A shingles outbreak can be painful and embarrassing. It could also interfere with many areas of your life, including dental care.
Known medically as herpes zoster, the shingle is a viral form of chicken pox. The virus can lie dormant for many years or decades in people that had chicken pox as a child, breaking out later in life (sometimes repeatedly). It’s estimated about a quarter of people who had chicken pox as a child and about 90% of adults will experience a shingles outbreak.
In the beginning, a person with shingles may notice itching or burning skin irritation and numbness or sensitivity to touch. In time, a red, crusty rash can develop, usually forming a belted or striped pattern on the torso, head, or facial areas. The patterning is caused by the virus’s disruption of nerves that serve those parts of the body.
Shingles could impact your dental care because they can be contagious early in an outbreak. It can be transmitted to other people via contact with the rash or airborne respiratory particles. Dental staff members or patients who are pregnant, undergoing cancer treatment, or with other conditions compromising their immune systems can develop serious health problems if they contract the virus.
If you have an upcoming appointment, it’s best to let your dentist know you’ve been diagnosed with shingles. If your treatment involves physical contact that could spread the virus, they may wish to reschedule you until the outbreak clears.
There are ways to hasten the healing process with antiviral treatments like acyclovir or famciclovir. For best results, these treatments should begin within 3 days of a shingles outbreak. There is also a shingles vaccine that can help you avoid an outbreak altogether. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommend it for adults over 60.
Having shingles can be painful and stressful and pose a major interruption to your daily life and routine. With proper management, though, it can be contained so you can get on with your life—and your dental care.
If you would like more information on managing shingles and dental care, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Shingles, Herpes Zoster.”
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After nine seasons as neurobiologist Amy Farrah Fowler on the hit comedy The Big Bang Theory, Mayim Bialik is back to the “career” she had before the series: stay-at-home mom. Well, sort of. Bialik is also busy preparing for her next acting role in a new TV series called Carla, which she also co-executive produces. Still, that hasn’t stopped her from staying focused on her two sons, and she has always been on top of their dental health, according to Dear Doctor magazine.
She takes this particular aspect of parenthood quite seriously, keeping her kids’ teeth and gums healthy and their oral development on track. In fact, other parents dedicated to the same goal probably couldn’t find a better example.
So, what can you learn as a parent from Mayim Bialik’s approach to her children’s dental care?
Curb the sweets. Sugar is prime food for bacteria that cause tooth decay. Bialik limits the kinds of sweets her kids eat, steering them away from candy, juices and soda, except on special occasions.
She and her family are also vegans, so she doesn’t allow her children to eat dairy-based candies like milk chocolate. You don’t have to be vegan, though, to benefit from her overall philosophy—promoting natural foods so her kids are less likely to develop sugar cravings that can impact their dental health.
Make Brushing a Priority. Bialik has her sons brush their teeth first thing, even before breakfast. Her reasoning is scientific (she’s actually a PhD neuroscientist, like her Big Bang character): Bacteria are working even as we sleep to create disease-causing plaque on our teeth.
From her point of view, treating brushing as a morning-time priority ensures it gets done to prevent plaque accumulation on her kids’ teeth. This in turn lowers their risk for tooth decay and gum disease.
Encourage flossing. This companion task to brushing is equally important for maintaining healthy teeth. Brushing can’t always get to plaque between teeth, which could lead to tooth decay or gum disease. Flossing completes the plaque removal job to prevent that from happening.
Unfortunately, traditional thread flossing isn’t as popular as brushing because it’s often harder to do and can be messy, but Bialik has found a work-around. She buys easier to use pre-loaded floss holders in bulk and keeps them readily available next to the toothbrushes. As a result, flossing isn’t an issue with her kids.
Take your cue from Mayim: Daily habits like tooth-friendly eating, brushing and flossing make a positive difference in your child’s ongoing dental health. Following through on these and other practices, like regular dental visits, will help keep your child’s teeth and gums in tip-top shape.
If you would like more information about best practices for your child’s dental care, please contact us or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine article “Dentistry & Oral Health for Children.”
