Hang in there Bex, I think that answers are coming, but I don't really know in what timeframe. I just attended a question-and-answer session with the biologic dentist yesterday. I am totally convinced now that there are a few good dentists out there. On a side note--I also spoke with another prospective patient there whose name is Trace--he was very interested in our forum here, and asked me to send him the link--so we may have a new member joining us soon.

I was very impressed with this biologic dentist--there were actually two of them working together, and they held this Q&A session for 2.5 hours yesterday on their own time after business hours, and at no charge. We spent about 60% of the time simply discussing their questionnaire form, which is given to each patient before beginning any treatment. We spent the other 40% of the time in a totally open forum for any questions whatsoever that we had. I especially like the preface before the questionnaire, which has the following paragraph:

"Freedom of choice is an ideal we cherish in this country. A meaningful choice requires individual knowledge and access to information. If you are properly informed, you are aware of alternatives available and the consequences of your options. The United States Constitution provides for the right to meaningful discussion of any issue in a public forum. The following questions may lead to discussion of certain controversial issues but DO NOT in any way imply a recommendation for any type of treatment protocol, referral for any type of testing or evaluation by any health care practitioner, use of any particular filling or crown materials, or the connection between any medical condition and the dental condition of your mouth. Since you do have a right to choose, the following is intended to be a way for you, the patient, to communicate your choices and therefore the kind of dental care you wish to receive.'

The questionnaire form then lists 10 questions ranging from testing, removing fillings in a certain order, scheduling appointments on certain dates, supplemental oxygen, chelation and supplementation, dental laser use, etc. There was absolutely no pressure to act on these questions one way or another, and there wasn't even any pressure to sign up for treatment, although the offer was simply cordially made for anyone that was interested.

One question I had for the dentists during the discussion was what made the CEREC's different from the old-style porcelain crowns. Much like I had suspected, they said that the old-style porcelain crowns were made with materials that were pressed onto a metal base. This metal base often leaked into the patient's mouth, which I suspect is what caused many of the issues with dementia/Alzheimers that have been discussed on the forum before. The CEREC's on the other hand, are milled from a single block of much more bio-compatible material such as zirconium oxide (rather than a material being forcibly pressed onto a dissimilar base), and therefore this makes the CEREC's much less prone to leeching and leakage problems. I also asked them about the Diamondcrowns. They used to place these, but interestingly do not tend to use these anymore. It didn't appear to be an issue of biocompatibility, it was more of an issue that they were relatively soft compared to other replacement materials, and in their experience often needed replacement after 5-10 years. They like the CEREC's because not only are they showing to be bio-compatible, but they tend to last for at least 15-20 years or more.

I have to get back to my work now, but just wanted to quickly share this information, as I thought it was all pretty interesting.

Jason