No evidence linking dental treatment to Alzheimers disease
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- Published: Tuesday, 15 September 2015 07:42
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Despite provocative reporting and sensational headlines, dental experts in the UK and USA have said there is no evidence that Alzheimer's disease can be spread from person to person by direct contact, or through any dental procedures or dental instruments. The BDA’s Professor Damien Walmsley, said: “Dentists take patient safety very seriously and follow strict protocols to protect patients from the risk of infections, however slight that risk may be.”
The story came from a study published in the journal Nature, which said that the ‘seeds’ of Alzheimer’s disease may be transmitted from one person to another during certain medical procedures. The media claimed that the findings raised questions about the safety of some medical procedures, possibly including blood transfusions and invasive dental treatment, which may involve the transfer of contaminated tissues or surgical equipment.
Lead researcher, Professor Collinge said at a press conference: “Certainly there are potential risks in dentistry where it is impacting on nervous tissue, such as root-canal treatments and special precautions are taken for that reason... If you are speculating whether A-beta seeds are transmitted at all by surgical instruments one would have to consider whether certain types of dental procedures might be relevant.” But in a statement issued later, Dr Collinge clarified that more research was needed before any conclusions could be drawn about any potential risks in current medical or dental treatments.
Commenting on the Nature paper on Alzheimer’s, the British Dental Association’s scientific adviser, Professor Damien Walmsley, said: “Dentists take patient safety very seriously and follow strict protocols to protect patients from the risk of infections, however slight that risk may be. These protocols were strengthened in 2007 when a UK-wide restriction on the re-use of files that come into contact with nervous tissue during root canal treatments was put in place. These measures make dentistry one of the safest areas of healthcare.”
American Association of Endodontists President Dr Terryl A Propper rebuffed the scare stories, saying: “There is no evidence that root canal treatment poses a risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. There are procedures in place to minimize infection risk from endodontic instruments such as files and reamers. Many endodontists employ single-use instruments and, if not, instruments are thoroughly sterilized prior to each use. There is nothing definitive in this study. Questions remain and the study authors acknowledge that more research is needed."
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