News

Letters to the Editor

Bravo! Dimensions is packed full of useful and very valuable editorial. We love the attached card to circle for more information and the details on new products. The article on posture (“Preventive Positioning,” March 2004) was excellent. We have both signed up for subscriptions. Thank you for keeping us updated!

—Mary Ryan, RDH, and Judy Weinmann, RDH, Longmeadow, Mass

Sharpening Notes Thank you for your hard work in putting together such a great magazine. I look forward to reading it every month. I loved the article on sharpening in the April issue. We have been struggling to find a way to make sharpening more efficient at our office by using some of the new sharpening machines.

Regarding the program closings that were listed in your April column—I think it is frightening to consider the reality of fewer and fewer dental hygienists available to treat patients. I hope the education outlook gets better, instead of worse. I did want to let you know that while the University of Minnesota, Duluth, did close its hygiene program in 1993, it was moved to Lake Superior College in Duluth. The instructors, who are fabulous, remained the same and they have a new facility at this site. I am hoping someday, after several more years of practicing hygiene and finishing a master’s in public health, I will become an educator in dental hygiene. With that, I would like to thank you for keeping us all aware of what the future of dental hygiene may look like!

—Molly A. Morse, RDH, Bend, Ore

Editorial Strikes a Chord I’m frequently spellbound by how life often presents you with things at just the moment you need them. Your March editorial “Reflections” truly moved me. Reading your cautionary thoughts—as I’m fully immersed in our new dental hygiene program development—literally brought me to tears. Coming from such a significant role model, your editorial provided many points well-taken. I’ve never enjoyed a project more than my current work with Pacific, but being an obsessive perfectionist—as so many of us in dentistry are—it’s sometimes hard to keep your perspective and balance. Thank you for your timely reminder. As an avid reader of both dental and dental hygiene journals, Dimensions is my favorite dental hygiene publication as it is concise, positive in tone, provoking, and inspiring.

—Cindy Lyon RDH, DDS, Dental Hygiene Program Director, University of the Pacific School of Dentistry, Stockton, Calif

F Y I

Dental X-rays May Not Be Safe For Pregnant Women

A recent study cites a possible link between underweight babies and mothers receiving dental x-rays during pregnancy. Published in the April 28, 2004, edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the study followed 4,500 pregnant women in Washington state between 1993 and 2000; 1,117 babies were born to women in the group weighing less than 5 lbs, 8 oz. The risk for low birth weight was double among the group who received dental x-rays during pregnancy. This possible connection still requires further research before it can be conclusive. The published study did not provide reasons why the women received x-rays, which could be conditions that themselves contribute to low birth weight. The American Dental Association (ADA) released a statement reaffirming its position that protective aprons and collars be worn by all patients to reduce the risk of radiation exposure. The ADA also advises pregnant women to delay any elective radiographs until post-delivery while remaining diligent in oral health care with regular examinations and dental hygiene appointments.

Erratum:
In the April 2004 issue of Dimensions of Dental Hygiene, Sheridan College in Sheridan, Wyo, was incorrectly listed in the table of dental hygiene programs that have closed, which appeared in the From the Editor column. Sheridan College offers an Associate of Applied Science in Dental Hygiene degree and recently graduated its 33rd class.