Dear Patient,

Since I started my practice, my focus has been always, as you know, in preventive dentistry. Today, I am very happy to introduce you to a very new approach of treating dental disease. This new approach is named CAMBRA (Caries Management by Risk Assessment). As you probably know, dental caries (cavities) is a transmissible bacterial infection. Nowadays, based upon our most current science, caries should be a preventable and curable disease.

The good news is that starting May 3, 2010, based on CAMBRA’s clinical guidelines, your level of caries risk is going to be assessed and the appropriate therapeutic intervention will be prescribed. This is going to be an integral part of the standard of care at this office.

I hope you will be as excited as I am about CAMBRA. You will actively participate in the processes of lowering your risk of dental caries. If you need more information or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. Thank you for your anticipated participation and I will continue to do all I can to warrant your trust.

Sincerely,

Claudio Buonfiglio, DMD

How Tooth Decay Happens

Tooth decay is caused by certain types of bacteria (mutants streptococci and lactobacilli) that live in your mouth. When they attach themselves to the teeth and multiply in dental plaque, they can do damage. The bacteria feed on what you eat, especially sugars (including fruit sugars) and cooked starch (bead, potatoes, rice, pasta, etc.). Within just a few minutes after you eat, or drink, the bacteria begin producing acids as by-product of their digesting your food. Those acids can penetrate into the hard substance of the tooth and dissolve some of the minerals (calcium and phosphate). If the acid attacks are infrequent and of short duration, your saliva can help to repair the damage by neutralizing the acids and supplying minerals and fluoride that can replace those lost from the tooth. However, if: 1) your mouth is dry; 2) you have many of these bacteria (e.g. mutants streptococci, etc.); or 3) you snack frequently; then the tooth mineral lost by attacks of acids is too great, and cannot be repaired. This is the start of tooth decay and leads to cavities.

Taken from: CDA Journal, Vol. 36 No. 10.