New US drug scourge is a kick in the teeth

0 Comments | AFP, August, 2005

SIKESTON, United States (AFP) — A drug scourge that is sweeping through rural America is hitting users in the teeth. Literally.

Rural dentists are seeing an increasing number of cases of "meth mouth," a disturbing dental decay within rots teeth so quickly that some patients require full-mouth extractions.

"There's never been a drug that's had such an extreme dental impact as crystal meth," said Dr. Nancy Williams, a dental hygiene professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis, who lectures around the country on drug abuse.

Little is known about what causes the condition, but the decay is striking. Teeth become brittle and break as black cavities form along the gum lines.

"It looks like you told the person to stand up and...