Dental Tribune UK Edition, September 13-19, 2010, Vol. 4 No. 21

D entists earned on average just over £89,000 last year, while more than 400 den- tists earned over £300,000, accord- ing to new figures. This is an increase on the pre- vious year (2007/8) which saw all self-employed dentists in Eng- land and Wales earn on average £89,100, compared to £89,600 in 2008/9. A total of 410 dentists earned more than £300,000 before tax and after expenses, according to 2008/9figuresreleasedbytheNHS Information Centre. The number was an increase of eight per cent on the 380 who earned more than £300,000 in 2007/8, said the report ‘Dental Earnings and Expenses, England and Wales 2008/09’. A total of 150 dentists earned between £275,000 and £300,000 in 2008/9, while 130 earned between £250,000 and £275,000. Two hundred and forty dentists earned £225,000 to £250,000 and 330 earned £200,000 to £225,000. Overall, 5,540 dentists earned more than £100,000 a year. The data covers both NHS income and money earned from private patients. Dentists who held contracts with a Primary Care Trust (PCT in England) or Local Health Board (LHB in Wales) to pro- vide NHS dental services fared better. Those with contracts earned on average £131,000 (before tax) - up 3.3 per cent from £126,800 in 2007/08. While dentists who worked in a practice, but who did not hold a contract with a PCT or LHB, earned on average £67,800 (before tax) – up 3.1 per cent on 2007/08 when they earned £65,700. NHS Information Cen- tre chief executive Tim Straughan said: ‘‘The England and Wales report reveals that the average earnings of NHS dentists varied greatly depend- ing on whether they personally held a contract with a Primary Care Trust or Local Health Board.’’ A spokesman from the De- partment of Health commented on the figures and said: ‘The co- alition government recently an- nounced a two-year pay freeze for all NHS staff earning more than £21k a year and is current- ly considering how best to apply this pay freeze to groups such as GPs and dentists whose NHS in- come covers both their personal pay and practice expenses.’’ The chief executive of the Patients’ Association criti- cised the increase in earnings for dentists. Katherine Murphy said: ‘‘The soaring cost of dentists’ pay goes against this commitment and will not deliver any benefits for patients. We do not un- derstand how these pay increases can be justified given the financial pressures on the NHS.’ DT Earning figures draw criticism Published by Dental Tribune UK Ltd © 2010, Dental Tribune UK Ltd. All rights reserved. Dental Tribune UK Ltd makes every effort to report clinical information and manufacturer’s product news accurately, but cannot assume responsibility for the validity of product claims, or for typographical errors. The publishers also do not assume responsibility for product names or claims, or statements made by advertisers. Opinions expressed by authors are their own and may not reflect those of Dental Tribune International. Managing Director Mash Seriki Mash@dentaltribuneuk.com Director Noam Tamir Noam@dentaltribuneuk.com Editor Lisa Townshend Tel: 020 7400 8979 Lisa@dentaltribuneuk.com Features Editor Ellie Pratt Ellie@dentaltribuneuk.com Advertising Director Joe Aspis Tel: 020 7400 8969 Joe@dentaltribuneuk.com Editorial Assistant Laura Hatton Laura..hatton@dentaltribuneuk.com Sales Executive Sam Volk Tel: 020 7400 8964 Sam@dentaltribuneuk.com Marketing Manager Laura McKenzie Laura@dentaltribuneuk.com Design & Production Ellen Sawle Ellen@dentaltribuneuk.com Dental Tribune UK Ltd 4th Floor, Treasure House, 19–21 Hatton Garden, London, EC1N 8BA Online ban on illegal tooth-whitening products I nternet sites, Amazon, eBay and Google have said they will stop selling illegal tooth-whit- ening products, after an investiga- tion by the consumer watchdog Which? Which? discovered that illegal and potentially harmful tooth- whitening products could easily be bought from online retailers such as Amazon and eBay. One in 10 people buying tooth whitening products ended up with white spots on their gums or lips, showing chemical burns, and a similar number report- ing brown stains on their teeth, suggesting the enamel had been damaged by the product, accord- ing to Which? A European Union regula- tion adopted last year bans the sale of tooth-whitening products containing more than 0.1 per cent hydrogen peroxide or chemicals which release hydrogen peroxide. The limit was introduced due to concerns that the chemical could damage teeth, lips or gums. Peter Vicary-Smith, chief ex- ecutive of Which? said: ‘‘These products are illegal, but inef- fective policing means they are still widely available. We have shared our findings with Trad- ing Standards and will continue to urge online retailers to boycott such harmful products being sold in their marketplaces.’’ Which? policy adviser Re- becca Owen-Evans said: ‘‘Sell- ing products that breach the cosmetics regulations is pro- hibited and there is a failure in policing.’ DT Online retailers have pledged to cease the sale of illegal whitening kits Streptococcus link found in disease risk U K researchers have found another reason for us to keep brush- ing and flossing our teeth: the same gum bacteria that cause dental plaque can escape from the mouth into the blood- stream and trigger clots that in- crease risk of heart attack and heart disease. The study that led to this finding was the work of Uni- versity of Bristol researchers, in collaboration with scientists at the Royal College of Surg- eons in Dublin, Ireland (also known as the RCSI) and was presented at the Society for General Microbiology’s autumn meeting which ran from 6-9 September at the University of Nottingham. Dr Howard Jenkinson, pro- fessor of Oral Microbiology at Bristol’s School of Oral and Dental Science, presented the findings at the meeting. He said in a press statement that: “Poor dental hygiene can lead to bleeding gums, providing bacteria with an escape route into the blood- stream, where they can initi- ate blood clots leading to heart disease.” He said we all need to be aware that it’s not only diet, exercise, cholesterol and blood pressure that we should keep an eye on, but it’s also impor- tant to have good dental hygiene to reduce our risk of heart problems. In their study, Jenkinson and colleagues found that once Streptococcus bacteria get into the bloodstream, they use a protein called PadA which sits on their outer surface, to hijack blood platelets and force them to clump together and make blood clots. Jenkinson described this as a “selfish trick” on the part of the bacteria, which completely encase themselves in a clump of platelets, enabling them to avoid detection by the host immune system, and also, to hide from antibiotics. “Unfortunately, as well as helping out the bacteria”, ex- plained Jenkinson, “platelet clumping can cause small blood clots, growths on the heart valves (endocarditis) or inflam- mation of blood vessels that can block the blood supply to the heart and brain”. The team are now investi- gating how PadA makes blood platelets clump together so they can find a way to block it. They are doing it with the help of a new blood flow model that mimics the human circ- ulatory system. The model was developed by Dr Steve Kerri- gan of RCSI’s School of Phar- macy. DT Poor dental hygiene can provide bacteria with a route into the bloodstream according to this latest research by the University of Bristol and RCSI in Dublin ‘Platelet clumping can cause small blood clots, growths on the heart valves (endocarditis) or inflammation of blood vessels that can block the blood supply to the heart and brain’ September 13-19, 20102 News United Kingdom Edition

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