Happy New Year – Highlights of 2025- Part 1- January to March

This time the movie showing at the Open-Air Cinema at the Sydney Botanical Garden’s Harbour foreshore was Crocodile Dundee – The Encore Cut, celebrating 40 years since its release.

Not only we’re we celebrating the movie, but the man himself, Paul Hogan, who played Mike Dundee, was there. He wrote the story and become an icon.

February

The month started with the rest of 2024 highlights.

Happy New Year – Highlights of 2024 – Part 4 – October – December

The 2024 Pokémon World Championships is the capstone event of the 2024 Championship Series season, and players from all around the world will battle for the title of World Champion. Main events at the Pokémon World Championships are by invitation only. It’s on for young and old for the trainers, the spectators and for Hawaii. Let’s battle especially the Pokémon card game players of the master’s category.

Then we asked the question How much for a filling? Wrong question – Part 3 More Assessment – Mouth Hostility!

Treatment, requiring a filling, needs to be considered in the environment of which it is “living in”.

Pardon the pun – “no tooth is an island”.

We want the treatment to last and ensure that the mouth is not “hostile” to its teeth.

February also saw the Pokémon World Championship – Closing Ceremony.

Our time in Hawaii of being a dentist at large was a unique experience, probably never to be repeated.

At the end of the final day of the of the “Pokémon Worlds” was a celebration of the world champions of Pokémon games in all its forms. A recap of an amazing three days was presented, but there were surprises in store for all the Pokémon trainers!

Now back to Oz – Blog Series: Updates on Dry Mouth ended the mouth with The incidence of dry mouth is on the rise. As the population ages, the use of medication increases as the survival rate increases. A large side effect of medications is a dry mouth. Many respiratory and alimentary conditions can create a dry mouth. Of course, dental problems can lead to dry mouth, as well as social habits. The mouth cops it from all directions, both internally and externally. To make matters worse, the state of a dry mouth can exacerbate health conditions and even cause an even drier mouth! Vicious cycle!

March

Medical Emergency in the Dental Practice 2025 – Early Warning Signs – SCRPS.

SCRPS

This is a mnemonic for signs of perfusion. This is an early warning measure that all is not well. Basically, not getting enough passage of blood, a blood substitute, or other fluid through the blood vessels or other natural channels in an organ or tissue i.e. bathing an organ or tissue with a fluid.

SCRPS (Adults)

Skin condition: Pale, cold and sweaty

Conscious: Unconscious, confused or agitated

Respiration Rate: Above 25 or less than 10 breathes in 10 secs

Pulse: Above 100 or less than 50

SpO2: Saturation of Oxygen in the blood using an oximeter – below 93%

Further Medical Emergency in the Dental Practice 2025 – Defibrillator and Heart Rhythm and Medical Emergency in the Dental Practice 2025 – Anaphylaxis and Adrenaline highlighted in March showing among things to watch out for –

We also learnt about Types of Pain – Psychogenic (Read it to find out if you have it).

PAIN may seem like a simple concept as we all have experienced it. However, it’s a topic that the more you know, the less you know!

It’s complex! We used to think the pain can’t cross the midline, but we now know it can in certain situations. Pain chemicals released from one site are attracted to other sites that have already have pain. Wonderful! And why?

However, there are types of pain, that really are a real pain for diagnosis and treatment.

One is referred pain, which will the topic of a future blog.

The other is Psychogenic pain which highlights why we are such complex beings. It’s how we react to the pain the complicates the issue and it has a chemical basis to it.

So, what can we do about this Psychogenic Pain?

The answer is in your head, specifically in your brain.

INCREASE SEROTONIN RELEASE within the CNS reduces chronic pain

How?

The more relaxed you feel the less the pain is. The more serotonin is released.

March was rounded off with Welcoming Dr Sara Lassemillante – Our Experienced Part-Time Dentist.

We would like to welcome Dr Sara Lassemillante to Seymour Dental as a part-time dentist. She has a gentle and empathetic approach to patient care. With 20 years of experience in dentistry, Dr Sara has built a reputation for not only her clinical expertise but also her dedication to making dental visits a more comfortable and less stressful experience for her patients.

Born and raised in the UK, she was always drawn to science and healthcare from a young age. She graduated from the University of Leeds School of Dentistry. After working within the NHS in England for 6 years, she embarked on a backpacking trip around Asia and Australia before settling in Sydney in 2011.  Her approach has always been centred on providing individualised care, especially for those who experience anxiety around dental procedures.