FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Saturday, October 18, 1997
CONTACT:
Chris Martin
Jann Ingmire
DC Convention Center
202/371-4509
Chicago Office
312/440-2806
Dentists Help Patients Quit Tobacco
WASHINGTON -- Tobacco use has such a dramatic effect on the mouth that it makes sense for dentists to educate patients about tobacco's dangers. "Helping Your Patients to Quit Tobacco Use" is one of the scientific presentations at the American Dental Association's 138th annual session in Washington, D.C., October 18. Arden Christen, D.D.S., a faculty member at the Indiana University School of Dentistry, Indianapolis, and Robert Mecklenburg, D.D.S., the dental coordinator for the National Cancer Institute's Smoking and Tobacco Control Program, will address the issue of encouraging patients to stop using tobacco. Drs. Christen and Mecklenburg say tobacco cessation can be offered as a natural extension of the other routinely delivered preventive and oral health treatment procedures in the dental office. Dr. Christen says some dental schools are teaching students about tobacco cessation so they will be aware that tobacco is an oral health problem. According to Dr. Christen, there are numerous clinical research studies that show smoking causes periodontal (gum) disease. "We don't know why, but we do know it is causal.
If you smoke, you're more likely to get periodontal disease," Dr. Christen says. "If a dentist is treating a patient who smokes for gum disease, then tobacco cessation should be part of the treatment plan because patients will not heal as well, nor is the result likely to be successful. The evidence is overwhelming. "We also know that smokeless tobacco can cause gum recession. Again, if dentists have a patient who uses smokeless products, they should be counseled to quit."
Dr. Mecklenburg says any encouragement for the patient to stop using tobacco from a health professional, including the dentist and others on the dental team, will improve the success rate of the patient's overcoming their nicotine addiction. If the dentist can provide the patient with social support, help patients understand what triggers them to use tobacco, and prescribe or recommend an FDA-approved cessation aid, the number of patients who will actually quit will double or triple. He says studies show even brief help significantly increases patient long-term quit rates.
Dr. Mecklenburg says for teenagers and young adults, "It works better when they hear the message to avoid or quit tobacco from one of their own and not only from adults." Dr. Christen adds, "When we approach teenagers, we go with the esthetic appeal. No teenager wants bad breath or stained teeth." Both Drs. Christen and Mecklenburg agree that it's important for the dentist, the hygienist and the dental assistants to bring up the subject of tobacco use. Patients now expect their dentist to ask them if they use tobacco products.
###
RSS