Rapid pain relief and other reasons why you shouldn’t be afraid of Navy dentists

Dr. John Simecek works at the Naval Medical Research Unit – San Antonio. This blog post was shared with us by Naval Medical Research and Development News, a publication of the Naval Medical Research Center.

On August 22, 1912, the second session of the 62nd Congress passed an act later signed by President Taft that established the Navy Dental Corps. For 63 of the 98 years since the Navy Dental Corps was established, research pertaining to oral and dental disease has been carried out by the Navy’s dental officers and scientists.

The prevention of oral/facial problems and the delivery of dental care to deployed Sailors and Marines is a focus of the Dental and Biomedical Department at the Naval Medical Research Unit-San Antonio (NAMRU-SA). A study of the types of oral/facial problems and dental emergencies experienced in Iraq and Afghanistan is underway.

Preliminary analysis indicates that over 30 percent of the total visits require treatment of fractured teeth, fractured restorations, or defective restorations. Approximately two percent of oral/facial problems were due to traumatic events and five percent involved third molars. Although the majority of military personnel with oral/facial problems experience mild to moderate pain or loss of dental function, approximately twenty percent may be of sufficient severity to cause the warfighter to experience a limitation of operational capability. This data will be used to optimize the diagnostic guidelines utilized to determine operational dental readiness of personnel.

In order to address the common problem of tooth/restoration fracture, a field-deployable glass ionomer restorative material was developed that provides rapid pain relief and allows for restoration of fractured teeth or restorations. The delivery system is designed to enable far-forward personnel to provide palliative treatment to enable a return to duty until dental support becomes available.

On May 6, 2009, NAMRU-SA became the Navy’s center for research related to the epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of oral/dental diseases and injuries that affect the health of Navy and Marine Corps personnel. The dental officers and scientists of NAMRU-SA continue in the tradition of Navy Dental Research to develop novel products and provide information that will enhance the health and readiness of Sailors and Marines.