The primary reason for patients being offered a free no-obligation Full Clinical Assessment at EvoDental is that we are very interested in hearing what they have to say; understanding their decision-making process helps us to gauge their expectations and whether those expectations are in line with the reality of what we can do for them.
We do not do cosmetic dentistry. The EvoSolution combines biology, technology, and engineering, it is not a solution to simply enhance a person’s appearance, but to improve their quality of life after suffering years of physical and psychological pain from conditions such as periodontitis.
We have very candid conversations with our patients about why they have come to see us. Sometimes we have to coax the information out of them, and other times it is clear that no one has taken the time to understand the effect their oral problems have had on their life. Some even tell us they feel ‘judged’ when they go to the dentist, so they stay away while their problems get worse.
Our patients go through a psychological questionnaire and discussion, so we can better understand why their problems got so bad, and how it affects their everyday life. Because of what we do, the patients that pass our triage process to come and see us will all have very complex oral conditions, and consequently many other associated health problems.
Oral Disease & Nutrition
One of the most fundamental functions of a healthy mouth is to process the food we eat, breaking food down and starting the digestive process that is essential for extracting the nutrition and separating the waste. When people develop advanced dental problems and tooth loss, the efficiency of chewing reduces, and it is normal for humans to alter their diet to compensate. Groups of foods often avoided are harder and more coarse foods like fruit and vegetables which are an important source of vitamins, minerals and proteins. These people tend to develop a preference for processed softer foods which are often heavier in fat and cholesterol. This leads to many chronic health problems including Obesity, Diabetes and gastro-intestinal issues.
We have also noticed a very large number of our patients come to us taking ‘Proton Pump Inhibitors’ (prescription anti-acids such as Omeprazole or Lanzoprazole) due to chronic indigestion. Often, they have been taking them for many years but never considered the possibility that their inability to chew properly was causing them to produce excess stomach acid to break down the unchewed food. Anecdotally, most of these patients no longer take these by the time a few months have gone by after their full-jaw treatment at EvoDental. This is one of many health problems that people attribute to ‘getting old’ without stopping to think about treating the cause rather than the effects.
Oral Disease & Mental Health
Lack of chewing ability does not only cause nutritional deficiencies – it can also make it very embarrassing for people suffering with advanced oral health problems to put themselves into a normal social interaction such as visiting a restaurant. Food is such a big part of my life, taking the centre stage of any event involving family of friends, so I can only imagine the misery of avoiding restaurants with friends, or ordering soup and ice-cream to avoid having to chew.
Psychological assessment tells us that many of our patients are clinically depressed, some have even told us they are suicidal. Their disfigured teeth leave them feeling marginalised at work, affect their personal relationships and cause them to feel a lack of self-worth.
It is this group of patients for whom EvoSolution is truly life changing. The heaven-and-earth difference in their personality, confidence and optimism when they come back to see us for their first maintenance appointment is so gratifying and serves as a constant reminder of why what we do is so important.
If you or someone you know is suffering from the effects of poor oral health, I encourage you to spend some time on our website, to read about some of the lives that we’ve changed with EvoSolution. Even if your general dentist has told you that you’re not suitable for dental implants, get in touch as our extensive experience tells us that there is virtually NO such thing as teeth that are so bad that you won’t find a solution.
By Dr Rudi Mukherjee, Senior Clinician at EvoDental London