BINGHAM FARMS, MICHIGAN — Most patients leaving the dentist’s office are given a new tooth brush or dental floss. But patients leaving the Smile Doctor, Dr. Timothy Kosinski of Bingham Farms, are instead given UL SOL Beads used to screen rays from the sun to prevent skin cancer.
One reason is that Dr. Kosinski has always been interested in the total health of his patients; another is that the dentist himself is a recovering victim of skin cancer.
Because of his personal experience, Dr. Kosinski presents each of his patients with UV Sol Beads at each appointment. UV Sol Beads are simple beaded jewelry pieces that are an opaque white inside but turn bright colors depending upon how much sunlight they are exposed to.
You don’t even have to wear the beads as jewelry but can tie them on your body, umbrella, baby stroller, surfboard, golf bag, tennis bag, purse; anywhere that could remind you to protect your skin in the sun. As the beads turn bright colors it reminds you that you’ve been in the sun for a while and you might want to be careful about your exposure.
“Monitoring changes on the skin in the head and neck area may save a patient’s life or reduce the incidence of extensive surgical intervention,” explains Dr. Kosinski. “Awareness of strange lesions on my patient’s face has become a priority. We do this at our hygiene appointments with all of our patients.”
Skin cancer is one of the most pervasive and insidious diseases that can result from overexposure to the sun. There are three broad categories of skin cancers: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and malignant melanoma. The incidence of skin cancer has been rising over the past several decades to the point where it is now reported that one third of all cancers in the U.S. are non-melanoma skin cancers.
Dr. Kosinski was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma and had surgery to remove the lesion. “I was told that I needed to keep SPF 30 sunscreen on the area and to wear a hat,” explained Dr. Kosinski. “Excessive sun would cause the scar to darken permanently. The advice was well heeded, as I now wear sunscreen and a hat at all times while outdoors.”
For further information contact Dr. Kosinski at 31000 Telegraph Rd. St. 170, Bingham Farms, MI 48025, by phone at 248-646-8651 or via email at drkosin@aol.com or visit www.smilecreator.net.
About Dr. Timothy Kosinski
Dr. Kosinski, an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry, maintains a private practice devoted to comprehensive and implant dentistry. He serves on the editorial review board of Reality, the information source for esthetic dentistry. He is a Diplomat of the American Board of Oral Implantology/Implant Dentistry, the International Congress of Oral Implantologists and the American Society of Osseointegration. Dr. Kosinski was the University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry Alumni Association’s “Alumnus of the Year” in 2001. Dr. Kosinski has published over 45 articles on the surgical and prosthetic phases of implant dentistry and was a contributor to the textbook, Principles and Practice of Implant Dentistry.