Children’s Dental Health Month Raises Awareness of Oral Health

Once again, Dr. Judy Okun participated in the judging of the dental health posters submitted by students from Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess, Orange and Putnam counties of New York State as part of National Children’s Dental Health Month. The theme this year was “Sugar, the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly!” The goal was to have students learn the negative impact of sugar and the positive impact of nutritious foods, and to have them submit it in a visually convincing poster. The posters were judged in age categories and the first and second place (and tied second place) winners received monetary rewards for their efforts. Congratulations to this year’s winners: Kayla P. and Briigid B. (Kindergarten), Marisa L., Ella M., and Kevin D. (first and second grade winners), Uriel Matias K., Tamaiah D., and Veronica W. (third and fourth grade winners), Dejvy N., and Kaylamarie B. (fifth and sixth grade winners), Lauren W. (seventh and eight grade winner), Gabrielle G., and Hawhon G. (ninth and tenth grade winners), and Christopher M. (eleventh and twelfth grade winner). This years winners came from St. Augustine School of Ossining, Geo Grant Mason School of Tuxedo, Paideia School 15 of Yonkers, Solomon Schechter School of White Plains, Casimir Pulaski School of Scarsdale, St Anthony School of Nanuet, Solomon Schechter High School of Hartsdale, Hendrick Hudson High School of Montrose, and Walter Panas High School of Cortlandt Manor.

My Dental Drill has Cruise Control and Daytime Running Lights

Did you ever notice how much easier it is to maintain your speed on the empty highway when you have cruise control? How about how much easier it is to see (and be seen) in dreary weather and dark tunnels when you have daytime running lights? These modern additions to driving are what electric contra-angle hand pieces have done to the dental drill. My Bien-Air electric hand piece is a “step up” from my compressed-air driven drills. With preset speeds and torque maintenance I can easily cut through the wires of my palatal expanders, but can also polish off the residual glue after removing orthodontic brackets. I don’t have to worry about “backing off” to maintain torque, nor do I have to worry about spinning too fast and destroying my polishing burs. My electric hand piece also has a light that shines exactly where I am working; now I can see in the back of a tiny mouth even when the patient is not facing the overhead light. I am certainly enjoying my new technology!

Winter Doldrums or Holiday Cheer?

December brings early sunsets and holiday decorations. We could get depressed by the dark and dreary view outside our windows during the after- school hours… With the early winter sunsets we are no longer getting the strong afternoon sun streaming in our office windows. Or we could be happy with the holiday decor in the shopping plaza around us. Either way shopping seems to lift the spirits. We’ve done our holiday shopping by adding new braces colors. To match the seasonal boughs of holly we have true red and bright red along with true green, jade, pastel green, neon green and teal. For our Chanukah spirit we have blue (glow, pastel, true or metallic) and white. Our latest color additions are the glow blue, bright red, and jade which we received today, and the neon orange, neon green, and neon pink which we added this Fall. We hope our new braces color choices help brighten your holiday spirit.

Zygge Handyman

Somehow having a game cube for entertainment in the office waiting room invites footprints on the wall. Recently I was discussing with the father of several of my patients how upsetting it was that I could not scrub the footprints off the wall. He responded with “I can fix that.” As he described the solution his child immediately dragged him to another of my needed repairs: the arm on my dental chair (which requires frequent repair because patients push it out of the way without pushing the release button). The child said with pride, “My father can fix this too.”

So this weekend Zygge the handyman came to paint my reception area as well as the wall behind my new x-ray machine. He attached plexi-glass to the walls surrounding the game-cube, repaired the arm of the dental chair, and he even repaired the window screens. I was impressed that the office did not smell from fresh paint just hours after painting, and that there was absolutely no construction mess after the job. Zygge paid attention to every detail!

Zygge Handyman also does roof repairs, tiles, kitchen and bathroom remodeling, flooring, painting, door locks, and replacing windows, doors and faucets. He does all the work himself; he does not hire day laborers. Zygge can be reached at (914) 438-7533. He and I agree on his motto: “The best advertisement is word of mouth and doing a good job.”

Smiling in Italy

It always feels good when someone appreciates something you've done, but it is even more rewarding when you can change someone's whole self image.

Today I was speaking to the father of one of my teen patients. He said "Oh my god Dr. Okun, I have to tell you. I have to tell you that my daughter's smile is so gorgeous. We went to Italy this summer, I'm an Italian American, but anyway, she knocked them dead over there. The men and the boys. You did it. It was entirely you."

When you feel good about your smile, you smile more often. And when you're smiling, people smile back at you. Being surrounded by those return- smiles makes you feel more confident, and then you change your posture, and how you present yourself. This is how I was able to change this young lady's life. With braces and dentofacial orthopedics, I changed the balance of her face, and how her teeth supported her lips, which changed her smile and her entire self image. This new self-confidence also changed her whole experience in Italy!

The "Magic Wand"

Today I was browsing the internet for images to use in a power point presentation which would explain how the electro-accuscope-myopulse system helps to relieve TMJ pain as well as the discomfort associated with orthodontic tooth movement. I was pleased to find not only images, but also the web site of another orthodontic practice who uses this form of micro-current therapy to help their patients the same way that we do. Thank you to Drs. Sellke and Reily in Illinois for their excellent explanation:

The "Magic Wand," technically called the Electro-Acuscope and Myopulse machine, was originally developed in a hospital environment for patients suffering from burns and serious injuries. Today this technology is used to treat athletic injuries and victims of accidents. Professional sports teams like the Chicago Bears and Bulls use this technology routinely so that players can get "back in the game" more quickly.
The "Magic Wand" accelerates healing and repair of injured tissues of the body while relieving pain and discomfort. It works by using a computer to first evaluate a tissue's ability to conduct electricity (injured or painful tissues conduct more poorly than healthy, comfortable tissues). The "Magic Wand" then electronically stimulates the tissues to a more normal conduction rate. The "Magic Wand" results in incredibly rapid tissue repair, which means less pain.
We have found that the "Magic Wand" can be used in our office in two ways:
TMD Patients (Electro- Acuscope)
Orthodontics Patients (Myopulse)
Patients suffering from jaw and neck muscle pain related to Temporomandibular Disorders get remarkable relief and improved jaw function after only a few treatments with the Electro-Acuscope/Myopulse.
Orthodontic patients can use the "Magic Wand" to relieve the occasional soreness that may follow adjustments. The "Magic Wand" is available to all our orthodontic patients after every appointment. We encourage you to ask for it any time you want!!!

Happy Mother's Day

For Mother's Day I slept late, had brunch with extended family, helped my son pick his courses for spring semester, went for a long walk with my husband, and shopped on the internet for baby presents for my new niece and nephew. Yes, my sister-in-law is a new mom and had twins! What did you do for Mother's Day?
In the past few weeks I've done consultations for several mothers who told me that they brought their children to the orthodontist for braces, and now that their children are grown it is their turn to get those straight teeth they've always wanted. I don't think it is a coincidence that these consultations were within weeks of Mother's Day. There is no need for you to wait for Mother's Day to be on your way to a beautiful smile.

How Can You Have Fun If You’re Embarrassed To Smile?

Last night Okun Orthodontics was a sponsor for the WFAS “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” event at the Riverview in Hastings-on-Hudson. Our presentation was based on the fact that its hard to have fun if you’re embarrassed to smile (because your teeth don’t look nice) or if you’re in too much pain to smile (from jaw-joint or face pain either due to an accident or from clenching/grinding your teeth.) One of the ladies said to Dr. Okun, “It’s so true” and started relating to me the story of how she used to have horrible self esteem because she was embarrassed to smile. After a lot of dental work- which she had in her twenties- she loved her smile, and smiled all the time, and developed a great self-image. Recently, however, she has not been able to afford to go to the dentist to maintain her dental work and she said that she is now emotionally back to where she was before her dental work was done. Dr. Judith Okun is the one to see if you need to “get your smile back”. She can create the beautiful smile you’ve always wanted with straight teeth and no TMJ pain.