steady hands question...please reply

[mmapcpro]

I posted this in Alopathic because I want perspectives from both disciplines.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=98638

please read this and tell me what you think.

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[ItsGavinC]

Scott, good question and good post. Keep in mind that when practicing dentistry, you'll nearly always have something to use as a fulcrum. Be it the chair, or the patient, etc.

Your post stated something to the effect that your hands are shaky when your arms are outstretched straight.

Keep in mind that as a dentist your arms aren't out straight. Try resting your forearms on the desk and then observing them. Is that better? My guess is that it is.

*I* don't think you have anything to worry about. It doesn't sound as though you have early onset Parkinson's, or anything of that nature.

 

[UBTom]

to Scott:

In the normal course of a dental curriculum, you will be taught how to position yourself and how to hold the instruments, and most dental students improve with practice after the first few badly mangled ivorine teeth.

Unless you have an existing musculoskeletal disorder that involves your appendages, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

HTH.

 

[3rdMolarRoller]

kinda late at night...isn't it Tom

 

[UBTom]

Yep.. Taking a break from looking over the case discussions for the oral surgery selective course.

I signed up because the course has no final exam... Little did I know we would be quizzed EVERY WEEK in class about the cases. I've been had!

 

[ItsGavinC]

Sounds like a smooth course, though.

So Tom, how does it feel to only have a couple months left?

 

[thisisit]

Unless you have a diagnosed problem, I wouldn't worry about the normal shaky hands. You will learn how to control it. Don't worry at all. You can always give them a tongue piercing for free...

 

[UBTom]

to Gavin:

Right now it's the classic "light at the end of the tunnel" but is it an oncoming train (i.e. can we fulfill all the clinical requirements in time)?

I still got these things left on my checksheet:

1 more molar endo

4 more crowns

1 set of CU/CL dentures

2 sets of RPDs

1 more perio case

And all the practical exams that go with those.

I think I've gotten more white hairs from worrying during senior year than any other time in dental school.

 

[JTLUK001]

Hey what was stated earlier is true. You'll never work with your arms extended straight out and when you have any handpiece/instrument/blade etc. you will definitely have a finger rest to steady your hand. Your instructors will teach you early on when you do your operative course about using finger rests.
One thing though is that when you give injections take a deep breath, make sure you know where you are going, be quick and deliberate when you place your needle otherwise I could see a patient pissing their pants if your syringe hand is vibrating in front of their eyes! Thank goodness when you do your first one it'll be one of your classmates!

 

[mmapcpro]

thanks for the replies...

thankfully, my hands don't "shake" in the way you are probably imagining...if I hold them out in front of me, and look beyond them at the wall, I can see that they are kind of "hovering"...they move...up, down, etc...it's not so much the hands as it is the arms...

based on what you are saying, it doesn't seem that this will cause any problem...

i suppose the larger issue is with controlling the tools with the grace and finess that an artist would control his/her brush strokes, for instance...

but again, as you mentioned, I imagine that with intense repetition, I would get better...

i'm going to be getting some shadowing in on the weekends this semester and summer, so perhaps I'll get alot better perspective...

i have spent 100's of hours in dental offices both inside and outside of patient schedules, but i'm sure i'll get a much clearer picture when i'm able to actually get an over-the-shoulder view of the procedures.

i think it would be beneficial as well to spend at least a little bit of time shadowing at a hospital (if i'm able to) so that I reduce the variables as much as possible while i'm working on the prereqs

obviously, there are benefits to my choosing dentistry aside from the fact that I enjoy helping people, often at my expense:

1) i am friends with several dentists
2) i have offers for associateships leading to potential partnerships from these friends already
3) i have already been working in the dental field for the past 4 years
4) the 4-5 day work-week sounds attractive compared to the 6-7 day work-weeks i'm used to
5) i am a gadget lover, so using the i/o cameras, digital xray, imaging software, etc. is fun.
6) being self-employed currently, i like the potential for owning my own practice.
7) i have worked with my hands most of my life (soldering, working on computers, installing cabling)

my doubts stem from the following:
1) slight arthritis in my hands from years of jiu-jitsu
2) no artistic ability...i can't even draw stick-figures well, heh...if I try to draw a circle, i can never get the ending point to meet the starting point...
3) i have considerable back and neck pain (again, from years of jiujitsu)...as soon as my wife's medical insurance kicks in, i'm going to see a doctor about my neck...sometimes i can't really turn my head from left to right because of the sharp pain.

so i can't help but keep medicine as an option while I carefuly consider each of these points...if I choose to TRY to get into medical school:
1) my back and neck pain should be less prohibitive to practicing
2) artistic ability is much less of a factor
3) probably have to work more, but there's nothing new about that, so i'm not concerned about it.
4) some specialties still offer the potential to be self-employed

i don't care about how much money i can earn in either field...i'm sure i'll be fine either way.

i probably sound like an idiot who's lost in the woods...but i'll find the road soon enough...hopefully with some advice and help from you guys.

 

[le fort guy]

Originally posted by mmapcpro
I posted this in Alopathic because I want perspectives from both disciplines.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=98638

please read this and tell me what you think.

If your hands are shaky due to arthritis then there are drugs such as NSAIDs (Vioxx and Celebrex) specifically the COXII which are less stomach abraisive.

If your hands are shaky and it isn't due to arthritis then there still may be a solution. I have worked with many dentists as well as oral surgeons who had the same problem. Many of them told me about the wonders of Beta blockers (atenolol). Beta blockers are usually used for hypertension. So go to your primary care physician and see what he thinks and if he doesn't like the idea then get a second opinion.