Banish bad breath blues with a trip to B.C.’s first Breath Testing
Clinic, part of the University of British Columbia’s public Dental
Clinic.
“Although breath testing devices are becoming fashionable, most
are not accurate,” says oral biologist Don Brunette, who is associate
dean in the Faculty of Dentistry. “This clinic provides an objective
measure for people concerned about their breath.”
Measuring levels of certain chemicals in breath is useful in diagnosing
a variety of conditions, including illnesses of the liver, lung
or gastrointestinal tract, says Brunette.
UBC’s Breath Testing Clinic is the only one in Canada to use gas
chromatography as a measuring device. Too complex to be widely available,
the system is unique in providing a precise reading of sulphur compounds
— high levels of which are the basis of halitosis, commonly known
as bad breath.
Using a syringe, clinic staff suck an exact volume of air out of
the patient’s mouth and introduce it into the device for an accurate
measurement.
In addition, an oral biologist specializing in breath malodour
gives a subjective evaluation. The patient sits behind a privacy
screen and exhales into a tube. The breath evaluator sniffs the
breath coming from the tube and assesses it.
The first visit to the clinic takes about one hour and costs $150.
Clinic staff assess mouth odour and document the patient’s medical
and dental history.
If measurement shows significant breath odour, a second visit costing
$200 and lasting about three hours is scheduled to determine the
cause. Clinic staff then recommend treatment and evaluate the effect.
Subsequent visits cost $50 each.
Patients will be referred to physicians if the cause of the odour
is unrelated to dental or oral conditions.
The new facility is directed by Ken Yaegaki, Dept. of Oral Biology
and Medical Sciences. The clinic is open Monday and Friday mornings
and is located at 2199 Wesbrook Mall on UBC’s Point Grey campus.
Individuals may make clinic appointments directly by calling 604.822.8028.
Breath testing is not covered by the Medical Services Plan.
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