, in the Republic of Ireland, has been given an award for sensitivity.

Cosmetic Dentistry Guide reported Dr Guiney was nominated for and won the prize for her sensitive actions from the Journal of the Irish Dental Association after she treated a pregnant women during a late night emergency.

The patient, Mary Cunningham, put Dr Guiney forward for the award when she was invited to her dentist’s house, where she was treated warmly and administered painkillers that would not harm her baby – all during the wee hours of the morning.

Dr Guiney also faxed a prescription to a late-night pharmacist and kept in touch with the expectant mother over the next few days to check she was recovering well.

Elsewhere, after winning the prize for Most Popular Talent Show at the National Television Awards, X Factor judge Simon Cowell dedicated the award to his dentist.

Cowell claimed that as someone in the public eye, he is reliant on his looks and his Hollywood smile is part of his appeal.

Sour sweets can be very damaging to tooth enamel.

Eating lots of sour sweets is like bathing teeth in battery acid, one US dentist has claimed.

Dr John Ruby at the University of Alabama School of Dentistry noted when eaten, the pH of some sour sweets can be as low as 2.2.

Considering that neutral is 7.0 and battery acid would have a pH of 1.0, it is plain to see the damage these sweets can cause to teeth.

However, he noted that eating them in moderation should not be too bad and for people who want to limit the damage they cause their tooth enamel after eating these sweets, Dr Ruby had a few tips.

He noted: “You can drink milk. Swish your mouth with water. Eat cheese. So you want to do something to neutralise that acid attack. But don’t go and brush your teeth right away.”

Elsewhere, the Coloradoan recently reported developing bad breath could be one of the first signs that a person has poor oral health and could be a symptom of a more serious problem.

Many Scots are still finding it difficult to make a dentist’s appointment.

Thousands of Scots remain unable to make appointments with NHS dentists, it has been revealed.

Public health minister Shona Robison noted that as of last September, just 65.4 per cent of Scottish adults were registered with a dentist.

As a result, the minister announced £82 million is to be invested in bringing more NHS dentists to the country in the months ahead.

“We now have outreach training centres in place throughout Scotland, including Aberdeen, Inverness and Dumfries and Galloway and NHS boards now have the authority to appoint directly salaried dentists,” commented Ms Robison.

Elsewhere, Angela Slater, a mother of four from Merstham, Surrey, recently revealed she will have to wait more than four months to have her dentures fitted by an emergency dentist after her addiction to sugar led to her having 16 teeth removed.

Ms Slater claimed, however, that if her plight helps put kids off eating too many sugary foods then she is pleased to have had a positive influence.

Dentistry could hold the key to identifying the remains of an ancient English princess.

The remains of an ancient princess could possibly be identified through the use of dental techniques employed by scientists from Bristol University.

Professor David Horton, of the university’s archaeology department, is working to discover whether the remains of a body found in Germany are the missing English princess Eadgyth – pronounced Edith.

The skeleton has been dated to the tenth century and work is now being carried out using dental enamel analysis to discover whether the remains are truly hers.

Elsewhere, researchers from Bristol University recently announced they had been able to uncover some insights into the habits of our ancestors by studying the dental remains of a child that was found in Portugal.

The remains of a child that lived 30,000 years ago were uncovered in 1998 in the Abrigo do Lagar Velho region and ever since scientists have been working on them trying to determine how humans have evolved over this period.

Demand for dental implants is likely to double by 2015.

The global dental implant market could more than double over the next five years, it has been claimed.

According to a report entitled Dental Implants Market: Increasing Clinical Familiarity to Drive Growth published by Companies and Markets, the use of prosthetic devices to replace missing teeth will become more commonplace in the years ahead.

The fact implants offer a permanent solution to tooth loss was found to be the major driving force behind the popularity of this product, while the versatility of the devices also means they can be used to improve the stability of other treatments, such as dentures or bridges.

Elsewhere, the Indian Express recently reported more people are choosing to have dental implants fitted rather than having a bridge.

The publication noted this trend could be due to the fact dental implants are a more permanent solution, as well as providing a more aesthetically pleasing end result for the patient.

A new innovation could give the power back to patients.

A new button connected to the dentist’s drill could give the power back to people undergoing cosmetic dentistry treatments, it has been revealed.

Patients at Centennial dentist surgery in Denver, Colorado, are being given a chance to use the “kill switch” to turn off the dentist’s drill at any point during a procedure, 9News reported.

The aim of the move is to give people more control when they are in the chair and to help them allay any fears by giving them the ability to stop the dentist at the push of a button.

“It does make a difference. They have the dental button that makes the patient feel in control and have a voice in when to stop,” commented Centennial dentist Dr Stace Lind.

Elsewhere, Dentistry IQ recently reported dentists should take the time to talk to their patients about what elective and emergency dentistry treatments entail before they are carried out, in this way they can build a rapport, as well as putting them at ease before any procedure is started.

Dental implants could be the best solution for replacig lost teeth.

Having dental implants installed can help patients stop their teeth from splaying and becoming crooked, leading to them needing to be removed, it has been claimed.

Tim Burke wrote in a blog post for the Palm Beach Post that when a patient loses a tooth, the rest of the mouth can lose support – normally through bone loss in the jaw or a lack of posterior support – resulting in increasing problems for the patient.

However, by installing dental implants a permanent solution can be achieved, which provides both support to the surrounding teeth and gives the jaw bone a tooth to hold on to so it will not contract and weaken in that area.

Mr Burke noted: “With the correct bite on the posterior teeth and a permanent retaining wire bonded to the inside of the upper front teeth, you will not fall victim to splaying again.”

Elsewhere, Sreenivas Koka, chair of the Mayo Clinic Department of Dental Specialties, recently noted dental implants – rather than bridges or dentures – could be a more suitable and aesthetically pleasing solution to tooth loss for many patients.

A London dentist is practicing Da Vinci Code dentistry.

Harley Street dental professional Dr Tariq Idris has claimed a sequence of numbers found in the Da Vinci Code hold the key to the perfect smile.

Dr Idris argued that measuring the ratio of teeth, smile and gumline the perfect smile can be created – and this is all encapsulated within the Da Vinci Code.

He claimed the code – also known as the divine proportion – is also used in architecture and creates images or structures that are “naturally pleasing to the eye”.

As part of his push to achieve the perfect smile for each of his patients, Dr Idris is now using laser technology to measure and putty to mould the prefect tooth for each person before fitting any veneers or carrying out cosmetic dentistry work.

Elsewhere, X Factor Judge and music mogul Simon Cowell recently dedicated an award to his dentist.

However, Edinburgh-based dentist Biju Krishnan noted mainly people do not wish to have quite the same level of dazzle as Cowell’s famous pearly whites.

Children should brush their teeth every day.

Parents across the UK have been provided with some helpful advice on how best to ensure their children do not develop tooth decay.

The Irish Independent reported keeping baby teeth decay-free is an important part of keeping a child healthy.

Ensuring children brush their teeth regularly is an important part of maintaining oral health and children under seven should be supervised by an adult.

“Do not allow a child to fall asleep with a bottle of milk, formula, fruit juices or other sweet liquids. If your child needs to be comforted between regular feedings or during naps give [them] a bottled filled with cool boiled water,” the publication noted.

Elsewhere, researchers for the Cochrane Oral Health Group recently revealed a minimum concentration of fluoride in children’s toothpastes of 1,000 parts per million (ppm) could have a significantly positive impact on oral health.

However, the organisation noted that at present, concentrations in these products range from 100 to 1,400 ppm.

Pregnant women should rememer to maintain good oral health.

Pregnant women have been urged to ensure they maintain a good standard of oral health during the pregnancy after it emerged that bacteria from the mouth could play a part in premature births.

Researchers at Case Western University in Cleveland, Ohio, noted a link between premature birth and gum disease and therefore urged all women to ensure they brush regularly, floss and use mouthwash.

The report noted: “Pregnant women who do not visit dentists, or maintain oral health and allow oral bacteria to go unchecked are under the risk of having pre-term babies or babies with low birth weight.”

Elsewhere, John E Peterson recently wrote in a blog for the Emporia Gazette that the mouth contains more than 700 different kinds of bacteria and left unchecked these can multiply – especially in areas where brushing cannot reach – and cause tooth decay.

Therefore, it is important for Brits to floss regularly in order to get into areas which brushing alone cannot reach.