Book review

  • R. Guyver
Advantage Media Group price £10.25; pp 194 ISBN 9781599324043 | ISBN: 978-1-5993-2404-3

This book by Richard Guyver is really excellent. I know Richard to be an excellent and very caring general dental practitioner, but I had no idea that he had embarked on this huge project to produce such an interesting and thought provoking book.

I would urge both dentists and patients to read this book, as the whole concept of 'dental medicine' is of such fundamental and practical significance to all of us, as Richard so adeptly points out. Each chapter deals with a different disease system that can manifest in the mouth and how oral care can help to decrease their likelihood and indeed perhaps extend our lives. Hence the title '4,006 days', which is roughly equivalent to 11 years! You will need to read chapter 26 to find out how he arrives at this figure. This might be a little fanciful, but the fundamental issue is a sound one.

Richard starts by giving his thoughts on what the term 'dental medicine' really means and then talks about the mouth being a window to the body. This is obviously not a new concept, but it is a fundamental issue that we should be aware of when we are examining a patient. Richard then goes on chapter by chapter talking about well-established disease processes that might manifest in the mouth and also how dental diseases such as periodontal disease can be a significant marker for other systemic diseases. The fact that the oral tissues can reflect specific systemic problems has been well known for many years but I think it is not something that we, as dentists, really pick up on.

One of the most impressive things about this book is the way it is referenced, there are numerous accurately annotated references from well established 'main stream' journals, both dental and medical; and cleverly these are marked on the relevant page. This alone really underpins the genuine academic significance of this book.

With a cynical hat on the reader might think that some of Richard's ideas are a little naive and sometimes he does rather stray into condemnation of dentists who might not agree with his concepts. However, I think it would be very difficult not to have great sympathy with his passion and I would encourage all dentists, particularly younger dentists, to read this book and make their own judgement.