No abstract

Sir, I read with interest the hypothesised case by W. G. Brands (BDJ 2006; 201: 207-210) for a dentist planning for periodontal treatment in the mandible. Dr Brands appears to infer that adequate anaesthesia would be obtained by giving LA directly into the periodontal ligament area to achieve adequate pain control during the treatment. What he fails to understand is that the primary cause of chronic periodontitis is subgingival bacteria attached to the root surface of the affected teeth. The obvious sequelae is subgingival calculus deposition. Should not the teeth need to be adequately anaesthetised to reduce the pain of removing subgingival deposits from the ROOT surfaces as opposed to the stated periodontal tissues? Therefore, is not an inferior nerve dental block the method of choice to achieve this?