Diagnostic Services
Depending on your unique situation and dental health your visit may include any of the following diagnostic services:
• Take necessary cavity-detecting x-rays
• Assess your periodontal (gum) tissue
• Evaluate existing dental restorations for proper fit, function and aesthetics
• Check your bite, chewing and swallowing patterns
• Review and update your medical history
• Evaluate possible cosmetic enhancements of your smile
• Examine and screen for oral cancer
A comprehensive treatment plan will be developed for you specifically. You will be presented with a prescribed dental treatment plan and recommendations for any future treatment such as periodontal therapy, orthodontics, cosmetic treatments.
Oral Hygiene Visit
Oral Hygiene is an essential part of your overall health. Your visit with the Hygienist will include many or all of the following procedures:
• Clean and scale teeth to remove all plaque and calculus (tartar)
• Remove surface stains from teeth
• Apply pit and fissure sealants to help prevent decay
• Fluoride application
• Instruction in tooth brushing and flossing
• Polish teeth and porcelain, gold and resin restorations
Periodontal Therapy
Periodontal disease, or simply gum disease, is the single most common cause of tooth loss in adults. This inflammatory disease attacks the gums, bone and other supporting structures of the teeth.
Gum disease is caused by plaque, a colorless film of bacteria that forms on the teeth. Plaque mixes with sugars and starches in the diet to form acids and other by-products in the mouth, irritating gums and causing them to become red, tender and swollen. It also causes the gums to bleed easily. If not removed daily, plaque hardens to form calculus (tartar) around the necks of the teeth.
The irritants in plaque can destroy the tissue that attaches the gums to the teeth. The gums pull away from the teeth and small pockets form between the teeth and gums. These pockets become filled with more plaque. As pockets deepen, it becomes impossible for you to clean the plaque out. Eventually the bone structure supporting the teeth can be destroyed.
Treatment – The type of treatment you require depends on how advanced your particular case is. Individualized treatment may include any of the following:
• More frequent cleanings – It may take the bacteria at the base of the pocket up to three months to colonize into numbers able to destroy bone. Frequent cleanings can prevent this build up.
• Scaling and root planning – Scaling is removing the calculus deposits from your teeth. Root planning is the smoothing of the root surfaces so that the gum tissue can reattach to the tooth.
• Curettage – Removes the soft tissue lining the periodontal pocket. This helps the gum tissue to heal.
• Gingivectomy – The surgical removal of the periodontal pocket to allow easier access for cleaning.
• Flap surgery – allows us to gain access to the root of the tooth for removal of calculus, plaque and diseased tissue. The gum is then secured back into place.
Restorative Services
Crowns and Bridges
Crowns are dental restorations that are placed over a tooth when conservative restorations are insufficient to restore form and function. A bridge serves to replace a missing tooth or teeth. One type of bridge consists of the replacement tooth attached to the adjacent teeth with wing-like appendages. Bridges can also be supported by dental implants. Crowns and bridges can be made entirely of tooth-colored porcelain, metal or a combination of both to provide optimal aesthetics and incorporate stress-bearing materials to enhance their strength and wear-resistance.
Inlays and Onlays
These options are frequently used to restore teeth that are severely damaged by decay or wear. They are usually applied to the chewing surface of the back teeth. They provide more strength than a filling and are more conservative than a full crown. Porcelain onlays prevent decay and wear while providing a more beautiful appearance.
Dental Implants
Dental Implants offer a natural looking, comfortable, but most importantly permanent solution to replace missing teeth. Implants can be utilized to replace a single missing tooth, support a bridge, or secure a denture. Think of dental implants as metal anchors, usually made of titanium, that are surgically placed into the jawbone. Through a process called “osteointegration”, the jawbone actually attaches itself to the implant over time providing tremendous stability. A lifelike ceramic restoration is then placed over the implant in order to perform the same as a natural tooth. Implants provide a highly stable support system for the replacement tooth, bridge or denture. Because dental implants function remarkably like natural teeth, most people who get them are simply overjoyed once they realize they can chew, talk, laugh and smile with confidence!
Full and Partial Denture
There are two types of dentures, one is a full denture, and the other is a partial denture. Full dentures replace all of the teeth in either the upper or lower part of the mouth. Partial Dentures replace one to several teeth. Full dentures are held in place in the mouth by suction. In some cases when a good suction is not possible, the use of denture creams is necessary. Partial dentures are held in place by metal clasps that wrap around some of the remaining teeth. A partial denture can also be retained in the mouth with hidden clasps, which make these dentures blend with one’s natural dentition. The fabrication of both types of dentures is fairly similar. For partial dentures, some minor adjustments are often made to the existing teeth in order to make a well fitting denture. After these adjustments are made, procedures for partial and full dentures are almost identical. First impressions are taken of the mouth. From these the dentures are created. The patient may have to visit his or her dentist several times throughout the fabrication of his/her dentures for "try-in’s". This is when the patient and dentist make sure that the dentures fit well with the remaining teeth. Overall, construction of the dentures can take up to 3-6 weeks.
Tooth Colored Fillings
This is a great to a traditional metal filling. Silver filings are not utilized often anymore as they characteristically darken over time, and have a tendency to cause damage to a tooth in the long run. Silver fillings often undergo metal fatigue corroding and leaking over time. When restoring a tooth with a resin or tooth colored filling we can be conservative with the amount of tooth structure removed since the filling material is bonded to the tooth. Also since white fillings are bonded to your tooth they actually add strength to the tooth. This is an attractive, natural looking option for restoring decayed teeth.
Mouth guards / Night guards
Mouth guards are flexible plastic appliances worn to protect teeth, lips, cheeks, tongue and jaw. They are used during activities that can damage the teeth, most often during contact sports and – surprisingly – during sleep. Properly fitted mouth guards can also help reduce the risk of head, neck and brain injury by absorbing and dispersing some of the shock caused by blows to the chin. Considering that the mouth is the most commonly injured part of the body during contact sports, mouth guards should be an essential component in most physical activities.
Night guards are specially designed mouth guards worn to protect the teeth from grinding (bruxing) or clenching of the jaw during sleep.