European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 15, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes dental techniques on children defended in a recent letter a writer complained about the treatment her 3-Ycar-old received from a dentist. Among Many other complaints she stated that the shot and drilling Hurt her daughter who was traumatized and hysterical which made me won Der How the drilling could still have Hurt after the angst Hustic was applied and How did she know As the Mother of a 7-Ycar-old who has frequently received both dental and orthodontic care by the children s doctor at the Hanau dental clinic i would like to Tell your readers of our experiences before my son s first appointment i had great difficulties trying to convince him of the necessity of his treatment. I must admit i was somewhat anxious myself. Children usually notice a Parent s anxiety which did not help the situation at All. By the time we entered the building my son Wasin tears and shaking with fear. Sometimes of cipro to Active 1 distrust any individual laying hands none of my children. This was also the Case when the dentist s assistant explained to me that it was the dentist s policy not to allow parents to be present during treatment. My son was led away by her As he was spoken to in a very calming and Friendly voice. After a waiting period of about 30 minutes i was taken to Sec Myson. I realized then that my rather critical behaviour and distrust were not justified. While my son proudly opened his Mouth expos ing the Crown he had just received the dentist explained to me the treatment in detail. When i nervously asked my son if he had had a shot i was immediately corrected by the dentist in a very Friendly Way that this was Only referred to As a  while he elaborated on the treatment plan my son made himself quite at Home examining the dental equipment. When i tried to Stop him i was once again informed by the dentist and his assistant that this was a great Opportunity for a child to become familiar with All the different utensils thus losing his fear. I began to understand that this was a trained children s dentist who deserved better than being approached by critical and Dis trustful parents. Since then my husband and i have taken our son for several treatments and have always been extremely satisfied and grateful. We have also witnessed some parents very rude behaviour toward this Man. Let s face it. Dental treatment is not exactly a pleasant procedure even for adults and i truly Admire a person who works on children Day after Day with ail this patience. Ink Borg Mccarey Hanau West Germany when 1 was a child i was treated by an army dentist who held his hand Over my Mouth asking Are you going to quit crying and moving arc you sure i m going to Tell your father you were bad All the while 1 was unable to breathe. He would not remove his hand until i sat perfectly still and nodded my head. I can t describe the Stark Ter ror that arose in me. When i took my own daughter on her first dental visits i was afraid for her. Much to my Surprise she did t dislike her visits at All she even asked to go Sec my Friend Rocky with the  he used the series of progressively More Complex procedures described by or. Badger in the response to the Mother s letter. I thought this technique was super. Dental treatment has never been a problem for her. I was impressed army dentists had certainly improved now i read about the use of Hom hand Over Mouth and i m appalled particularly when parents Aren t informed of its use. I encourage parents to say no to this procedure. For a scared child this exacerbates the problem. Even if the child can breathe there s the fear that he won t be Able to. Or like the 3-year-old with the Stuffy nose a hand Over the Mouth cuts off breathing. To a distraught child what docs a hand Over the Mouth mean this is probably not something he s experienced before. If he s been told How the dentist in t going to Hurt him this certainly appears quite the opposite. So now you have a child who does t want to return to the dentist. I agree with the letter writer How do i convince her to Trust dentists again incidentally what did work on this frightened crying child in a visit to another dentist the assist ant squeezed my hand while i received the shots of novocain. I was of after that. A word to or. Badger please encourage the use of progressively More Complex visits in treating Chil Dren. Name and location withheld i would like to address this letter to the woman who wrote regarding her daughter s dental treat ment in Hanau. I do not feel that you painted a completely accurate picture of the hand Over Mouth technique in your letter. I will agree with you that you should have been informed that it might be necessary i will mention this again momentarily and also that As a Parent it is difficult to Sec used. It has been used on my 5-Ycar-old daughter. At age three and four she was sometimes a Good patient and sometimes not. I am a registered dental hygienist and have been for 12 years. In a professional capacity i see its usefulness when other Mea sures have failed. Did i like seeing or hearing about its use on my daughter no. Was it necessary yes. Did it permanently traumatize her absolutely not. I prefer in most cases to Sec children without their parents present for a number of reasons the most important being that the child will not be picking up on the Parent s fears anxieties and will not be responding to the Parent. In an Ideal Situa Tion the child will have been brought into the clinic for examination or cleaning before any drilling is needed. This is much less traumatic for everyone concerned the child the Parent and the dentist. The Hom technique used when needed is not abusive treatment. Perhaps your Vantage Point was not As Clear As you thought. If a child is hysterically crying they will heave for air even when there is no hand placed Over their Mouth. Was your child referred to Hanau due to behaviour or because she needed an extensive amount of work also please consider if this technique s use had been mentioned beforehand and you did t completely understand or forgot. Many times patients or parents Are anxious and do not remember what has been explained. Sometimes the explainer May not have been As Clear As they had thought. I have been called Unbe coming names even though i have gone to great lengths before treatment to explain to the patient that they have a heavy buildup of tartar or calculus under their Gums and that the Gums arc not in Good shape and that removing the buildup will be uncomfortable. Most patients respond favourably and appreciate the explanation. But Many others upon completion will say what were you doing Why did that Hurt Why did my Gums bleed the Pointis the procedures had been explained understand ing implied but misunderstanding prevailed. In the Case of your daughter this understanding needs to come from you. Perhaps there was misunderstanding on both sides. Your daughter can become a Good dental patient but Only if you allow her to. Please do not allow this incident to overshadow everything else. She obviously needs work done. Not having it done now could 1 affect her permanent Teeth or 2 necessitate More extensive work a year from now. It is True that not All dentists hygienists arc equally Good with children although the dentist your daughter saw is one of the Best in my opinion. Per haps she would react better to a different practitioner and or pc medication or sedation As col. Badger mentioned. The important thing is to put this be Hind both of you and try again. Margot Bergqu Stracey . Gln Hansen West Germany ride a mile in our shoes motorcyclists urge for several years a recent writer has been bombarded with to commercials telling us to be courteous to motorcyclists they do have the same rights As Drivers in regular  they also have the same responsibilities. But put yourself in the shoes of the motorcycle Driver. If you drive the Speed limit some regular vehicle Driver pulls right up on your butt. There is no such thing As a minor rear end collision on a motorcycle not to mention the fact that i can out Stop almost any regular  i am not making excuses for the rider you Are referring to. Passing on a solid line is illegal and there is no excuse. Even worse is passing Between two solid lines of cars. This is just Plain dumb. It is a common acc plod and recommended european practice for motorcycles to go to the front of a red Light. This Means 1 will not be left at the Back burning Energy polluting the atmosphere and will allow one More regular vehicle to get through the intersection. When was the last time you parked with the regu Lar vehicles and came Back to find your regular vehicle pushed out of the Way so someone else can Park there or worse yet pushed Over accidentally because your regular vehicle was t big enough to be seen. Here in Karlsruhe the maps have told motor Cycle riders to Park in the striped zone so As not to add to the parking problem we do not Block anyone in we do not Park so As to constitute a safety Hazard. This brings us to the real Issue Why should you show respect to motorcycle riders it is True that respect is earned and nol demanded but in this Case the Law requires that respect be shown to All. If you Are going to let a few of the a courteous riders influence your opinion of All then you Haven t shown enough judgment to safely drive on the Street with the rest of us who realize that there arc Good and bad Drivers of regular vehicles and motorcycles. Sri. 1st class Charles m. Brown spec. Jackie c. Mccandliss Karlsruhe West Germany we re Bike owners and our motorcycle is As big As a car. As far As i can honestly say we follow All the rules and regulations of the Road. We Don t pass people when it s not Safe nor do we endanger your or our lives. We Don t drive to the front of the line on or off Post at Stop signs or lights and especially when traffic is stopped. We also Park in posted motorcycle parking or in a parking spot. But i can t Tell you How Many times people Don t watch and drive Loo close run us off the Road or endanger our lives. You should respect anyone who drives on the Road no matter if it s a truck car or motorcycle. Some of us do follow the rules. So please show your respect to us. Sri. George r. Halscy i c Kuy sue Hulsey bad i a Ersfeld West Germany. I would ask. Sir. That you remember All the limes an automobile has passed you at an excessive Rale of Speed passed you around a Blind Corner or taken up two parking places in a parking lot. Motor cyclists do not have a monopoly on stupid driving habits. I am not making an attempt to excuse nor do i condone the motorcycling practices you cited. All i ask is thai you consider motorcyclists As individuals and nol stereotype us. Now 10 All motorcyclists my friends we All wish to be respected As a class of people. A number of organizations and Many people Are working hard to improve the general Public s opinion of us. Just one of us Riding like a maniac undoes a great Deal of work in thai direction. If we want to be resp Clad we Musl ride . Wear a Helmel. Nol because the Deparl Mcnol of defense requires ii bul because it s smart. Obey traffic Laws and Allend a motorcycle safety foundation rider s course As soon As you can. Capt. John c. Mcwhorter la Ellenton a Greece. What the Driver of the car might consider Reck less Riding May be the misunderstood natural performance of a motorcyclist such As the Quick acceleration enabling a Swift and sure passing ability. The rider sits much higher than the car Driver allowing him to Sec several cars ahead noticing Many More opportunities to pass. The deep lean through a turn May look like a sign of recklessness bul this is just the motorcyclist s agility for tight cornering. As far As Laws arc concerned in some countries in Europe in is Legal for the motorcyclist to creep along Side traffic to the from of inc line Al Slop signs. Whal s needed is More author izod motorcycle parking spaces on bases. I always feel Guilly for taking up a whole space while Drivers wander around a crowded parking lot. The motorcyclist does t need that much space. But that does t mean the car Driver can dangerously slip by him on the Highway think ing i Only needs half the Road sri. Michael j. Ozuna Chi Evris a Belgium