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Book Reviews

PA Reynolds, NL Berridge, S Rice, GAE Burke, B Berkovitz, C Kirsch, BJ Moxham, GH Alusi, T Cheesman

DVD ROM Primal Pictures, 2008

£180.00

ISBN 9781904369837

This disc is from a company that has produced several anatomy DVDs covering different parts of the body. This is the only one devoted to dentistry, and covers a number of areas ranging from normal anatomy of the head (including the brain), neck, oral cavity and teeth to pathological processes and traumatic bony injuries to procedures such as administration of local anaesthesia. The information is presented in a variety of ways, i.e. Anatomy; MRI; Slides; Movies; Animations; Dentistry. The illustrations are clear and load quickly. In the Anatomy section, there is a ‘layering’ facility that allows for layers to be added or removed to move from the surface inwards or from the inside out, which or MRI images correspond to the sections of the body. The images may also be rotated by means of screen arrows, which is very useful to visualize the three-dimensional (3D) relationships of the structure of interest. Sagittal, coronal and axial skull views are accompanied by side-by-side MRI images. Within the Slides section the images are varied with clinical and cadaveric photographs, radiographs, MRI and diagrams. For some pictures, the various elements will ‘illuminate’ if the mouse arrow is hovered above them with the name of the item superimposed.

There are a small number of movies, some using a live model to illustrate various superficial muscles. Some movie sequences are animations and appear in the Animations part of the disc. The Dentistry part provides an eclectic range of topics including embryogenesis, examination, teeth, dental anaesthesia, spread of infection, face, joints overview, salivary glands, pterygopalatine fossa. This is largely text with hot links for certain aspects where an image appears next to the text plane to illustrate appropriately. There is a substantial amount of information on the TMJ and its movements, but for some reason there is little about the occlusion, and the CGI of some of the teeth would not be recommended for those who need to revise their dental anatomy. On my review, DVD copy there was an error where the text of a mental nerve block provides a picture of a greater palatine nerve block. The detail given within each of these areas is fairly limited and is at undergraduate level.

Taken overall this DVD provides a useful supplement to anyone who needs to know about the anatomical relationships, giving the 3D and animated views that textbooks cannot provide, and it certainly provides more than the title would suggest. This DVD would have a place in a dental school library as it will be valuable for dental students who seek a comprehensive understanding of the 3D anatomical relationships and, in certain circumstances, in function.

Richard Oliver

Orthodontics

Gurkeerat Singh

Anshan Gold Standard Mini Atlas Series, 2008 148 pp., plus mini photo CD ROM, sb, £19.99 ISBN 9781905740390

This is a new publisher to me, apparently a joint venture between Anshan in Tunbridge Wells, UK and Jaypee Brothers in New Delhi. This is a series of both medical and dental textbooks. Strangely, if you go to the Anshan website you will not find the Orthodontics atlas advertized. Professor Singh is Head of Department in the Sudha Rustagi College of Dental Sciences and Research in Haryana, India and has included photographs from several of his colleagues.

What is this book? It is definitely pocket-sized (12 cm by 15 cm or 4.5 in by 6 in if you prefer) and full of illustrations with accompanying legends, but very little other text. The colour photographs, radiographs and line drawings are of reasonably good quality. Unfortunately, the quality of reproduction of images on the accompanying mini CD ROM is poor, and there are only selected images reproduced from each chapter. There are seven chapters in sequence from introduction and definition through the scope and aims of orthodontic treatment followed by treatment options, then, leaping backwards in logic, normal occlusion, classification of malocclusion and common etiological (sic) factors, the book is then completed by treatment results.

In the preface the author says that the book is ‘a small effort to spread the knowledge of orthodontics.’ He intends it to be an aid to clinicians and to patients, and it is this latter category where I think the book would be most useful. There is really insufficient information within the book to be useful as an undergraduate textbook, or for general dental practitioners to learn much other than assist with a diagnosis. There are some notable absences from the book, for example there is no illustration of a quad helix, the only ‘functional appliance’ shown is a vestibular shield and the only removable appliance shown is a ‘habit breaker’ which is reminiscent of the Castillo-Morales appliance for tongue and saliva control.

In summary, this book would be appropriate for patient information, to illustrate before and after changes.

R. G. Oliver

The 20 Principles of the Alexander Discipline

R. G. ‘Wick’ Alexander

Quintessence, Chicago, CA, 2008

232 pp., 1000 illustrations (700 in colour)

ISBN 9780867154719

I was unfamiliar with the Alexander Principle before reviewing this book but essentially it is a 20-stage ‘philosophy’ from a well-established American orthodontist.

Each ‘Principle’ is set out in chapters which are all equally well laid out, easy to read and conclude with case studies. These studies are the author’s patients all of which are well illustrated with photographs, radiographs and cephalometric tracings.

The Principles which I found of particular interest were:

• Principle 5 ‘Plan your work, then work your plan’ discusses the use of a paradigm to assist in planning whether the case should be extraction or non-extraction.
  
• Principle 6 ‘Use brackets designed for specific prescriptions’ describes the author’s bracket prescription and design which includes slot size, single winged design, inter-bracket space, rotation wings, molar offsets and torque.
  
• Principle 9 ‘Establish ideal arch form’ which explains the development of the Alexander arch form template.
  
• Principle 17 ‘Use non-extraction treatment when possible’. The author reports that 80 per cent of his case load is treated on a non-extraction basis and gives helpful advice on management of borderline cases with the use of lip bumpers, minus 5° crown torque on lower incisor brackets, judicious use of Class 3 elastics with initial aligning archwires, and slenderization or interproximal reduction.
  
• Principle 20 ‘Creating compliance’ described an interesting reward system in keeping with Principle 1 – ‘Effort equals result’ whereby if the patient arrived on time, with excellent oral hygiene, demonstrating excellent cooperation and wearing an Alexander t-shirt they received a wooden ‘nickel’ with which they can purchase a designated gift. Maybe our British peers could learn from this marketing exercise!
  

This book highlights a difference between American and British orthodontics with regard to the non-extraction approach to treatment and the everyday use of RME, lip bumpers, face masks and face bows. The author even comments that some colleagues have speculated that the reason why the number of extraction cases in the US is in decline is due to the difficulty of extraction mechanics.

However, despite this non-extraction philosophy there is relatively little coverage on self-ligation with the author preferring to leave this subject to future publications. There are no cases treated with a functional appliance either.

The 20 Principles of the Alexander Discipline is an easy to read, informative and well laid out book, which is probably best suited to a clinical orthodontist wanting to expand their non-extraction philosophy and to review a wide range of well-illustrated clinical cases treated to a high standard.

Sheelagh Rogers

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