Eye wonder....

In 2007, the new 7 wonders of the world were chosen. One of them is the Taj Mahal, which attracts from 2 to 4 million visitors per year. It is a mausoleum that is located in Agra, India. It is considered the finest example of the so-called Mughal architecture, a style that combines Persian, Turkish, Indian and Islamic architecture. Isn't this building one of the most impressive buildings on earth?


No Dentaprime in the list of wonders. Why not? The building is a fine piece of architecture and we do perform small miracles in it.

Suppose, just suppose, that you have lost all your teeth at quite a young age. You hate the dentures that are glued to your gums. You have saved some money, but you are afraid of dentists and their tools.

You go to our clinic, we put you at ease, do our 'tricks' and in the end you return home with a beautiful set of teeth!

Sounds like magic....

Of course, it's not. It's hard work! No wonder our staff needs a break in December. Therefore the clinic will be closed from 13th December until 5th January.

The Miracle Diet:
An overweight blonde consulted her doctor for advice.
The doctor advised that she run 10 miles a day for 30 days.
This, he promised, would help her lose as much as twenty pounds.
The blonde follows the doctor's advice, and, after thirty days, she was pleased to find that she'd indeed lost twenty pounds.
She phoned the doctor and thanked him for the wonderful advice which produced such effective results.
At the end of the conversation, however, she asked one last question: "How do I get home, since I am now 300 miles away?"

Mary will chop a little lamb...

Whenever I tell British patients my first name, they start asking me about my little lamb.
My poodle feels insulted. He admits that -sometimes- his ears get trimmed like those of a lamb, but that's where every resemblance stops.

Mary had a little lamb
Its fleece was white as snow
And everywhere that Mary went
The lamb was sure to go.

People also ask me if I am always that contrary.
Then I feel insulted. I am a very flexible, easy-going person!

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,
How does your garden grow?
With silver bells, and cockle shells,
And pretty maids all in a row.

Nursery rhymes are OK, but not when they still haunt you when you are 53!

There are some about teeth too. I like this one:

Once I had a wobble tooth
That wobbled to and fro
Every time I ate my toast
I thought the tooth would go.

But then I ate a candy,
A sticky toffee roll,
Now where my wobble tooth was
There's nothing but a hole!

Here lies the body of Jonathan Blake. Stepped on the gas instead of the brake.

Cemetaries are not my 'piece of cake'. I find them unpleasant, especially the area where the children are buried. When I 'bumped into' this photo, however, I couldn't help l-o-v-i-n-g it.
Perhaps it's just my dark side, because it is also a bit spooky, scary even.

Talking about fear, many people don't want to go near a dental practice unless their teeth are killing them.

That's the bottleneck: if your feet are killing you, you just kick off your shoes and relax. If your teeth are killing you, however, -most of the times-, you cannot take them out. In the end, you are forced to go to that mumbling, rude, arrogant man or woman who will first call you names because you didn't brush and floss well enough, and then pull the tooth and says "See you soon!"

There is another option, though. You can come to our clinic, preferably before the pain gets unbearable, and instead of yelling at you, we will ask, listen and explain. There is a solution for nearly every dental problem and most people are amazed by the results.


A couple have not been getting along for years, so the husband thinks, “I’ll buy my wife a cemetary plot for her birthday.” Well, you can imagine her disappointment. The next year, her birthday rolls around again and he doesn’t get her anything. She says, “Why didn’t you get me a birthday present?” He says, “You didn’t use what I got you last year!”

God made the cat so that man might have the pleasure of caressing the tiger

" People are funny. Just a few moments ago, I heard some of them sing:



"That's right that's right that's right that's right. I really love your tiger light."

Now what the .... is a tiger light?

I'm getting old. My teeth are not ok. I have odontohyperesthesia and my craniomandibular border characteristics are way under average. If you need some antigen-extracted autolysed allogenic bone, I can still deliver, though!"

If you visit a dentist, you don't want him/her to use strange words. You want to understand, so you can make a decision. "It's your teeth, your money, your decision, right?!" Right, tiger! Unfortunately, many dentists still seem to disagree with that.

As a patient, you pay for the treatment and so you are entitled to get all the information you need. If we advise an extraction, we will tell you why the tooth cannot be saved. If we advise root canal treatment and a crown, we will tell you why the tooth will not be extracted.



"That's neat that's neat that's neat that's neat."
(I really love your tiger feet)

Do Pandas have teeth?

Yes they do, and all 42 of them are 'designed' for eating with bamboo!

Wait a second.... Did I just say ' eating with bamboo'? Of course I meant ' eating bamboo', because that's what a panda does for most of its life.

Some time ago, a man living in Assam (India) won a national innovation award for making low-cost bamboo teeth dentures. His teeth have now been registered and possibilities of commercial production are being explored. He himself turned to bamboo when he lost all his front teeth in an accident in 1994. Since he could not afford a dentist, he used bamboo to make his own set of false teeth. He says he can even bite into meat with them. The teeth can be fixed permanently or made into dentures. To ensure pearly white teeth, he coats the brown bamboo with melted plastic from toothbrushes...

Pandas are part of the same family as Grizzli and Polar bears, so they are very dangerous and deadly. However, unlike Polars and Grizzlis, if a panda tries to bite you and you have your bamboo teeth in, may be you can give it something else to eat...

Ice, ice baby....

Want a drink?





No thanks!!!!

Be true to your teeth, or they will be false to you...

I live in a nice house in a nice small town in a nice country called Holland. We don't have deserts here, but we do have cacti. You can buy them in every flower shop. (The hard part always is taking them home.)

In the beginning, some friends still gave us a small plant for our birthdays, but soon they stopped doing that. Without exception, returning to our home a few months later meant that the begonia or cactus had disappeared into the garbage bin. Cacti don't need much water, but they do need some....

In a way, it's the same with dental implants. They should be maintained. In fact, there is no difference between natural teeth and implants, which means: brushing, flossing and going to the dentist. If you already know that this will be a problem, dental implants are not the solution for your dental problem.

Crooked decision

Dutch Anky van Grunsven and her horse Salinero on their way to a gold medal in Beijing.

At the opening ceremony of the Olympics, a young child warmed many hearts, miming (not singing....) one of China’s favourite revolutionary anthems. The real singer was considered to be not pretty enough. Her teeth were too crooked.

If they would apply the same standards to the competitors, some medals would definitely turn up with other owners....

http://woldhek.nl

Is dentistry going to the dogs?

"Dentists are like dogs. You simply cannot trust them!

Just listen to what I just read on the Internet.

A dentist in the state of New York has been sued because a part of the drill perforated the patient's maxillary sinus when he pulled her tooth. Then the part got stuck just a few inches beneath her eye socket.
-Wow!-

The patient says this was because the dentist had the radio on.
-Ever saw that fishy movie Shark Tale? Two of these delicious creatures called fish work at the car wash. That's the song the dentist danced to: Car Wash.-

In the end, the patient had to undergo an emergency operation and was in the hospital for three days.

This all happened a few years ago, but the patient says she still suffers from swellings in her face, a damaged nerve and chronic inflammations. She demands 600.000 dollar of the dentist.
-Well, I guess he can pay that. He's a dentist you know....-

The patient also says that the dentist tried to remove the part with a hook and -when this did not work- said that it would probably get out if she would sneeze. Doctors had told the patient that she could have gone blind if she had sneezed."

One does not discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time. (Andre Gide)

Life is full of risks. When you cross the street, you run the risk of a vehicle striking you. The risk can vary. One street is more dangerous than the other, and a city more dangerous than a village. If you are boating, it is more likely that you will be struck by a meteorite than by a car.

Risk taking behaviour causes problems for psychologists. The need for safety is fundamental, so why take risks?

There are risks involved in any dental procedure, whether it is performed in your home town or on the other side of the world. Follow your gut feeling, which should be pointed at confidence, and not just at price differences.

There is a story about a monastery in Bulgaria perched high on a cliff several hundred feet in the air. The only way to reach the monastery was to be suspended in a basket which was pulled to the top by several monks who pulled and tugged with all their strength. Obviously the ride up the steep cliff in that basket was terrifying. One tourist got exceedingly nervous about half-way up as he noticed that the rope by which he was suspended was old and frayed. With a trembling voice he asked the monk who was riding with him in the basket how often they changed the rope. The monk thought for a moment and answered brusquely, "Whenever it breaks."

Cracker

To every question there's an answer on the Internet....

Is it true that crackers stain your teeth as bad or worse than red wine?

No. Unlike red wine, there's no pigment in crackers that can stain teeth.

Hard crackers, however, can cause your teeth to crack. Other causes are tooth grinding, large fillings, a blow, gum disease and sudden changes in mouth temperature. The crack will never heal completely. After treatment, you could still lose the tooth but that will be after years, so treatment would pay off.

Is it true that smoking leads to loss of teeth?

Yes. Many studies demonstrate that cigarette smokers have more missing teeth and experience greater rates of tooth loss than non-smokers.

Is it true that treatment at the Dentaprime clinic can change your life?
Yes! We can help you to restore and rebuild your self-esteem by giving you a wonderful smile.

The forceps of our minds are clumsy forceps, and crush the truth a little in taking hold of it. (H.G. Wells)

Some 'old-fashioned' things can be very beautiful. With nature photography, I always find black and white even more stunning than colour.



Old-fashioned dentistry, however, is a different story....

Someone (need not be a dentist...) would take an old pair of rusted forceps out of a drawer, put one hand on the patient's forehead, take the bad tooth in the forceps and twist it back and forth until he could hear the tooth break loose. Then a hand full of salt was put it into the hole to keep it from bleeding. General anaesthesia was given in a bottle (hiccup...hiccup...) and often shared by dentist and patient. All teeth were pulled with the same forceps and sometimes it was not cleaned in between...

Well... that was then and this is now, right!?

March 2008: There has been no full time dentist in Kaeo (New Zealand) since the 1970s, so an SOS went out to Auckland's AUT School of Oral Health. A team of three saw thirty patients and pulled 14 teeth.

In our clinic, a simple extraction costs approx. 10 Euros but we only pull if nothing else can be done. And yes, we do clean our instruments.

Which tooth do you want Dentaprime to pull?

When people tell me that teeth are missing or need to be extracted, I always try to find out which teeth they are talking about by sending them this scheme.

That is easier said than done... First of all, right on the drawing is left in the mouth. Secondly, there are a few different tooth numbering schemes, so our number 18 could be number 1 in your dentist's dental treatment plan.


Although, in the end, only our dentists will be able to give an accurate quotation and treatment plan, using the above scheme helps me to visualize the dental problems and options. As you can see, one tooth has more roots than another. Also, missing three teeth does not necessarily mean you need three dental implants. If the teeth are adjacent, two implants and a 3-teeth bridge could be a cheaper solution.

Speaking of tooth 18 (and 28, 38 and 48)... There exists an interesting Dutch folk etymology that the Dutch word verstandskies is derived from "far-standing" (ver-staand) molar, and that mistranslations of the Dutch word (in which verstand translates to wisdom) are the root for corresponding words in other European languages.

Question: Why did the yogi refuse sedation when having his wisdom teeth removed? Answer: He wanted to transcend-dental-medication.

The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea. (Sri Sathya Sai Baba)

Scheveningen (The Hague) is a crowded Dutch seaside resort. It has a pier, a lighthouse, a sea aquarium and this splendid hotel (the Kurhaus).


It also has Panorama Mesdag, which is a cylindrical painting, more than 14 meters high and 120 meters in circumference. It is the oldest 19th century panorama in the world in its original site, and shows the sea, dunes and the village of Scheveningen.

Kijkduin (The Hague) also is a seaside resort. It has one 4-star hotel and only few people on the terraces and the beach.

It really depends whether you prefer spending your holidays amongst many tourists or amongst the locals.

It is the same in Bulgaria: our clinic is located in St Konstantin. Nearby is Golden Sands. The peaceful setting and the largely car-free, compact nature of the resort make St Konstantin holidays a popular choice with those looking for a relatively simple Bulgaria beach holiday. Others might prefer the livelier scene at Golden Sands.

A woman went to the beach with her children. Her 4-year-old son ran up to her, grabbed her hand, and led her to the shore where a dead seagull lay in the sand. "Mommy, what happened to him?" the little boy asked. "He died and went to heaven," she replied. The child thought for a moment and said, "And God threw him back down?"

Alone again, naturally

Extreme media coverage, post-natal depression and the pressure of being a Princess, left Diana lonely and depressed.

Wilhelmina, grandmother of the Dutch Queen Beatrix, wrote a book: 'Lonely but not alone'.

Sweden's Queen Silvia said that being queen can lead to feelings of loneliness.

Just thinking of going to Bulgaria on your own can be very stressful. You have to decide, book, pack, plan, organize cash/travellers cheques/credit card payments etc. etc. etc. and you have to do it all by yourself... And then, of course, there are the problems with the language, the high crime rate, the bad food, the Big Bulgarian Brother who is watching you etc. etc. etc.

We cannot help you packing, but we do have good information on flights, hotels, bus connections etc. Also, we can take away many of the prejudices about Bulgaria by telling you about the actual situation.

Just give us a call or send us an e-mail!

I have as much privacy as a goldfish in a bowl (Princess Margaret)

I am a huge Jennifer Saunders fan. I search for their names in Google, hoping to find something I didn't know yet. This time I found an interview in which she talked about her and hubby Ade Edmondson moving from London to Devon.

Now let's see...

BT.com for the Devon online phonebook!
Hm.... A.R. Edmondson....

Google for Adrian's second name!
Hm.... Charles....

Google again!
OK, it's Chagford, Devon!

BT.com again!
No.... well fine....

Google again!
The farmhouse is in Chagford on the edge of Dartmoor! It's 400 years old, has 45 acres and has cost 2 Million.

I was already planning my star-chasing trip whenI found out that 'my Jenny' had participated in a fox hunt that wasn't exactly organized how it should have been. So I stopped looking and I am not sure if I will ever drive to Chagford.

As a patient of our clinic, you can trust us with your personal data. Diagnostic and health-related personal data are encrypted and contact and payment data are separated.

If it works, we're right. If he dies, it was something else. (Dr House)

Just imagine... Dr Gregory House is your dentist..... He takes one look into your mouth, picks up a drill and says: "What's life without the ability to make stupid decisions?"

When surfing the Internet, I found a text that was written for NHS-dentists who considered offering private dentistry.

It said that

'patients of all socio-economic backgrounds will be willing and able to pay the higher price that private dentistry commands'

and that

'the fundamental attraction of private dentistry to patients is that they can avoid delays and be treated with respect and courtesy'

I would like to say "If your dentist seems to agree with this text, please find someone else", but in the UK that could be a huge problem, especially when you need more than just a cleaning.

BBC News reports:
In the first year of the contract, the number of complex treatments - including bridges and crowns - which involve laboratory work was halved, and the number of root canal treatments fell by 45%. Conversely, the number of tooth extractions rose. In Scotland and Northern Ireland, not covered by the changes, the number of complex treatments rose.

Am I narrow minded?

When I was a child, I lived in The Hague (Holland), opposite to a major railway. Now I live on a square. With friends and other human beings and animals I need closeness, but when looking out of the windows of my home, I need distance.

That is why this street in Greece gives me claustrophobic feelings.

In the morning I could play 'spot the bacon' with my neighbour's plate. In the evening he could envy my Bacardi-Coke.

Spacious is one of the words that fit our clinic. Waiting in such a lovely environment makes a big difference to our patients, especially to the anxious ones.

In 2008, with all the problems around the NHS dentists, people are looking for alternatives. Private clinics used to be far out of reach for the not-so-rich, but clinics like ours make dental treatment affordable for many people.

Give me a call or send me an e-mail if you want to know how much you can save by booking a flight to Varna!

Muddy Waters

"Then she walked in looking like dynamite..." (A song by Mud.)

Many patients prefer Spring and Summer for their dental holidays. The weather is more than fine, the beaches are crowded but also sociable and everybody seems to be happy.

In Winter, however, many Bulgarian hotels offer spa and wellness arrangements, which is a great way to relax.

When taking a mud bath, you are soaked in mud. It has been used for ages to relieve athritis and rheumatism. The most proven reason to take a mud bath is that it's relaxing. The temperature makes you perspire, which cleans the pores.

If you're under a doctor's care for any reason (including pregnancy), check with him/her first.

Money makes the world go around...

Some people go to Vegas where they spend their money in the casinos.

Many do it only once, some do it once too often...

Anyway, if you do not have much to spend, dental treatment can be very expensive, even when it is said to be 50% cheaper.

We are very much aware of that fact, and would never tell someone not to make such a fuzz about a few hundred Euros.

If you tell us what your budget is, we will tell you what we can do for you!

Bridge over troubled water

A dental bridge replaces missing teeth and is not removable. Many times, patients ask me if it is possible to get a 4-unit bridge. What they usually mean is that 4 teeth are already missing or that they need some extractions and -in the end- 4 adjacent teeth will be gone.

A single crown will simply rest upon the structure that supported the natural tooth. However, when several adjacent teeth are missing, there probably will not be enough support for a bridge.

Here the dentist uses 'Ante's Rule' (No, not auntie's rule....):

"The root surface area of the abutment teeth has to equal or surpass that of the teeth being replaced with pontics."

Meaning: if the dentist expects poor support, he/she will draw in more remaining teeth and the 4-unit bridge that people asked for, will become an 8-unit bridge.

As this means drilling at least 2 'new' teeth to stumps, it will be worthwhile to start thinking about dental implants....