Canine do anything without teeth?

Teeth are very important as they help with the ingestion and mechanical digestion of the food
we eat. They can be used to bite off pieces of food and also grind it into smaller pieces. This
allows food to be digested quicker as it has a larger surface area, hence making it easier for
the enzymes break it down later on in the digestive system. The
basic structure of a human tooth consists of 2 parts, the crown and
the root. The crown can be further divided into the enamel,
dentine and the pulp cavity as shown in figure 1. Enamel is the
hardest substance made by animals and helps to protect the
teeth. Beneath the enamel is the dentine that contains strands of
cytoplasm. In the middle of the tooth is the pulp cavity, consisting
of the nerves and blood vessels to supply the tooth with
nutrients and carry away waste materials produced by the cells.
(Jones, Geoff) In humans, there are 3 different types of teeth. They
are the incisors, canines and molars. Molars can be further
separated into, pre-molars, molars and the wisdom teeth. Every
human has 32 teeth altogether by the age of 20. Although the different
types of teeth have slightly different functions, generally all the teeth
Figure 1
are used for biting and grinding food into smaller pieces. (Jones,
Geoff)
There are a vast variety of dental diseases, however the most common ones are the
periodontal disease and teeth decay. Periodontal disease is mainly known as gum disease.
Bacteria cause both of these diseases, which
is usually harmless, however when it
combined with saliva and form a sticky
film
over your teeth it becomes a plague. Plague
is usually soft at first and can be easily
removed through the brushing or cleaning
of teeth. However, as they are left to
harden they will become tartar, a substance
similar to cement and cannot be removed
through brushing of teeth. The plague will
continue
to descent down the edges of your teeth and
gums. The bacteria from the plague will
work down the roots of your tooth causing
Figure 2
your gums to swell and become inflamed.
(Jones, Geoff) This is usually painless but
if nothing is done to stop it; the tooth will eventually be loose and need to be removed. Tooth
decays are caused as sugar is left on the teeth and bacteria in the plague feed on it. Since
bacteria use the sugar in respiration, acid will be produced. Enamel is very hard but can be
easily susceptible to acid. Soon, the acid will dissolve the enamel covering the tooth and work
its way down the dentine. As the dentine is not as strong as the enamel, it will be dissolved
much quicker. (Shown in Figure 2) If nothing is done about it, the tooth will eventually have
to be taken out. By not consuming so much sugar, the bacteria will be less likely to be able to
respire and produce acid to dissolve and infect your teeth. Fluoride toothpastes also help to
prevent the dental diseases as they make your teeth more resistant to the acid. Although
brushing your teeth regularly may seem obvious, however this makes a huge impact in the
significant in the removal of the plague.
In recent years, due to the advancement in technology, many new applications of preventing
and solving periodontal disease and tooth decay has emerged. The four main ones that will be
discussed in this essay are the VELscope, the DIAGNOdent, HealOZone and also new forms
of tooth implants.

The VELscope is a new technology developed in hopes that early stages of cancer and dental
diseases can be efficiently detected by emitting a safe blue light into the oral cavity. This
excites the tissue causing it to fluoresce. The dentist is then able to immediately view the
different fluoresce response to help differentiate between normal and abnormal tissues The
DIAGNOdent is a new state of the art device that can be used to detect tooth decays in places
that X-rays cannot spot. Both of the applications can help prevent dental diseases from
worsening since symptoms can be spotted early during dental checks. Both the DIAGNOdent
and the VELscope is easy to use hence will reduce the amount of discomfort when having a
check up. This can allow patients to overcome their fear of going to the dentist. However, the
DIAGNOdent is extremely sensitive, hence the probability of false positive diagnosis is high.
Thus, it usually is used in combinations with other techniques.
The HealOZone is a fast, easy and painless way to get rid of
tooth decay without having to go to the dentist. This can be
done as it takes advantage of a natural gas, ozone, which can
kill bacteria and fungus. A small cup is placed over the affected
tooth to form a seal and ozone gas is pumped onto the tooth for
up to 2 minutes to kill the bacteria. After that, a special liquid
is dripped onto the tooth to remove any remaining ozone and
acid, this liquid also helps the weakened enamel to start to
harden again through remineralization. (shown in Figure 2)
This new device can allow people who do not like going to the
dentist to solve their own teeth decays and avoid the trip to the dentist. Before this device,
many people may choose to risk their dental healthy and only go to the dentist when the teeth
starts to interfere with their daily life. By then, it may be too late. However, ozone gas is also
capable of damaging living cells in our body, such as those present in the lining of the human
lungs. Hence, it may be fatal if the user inhales any ozone gas by accident. The selling of
ozone gas can also prove to be dangerous as it can assist suicides and its impacts are hard to
reverse.
Last but definitely not least, nanotube tooth
implants uses dental implant with a surface made
from titanium dioxide nanotubes. This will solve
the everlasting problem of infection due to dental
implants and the separation of the new tooth from
the bone. The Nano material can battle infections,
improve healing and help dental implants last a
lifetime. However, one of the main concerns
related to coating the implant surface is the risk of
coating detachment and toxicity of related debris.
In Figure 4, it shows the bone cell anchoring to the
surface of the titanium dioxide nanotube.
Figure 4
Dental care is a large part of our society, by introducing new technological dental care
applications; there are both positive and negative impacts on how we live as a society. With
the HealOZone, the economic status of dentists may drop due to the fact that people prefer to
buy a machine to clear quick cavities instead of visit the dentist. This also has a large impact
in the dentistry industry. As more and more of these simple-to-use devices emerge, dentistry
may be seen or deemed as less important due to the fact that it can be replaced by these
machines. However, on the other hand, if more and more dental care help is produced, the
technological and advancement of dentistry may skyrocket.
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Figure 3

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