Cosmetic Dentist Procedures That Will Make You Smile

If you have teeth you are unhappy with, modern cosmetic dentists make it easier than ever before to attain the smile you have always wanted. If you need a self-confidence boost, want a more attractive smile, or are concerned about health risks due to crowded teeth, we can help. We provide a variety of cosmetic dentistry procedures with the ability to improve your teeth. Learn more about the services we offer and how we can give you your best smile.

Teeth Whitening:

We offer in-office and at-home whitening solutions that range in effectiveness and simplicity. We have options that can suit any budget while still providing you with whiter teeth by eliminating stains and discoloration. A simple teeth whitening cosmetic dentists can provide you with surprising results.

Dental Bonding:

If you have chipped or cracked teeth or a single discolored tooth, we can provide you with dental bonding, which covers injured teeth and imperfections with a malleable solution that is permanently hardened after being placed in the correct area. This option will quickly and easily fix small dental imperfections.

Dental Contouring:

Dental contouring can be employed to align and reshape crooked or misshapen teeth. We will gently buff areas of each tooth to create a more attractively shaped structure.
White Fillings: If you have metallic fillings and would like a tooth-colored update, we can remove your dated fillings and replace them with a more attractive option. Our white fillings will blend in with your tooth color perfectly and look natural when you smile.
Dental Veneers: Our veneers are thin, porcelain shells bonded to the fronts of your teeth. They effectively cover discolored, misshapen, and oddly spaced teeth and also improve the look of jagged or chipped teeth edges. Veneers are customized for your individual needs and attractively cover dental flaws, improving your appearance drastically.

Dental Implants:

If you have missing teeth, you should consider receiving our dental implants instead of getting traditional dentures. Dental implants last forever, look and feel more natural, and are created to match surrounding teeth. Our implants are planted into your jawbone for a permanent foundation.
Dental Bridges: If you don't want a removable dental replacement, but prefer to avoid the cost and procedure of dental implants, dental bridges are an excellent option. A fabricated tooth is held in a gap by two crowns placed over abutment teeth. This is a more permanent option than dentures and provides a natural looking replacement.

These are only a few of our most common cosmetic dentists can improve the appearance and health of your teeth. Most of our treatments are minimally invasive and do not cause discomfort during or after the process. We use appropriate anesthetics as needed to offer you the most comfortable visit possible. You will be pleased with your improved smile and quick results. Our quality materials, products, and procedures provide long-lasting and beautiful teeth resilient to staining and wear.

Orthodontics  >  Family Dentistry

Learn About Professional Teeth Whitening Brands

If you want information on professional teeth whitening brands, we encourage you to call and schedule an appointment. Things are changing all the time with companies releasing new and improved products. Visiting our office allows us to provide you with the latest updates. Still, there are a few things you should know about whitening your teeth before you do so.

The Process

When you whiten your teeth, you can do so using an at-home whitening kit or with laser whitening. We recommend using the at-home kit. Regardless of how you whiten your teeth, the solution will typically contain some level of peroxide. The type of peroxide in the solution and its chemical makeup, in general, will influence how effective it is for whitening teeth. Most products you buy in the store will only remove the surface stains on your teeth. While they will make your teeth look better, they will not turn yellow teeth bright white. On the other hand, a professional-grade whitening solution penetrates the enamel and begins the process of oxidization. This is where the molecules inside your teeth begin to reflect less light and appear colorless. Your smile will look bright white as a result, and your teeth will no longer be yellow. This is the type of solution we use in our office.

The Application

When comparing professional teeth whitening brands, you should also consider how the solution is applied to the teeth. Some whitening kits have you brush on the solution using a pen, but the results from this are not significant because the solution will not remain on your teeth long enough. Whitening strips are a better option, but they can still slip out of place, and many people find them to be inconvenient. We recommend you use a kit that uses whitening trays. This way, a solution is placed in the trays for you to then secure around your teeth and wear for thirty minutes or so. The only challenge with this option is that if you buy a kit from the store, the trays will not be designed for your teeth, but for anyone who buys the products. This creates a risk of leakage or the trays slipping out of place. For this reason, we suggest you use professional teeth whitening brands sold by our office. We will begin by having you come in for an appointment, where we make an impression of your teeth. Using that impression, we will then create customized trays designed to fit you perfectly. As a result, the whitening solution will remain in place, not leak out, and the process will be entirely comfortable. Simultaneously, since the solution is professional-grade, you will see the best possible results.

Dentures  >  General Dentist

General Dentistry Visits Are Helpful for Your Oral Health: Learn Why

Visits to our general dentistry office are the one that we often describe as routine visits. Typically these are scheduled six months apart so that we can keep a careful watch on your oral health and ensure that you do not have any unforeseen problems with your mouth. Luckily there is a growing segment of educated patients that see the importance of these visits, and we can get them scheduled easily.

The question about why these visits are so important is actually an easy one to answer. Your mouth, teeth, and gums should be inspected every six months because they are the first step in your digestive process. Everything that goes in the mouth, or occurs naturally in the mouth, ultimately will end up in your digestive system and could, therefore, end up causing other health problems if an oral infection exists. Keeping your teeth and gums in perfect health is a good way to ensure that the rest of your body also has limited exposure to risks like oral infections.

Ironically the routine that we put you through when you come in for these visits are the very things that cause some patients to question if they really need to see their general dentist once every six months. From an outside perspective, we always seem to do the same things but there are important reasons why. First we will clean your teeth, which includes a polishing so that they are gleaming white. During the cleaning process, we will remove excess plaque from the teeth and the gums themselves. This helps to reduce the potential of erosion and decay. Next you may receive a fluoride treatment if necessary. Then the dentist will perform an oral examination. During this examination, we are looking for soft spots that may become cavities in the future and also active cavities that need to be filled. Sometimes x-rays may be in order to check on the inside of the tooth, the root, and the jawbone.

Finally, we will send you home with a brand new toothbrush and floss. Handing you, a toothbrush and floss is one of those subtle things that we do to keep your oral health in good condition. We know that most people forget to change their toothbrush once every six months, as is recommended. So when you come to our general dentistry office to get an examination we hand you a toothbrush as a reminder that the time has come to throw away the old one and replace it. We do not expect you to, necessarily, use the one we provide as long as you replace the old toothbrush at home.
Another thing we do but do not talk about, is give you a screening for oral cancer when we are examining your mouth. Oral cancer is a deadly disease that can, at times, go unnoticed. In order to combat this, we have made it a practice to examine your mouth, looking for signs of oral cancer every time you come in for a routine well visit. While your physician may be able to give you similar exam, when you visit our general dentistry office once every six months it is easier because nobody knows your teeth better than we do.

Cosmetic Dentistry  >  Implant Restoration

Ways to Keep Your Dentures in Excellent Condition

If you need dental prosthetics, dentures are an excellent way to replace missing teeth, whether you need to replace one or several. Fortunately, the dentures of today have improved significantly upon the older models and are now more comfortable and more secure than ever. You even have options between ones that are removable or affixed. We can make sure they look completely natural and feel good to wear. Then it is up to you to keep them in good condition. If you do, they could last for five years or longer.
Here are a few tips to try at home:

Handle them carefully. It is possible for your dentures to break if dropped. Be sure to keep them in good condition by handling them carefully and resting them on a clean towel once you have taken them out. You want to avoid accidentally dropping them or knocking them off the counter, since this could cause them to break or chip.

Brush daily. You need to keep your dentures clean just like natural teeth. To do so, use a soft toothbrush and brush gently with water. Be sure to avoid a brush with hard bristles and do not use traditional toothpaste, since both can cause them to become scratched.
Use a special dentures cleaning device. There are small cleaning devices that can be used to clean your dentures so they can be sparkling and white. All you need to do is place them inside with the special cleaning solution. The device works using ultrasound technology, though it cannot replace daily brushing.

Soak them nightly. It is important to keep your dentures moist, and to do so, remove them nightly and place them in either a soaking solution or water. Which one is right for your dentures will be based on the type of dentures you wear and whether or not they have metal clasps. We will give you specific guidance when you come into our office.

When you visit our dental office, we can provide you with further instruction regarding how to keep your dentures in excellent condition. Our goal is for you to maintain the ability to smile with confidence, eat your favorite foods, and speak clearly – all things a well-fitting prosthetic can provide. During regular appointments, we will examine your gums and check to see how well your dentures are fitting. These regular examinations are important since it is possible for your jawbone to change, causing your dentures to no longer fit properly.

Since the process of resorption naturally occurs after tooth loss, your jaw can essentially shrink, and as it does, your dentures can become loose. If this is the case, you could develop sores or have the inconvenience of having your dentures slip out of place. We can help to prevent this by discussing your other options like fixed dentures or even dental implants.

To learn more about the prosthetic solutions available to you, call and schedule an appointment today.

Cosmetic Dentistry  >  General Dentist

Cosmetic Dentistry Procedures That Will Make You Smile

If you have teeth you are unhappy with, modern cosmetic dentistry procedures make it easier than ever before to attain the smile you have always wanted. If you need a self-confidence boost, want a more attractive smile, or are concerned about health risks due to crowded teeth, we can help. We provide a variety of cosmetic dentistry procedures with the ability to improve your teeth. Learn more about the services we offer and how we can give you your best smile.

Teeth Whitening: We offer in-office and at-home whitening solutions that range in effectiveness and simplicity. We have options that can suit any budget while still providing you with whiter teeth by eliminating stains and discoloration. A simple teeth whitening cosmetic dentistry procedure can provide you with surprising results.

Dental Bonding: If you have chipped or cracked teeth or a single discolored tooth, we can provide you with dental bonding, which covers injured teeth and imperfections with a malleable solution that is permanently hardened after being placed in the correct area. This option will quickly and easily fix small dental imperfections.

Dental Contouring: Dental contouring can be employed to align and reshape crooked or misshapen teeth. We will gently buff areas of each tooth to create a more attractively shaped structure.

White Fillings: If you have metallic fillings and would like a tooth-colored update, we can remove your dated fillings and replace them with a more attractive option. Our white fillings will blend in with your tooth color perfectly and look natural when you smile.

Dental Veneers: Our veneers are thin, porcelain shells bonded to the fronts of your teeth. They effectively cover discolored, misshapen, and oddly spaced teeth and also improve the look of jagged or chipped teeth edges. Veneers are customized for your individual needs and attractively cover dental flaws, improving your appearance drastically.

Dental Implants: If you have missing teeth, you should consider receiving our dental implants instead of getting traditional dentures. Dental implants last forever, look and feel more natural, and are created to match surrounding teeth. Our implants are planted into your jawbone for a permanent foundation.

Dental Bridges: If you don’t want a removable dental replacement, but prefer to avoid the cost and procedure of dental implants, dental bridges are an excellent option. A fabricated tooth is held in a gap by two crowns placed over abutment teeth. This is a more permanent option than dentures and provides a natural looking replacement.

These are only a few of our most common cosmetic dentistry procedures that can improve the appearance and health of your teeth. Most of our treatments are minimally invasive and do not cause discomfort during or after the process. We use appropriate anesthetics as needed to offer you the most comfortable visit possible. You will be pleased with your improved smile and quick results. Our quality materials, products, and procedures provide long-lasting and beautiful teeth resilient to staining and wear.

Dental Crowns That Keep Your Teeth and Gums From Graying

Some dental crowns make gums and surrounding teeth look gray. If you have not experienced it first hand, you may have noticed it on others. When graying occurs, it is unsightly, noticeable, and disappointing. Dental crowns are supposed to keep your natural teeth looking and functioning naturally, so a graying area seems to defeat the purpose. Visit our office for quality dental crowns that keep your teeth and gums from graying so you do not have to worry about this happening to you at a later time.

Graying Can Happen From Fillings or Dental Crowns

Unsightly silver fillings and crowns were once used with no question. Nowadays, they are used less often, but still placed by some dentists. Not only do these fillings and crowns have toxic mercury in them, but the metal also bleeds and ends up staining your surrounding teeth and gums an ugly color. Tooth-colored fillings and crowns are now becoming more of the standard for restorations. With new technology and materials, these tooth-colored options last a long time that is competitive to the durability of former fillings and crowns. If you currently have silver fillings, we can replace them with our dental crowns.

What Dental Crowns are Used For

Dental crowns are used so often that it is necessary to find someone who provides quality tooth-colored crowns made of durable ceramic materials that last for years and resist staining. If you are not sure if you need dental crowns or already have them, we will explain what crowns are used for. Like fillings, dental crowns are often a restorative option for decayed or damaged teeth. Unlike fillings, dental crowns provide more coverage and protection for larger areas of damage. Sometimes fillings do not provide enough protection, so a dental crown will be used on a tooth that had a large cavity. These are the most common uses for dental crowns:

Restore a decayed tooth that cannot support a filling
Attach and anchor dental bridges (tooth replacements) in place
Cover a dental implant (tooth replacement) to provide function and aesthetic value
Protect weakened teeth that are susceptible to more decay and damage
Cover a fractured or chipped tooth
Cover a discolored or misshapen tooth.

The uses for dental crowns are even more numerous than this brief list. If you need dental crowns, you are not alone. Single dental crowns are the most common restorative procedure, according to the American College of Prosthodontists. Being so common, if you do not visit the right dentist, you could end up with dental crowns that contain metals that will gray your gums and teeth. Do not allow this to happen, instead make an appointment with our office today.

We can provide you with the most attractive dental crowns available. Our dental crowns will never stain your teeth and will be completely biocompatible with your gums, so you never experience irritation or discomfort. The process of placing a dental crown does not take long and is minimally invasive, especially when compared to your other options if you let a damaged tooth remain unprotected. 

Your Gorgeous Dental Veneers Can Last for Years to Come

Dental veneers have made their mark on the world of cosmetic dentistry by providing patients with a great way to replace tooth enamel that has become damaged, discolored, or otherwise unattractive. For many people, this is a long-term solution since the veneer will be cemented in place and hence is not something that can be removed very easily. As a result, many of our patients want to know how long dental veneers typically last without needing to be repaired or replaced. The answer to this question is usually at least 10 years, but there are a sufficient number of factors that come in to play, which can influence that number in either direction. There have been numerous studies on this exact issue as many cosmetic and other dentists want a clear answer on how long their patients can expect dental veneers to last. One study conducted on the longevity of dental veneers found the following. In 96 percent of the participants, we found the veneers lasted a minimum of five to six years. This group was overlapped with a second group of 93 percent, whose dental veneers lasted between 10 and 11 years. A third significant group found that their dental veneers lasted between 12 and 13 years, accounting for 91 percent of the studied population. After 13 years, we found a small drop off in longevity, with only 71 percent of the participants reporting that their dental veneers lasted between 15 and 16 years. Even with these kinds of odds, it is relatively safe to say that your dental veneers will last at least 10 years as long as you take good care of them.

When considering dental veneers, in terms of longevity, it is important to look at the whole picture. This means that you have to be willing to understand that there is a great deal of human interference that can cause the veneers to fail earlier than they should. The two leading causes of failure, as recorded in studies, have a direct correlation with how people treat their teeth. Teeth are not tools and should not be used as such, since treating them in this calloused manner can damage the enamel and cause the dental veneer to fracture or crack. We have found that in more than 45 percent of cases where the dental veneer failed, there was a fracture involved. This means that the person was doing something with their teeth that they should not have been or were placing undue pressure on the tooth. Additionally, there is 28 percent of dental veneers that failed because they had a crack, again a manifestation of some kind of physical trauma placed on the veneers. It is up to you, as the user, to ensure that you are not putting undue pressure on either your teeth or your dental veneers.

The other area where you can impact how long your dental veneers last is by making sure that you have great oral hygiene. In up to 20 percent of cases, we find that bad oral hygiene leads to veneer loss.

Orthodontics  >  Family Dentistry

How a Dentist for Kids and Our Family Dentistry Office Uses Antibiotics

Being a dentist for kids has given us the opportunity to work with some of the most modern and most tested methods to help you prevent or cure diseases in our family dentistry office. Among these tools, one of the most powerful we have is antibiotics. Since 1928, with the discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming, antibiotics have made a huge impact on how we treat, cure, and even perceive bacterial infections in the mouth. One of the things we are very cognizant of when treating any condition, including a bacterial infection is that there is a holistic approach that should be taken. When we are treating you at your family dentist, we want to take things slowly unless there is an emergency and make sure that every treatment option we present is something both effective and measured. Recently, there has been an alarming increase in the number of cases across the spectrum of medical disciplines in the number of bacterial infections that are resistant to antibiotics. While it is true that antibiotics came along and gave us a huge weapon against infections, it is important to make sure any cure is not overused, which is why we have decided to take a much more careful approach to the use of antibiotics, working with you and your body to ensure that we use all measures at our disposal. Often, we find many myths and urban legends associated with antibiotics that we have to dispel; here are a few of our most common.

A dentist for kids has to educate their patients about things that are true and things that are not. The most common myth we run into is the idea that antibiotics actually cure patients. The reality is that patients cure themselves, with a heavy dose of help from the antibiotics. In fact, the only thing that antibiotics do is to help reestablish the balance between the body's own antibodies and the invading infection. In our family dentistry office, we know that over 60 perfect of infections that people face are healed by their own body without any need of assistance. This is because the human body knows exactly how to fight an invader. The reason why this myth is often a problem is because people want to believe that the antibiotics their family dentist can provide them with is actually a miracle drug, since they know that when they take it, they feel better. What is important to remember is that while antibiotics help, there are many ways to fight an infection more naturally.

There are a few myths that have no basis in reality, and yet are firmly believed by patients. One of these is the idea that antibiotics have to be taken in some kind of set ritual. The reality is that treating an infection is an inexact science. As a dentist for kids we have learned what to expect from different infections on a baseline, which allows us to prescribe an antibiotic that is more than sufficient to overcome this particular infection, there is no exact way of knowing how long it would take to cure an infection of any kind.

Dentist  >  General Dentist

We Can Provide You With an Implant Restoration to Save You Time and Money

We can provide you with an excellent implant restoration if your crown has worn down. Our implant restorations save you time and money and provide you with the aesthetic improvements you are looking for, as well as the appropriate day-to-day function you expect from a tooth replacement. If you have lost a tooth or more than one tooth, dental implants are a great tooth replacement option to consider. The implant is actually an artificial tooth root that provides permanency for the actual tooth replacement. If you have ever received a dental implant, you know how effective they are at providing the necessary functions you were missing like chewing, speaking, and smiling, as well as good oral health.

When you receive a dental implant, the crown is the only part you can see. The dental implant is a post located under your gum line in your jaw. The crown is the tooth-colored, tooth-shaped portion above the gum line that you use every day. A dental implant can last a lifetime since it is surgically implanted into the jawbone, but the crown that covers it often does not last as long as the implant root for natural reasons like everyday use.

Since it is stabilized and held in place by a permanent structure like an implant, a crown covering provides excellent support for chewing and speaking, and it has a natural-looking appearance. Unfortunately, the materials that crowns are made of are not quite as strong as the titanium that is used for the implant. With time and consistent use, your crown may begin to deteriorate or shrink. When this occurs, we can provide you with an implant restoration that will save you time and money. There is no reason for you to have the entire implant replaced, only the visible crown. Often dentists will claim it is necessary to remove the post in order to effectively replace the visible portion of your restoration. We can replace your crown without performing an extensive procedure that removes the post and costs you more money and a longer healing time.

In most cases, your restoration will be attached to the implant by a screw or dental cement. This design makes it easy for us to disassemble the crown from the implant in a minimally invasive fashion that doesn't require a recovery period. In some cases, the screws that hold your crown on to your implant can loosen. We can easily tighten or replace screws that are not functioning properly.

The materials we use for implant restoration are durable and stain resilient. We will match them to your surrounding teeth for the most natural appearance. We guarantee our implant restorations will last for years and will provide you with a beautiful smile. If your dental implant feels loose, or if it cracks or gets worn down, visit our office for the quickest and most affordable implant restoration. Our quality procedures will give you the working teeth you need that are nearly as permanent as your actual implant.

Orthodontics  >  Dental Crowns

Habits to Avoid to Keep Your Orthodontics Treatment on Schedule

We use orthodontics to straighten our patients' teeth and to align their jaw. If you are tired of having a crooked smile, call and schedule an examination. We can physically examine your teeth and take x-rays to determine their position and then discuss the various options available to you. Whether you decide to get traditional metal braces with brackets and wires or you use clear aligners to straighten your teeth, they operate using the same principle. Pressure is applied to specific teeth to move them into position gradually. When you are ready to get started, we will provide you with specific instructions to follow so your treatment plan can stay on schedule.

We have found there are a few habits that can delay your treatment plan and cause you to need orthodontics longer. Here are those you should avoid:

Chewing on ice. In the summer, ice might be good to cool you off, but it is terrible for your teeth, especially when wearing braces or aligners. Ice can cause your brackets and wires to move out of place or break. It can also cause your aligners to crack. Avoid chewing on anything not edible, so you can keep your treatment plan on schedule.

Missing oral hygiene. It is always important to brush and floss your teeth, but even more so while undergoing an orthodontics treatment. If you are wearing braces, food and plaque can become trapped around your brackets and in between your teeth more easily. If you are wearing aligners and fail to brush your teeth after eating, you can also be trapping food and bacteria. To prevent cavities, infection, and a delay in your treatment, brush your teeth every time you eat.

Skipping your appointments. We recommend you keep up with your office visits because it is important for keeping everything on track. If you miss your appointments, it will be difficult for us to identify if anything is not moving like it should or if adjustments need to be made. Visiting our office on a regular schedule will allow us to make any incremental changes as they are necessary, so you can keep your teeth moving appropriately.

Grinding your teeth. If you grind your teeth at night, you could chip or crack your natural teeth and your restorations. This can cause you to need to have your teeth fixed, delaying your treatment and prolonging your total treatment time. Additionally, grinding your teeth can lead to jaw, face, and neck pain, so it is important to wear a night guard if you are grinding your teeth on a regular basis.

As a provider of orthodontics, we can provide you with a variety of tips on how to keep your teeth moving into the right positions and keep your treatment plan on time and on schedule. If you have any concerns along the way, let us know so we can help you get the beautiful smile you are looking for.

Implant Restoration  >  Dental Crowns

Visit Our General Dentist Office for a Positive Dental Experience

As a general dentist, one of the things we get to do is talk about things many other dentists will avoid. Today, we want to talk about something that is a common challenge, which your general dentist can help you to overcome: fear! Fear of the dentist is one of the most common phobias in the world, and it is as widespread as the science of general dentistry itself. In every place there is a general dentist office, you will find people who are afraid of it. Right here in America, we have a huge population of people who know they should visit the dentist to avoid problems with their teeth, but are too stressed out by the idea to do so. Twenty-six percent of people in a recent study fell into this category of being too afraid to get the treatment they needed and would only go in to see a general dentist if they were facing an emergency situation. In addition to this, there are the people who do visit the dentist, but are also plagued by anxiety. Between 9 percent and 20 percent of dental patients admit to having mild to severe anxiety about visiting their dentist. Many of these patients are worried because of the length of time since their last visit and not knowing what condition we might find their teeth in, or what remedies might be in order to bring their teeth back to perfect condition.

How a general dentist can help you fight your dental fears

All of these fears are perfectly normal and something that a general dentist deals with on a daily basis. We have discovered that the best way to fight fear is to give you tools to understand the fear and come up with ways to overcome them. Three things that work well to help take away concerns you may have about a dentist visit are as follows. First, you need to identify what exactly it is that you are afraid of. When you know what you are afraid of, it takes away the overbearing concern of the dentist office. Some people are afraid of needles, others have a fear that the visit will cause them pain, and still others are reluctant to give up control as they may have to do in a dental chair. Once we isolate a fear, we can work with or around it to make sure you are comfortable. Second, you should work with us to educate yourself about the things we do, the vast lengths we go through to ensure your safety and comfort, and understand the procedures and tools from a layman's perspective. A general dentist is happy to explain and educate because we know that the more you know, the less likely you are to be afraid. Finally, and this is the tough one for many, we ask our patients to get into the habit of seeing the general dentist at least two times each year for regularly scheduled examinations and cleanings. This builds up a level of familiarity, which also takes away fear and creates a relationship of trust between you and your dentist that we can build on should you need something more intense than plaque removal.

Orthodontics  >  Cosmetic Dentistry

Common Dental Myths Busted by Our Dentist Office

As a local dentist office, we are asked many questions about oral health. It is normal for people to come in with a health condition that needs to be addressed and was brought on by misinformation. Myths tend to circulate from time to time and cause confusion when they do. Some have been around for generations, and as a local dentist, we are always trying to combat them so our patients can be educated and informed. We encourage you to ask questions when you visit our dental office so we can shed light on any oral health issues that you are dealing with or curious about. In the meantime, here are a few common myths and the truth about oral health.

Myth #1: Flossing is not important.

The Truth – In our dentist office, we stress the importance of flossing because it is the best way to fight gum disease on a daily basis. When you eat, food particles can become trapped in between your teeth and plaque can start to form. Plaque is the sticky substance that develops when the bacteria in your mouth colonize on your teeth. Brushing will remove most of it, but flossing gets into the places where your toothbrush cannot. The problem is that if you do not floss, the plaque can become trapped, and you could develop gum disease. If you do not like to use traditional floss, buy a flossing tool at the store and use it once a day to improve your oral health.

Myth #2: Using a hard toothbrush will give me the best clean.

The Truth – You are actually more likely to get the best possible clean with an electric or battery-operated toothbrush. However, if you do not have one, we recommend that you use a soft toothbrush instead. We can teach you how to use it in our dentist office, so you get the best possible clean without irritating your teeth, something that can happen with a hard toothbrush.

Myth #3: Baby teeth do not matter.

The Truth – This is one of the most dangerous myths because it leads many parents to neglect the health of their children's teeth. The truth is that baby teeth can experience decay just like adult teeth, making it important to brush them twice a day and visit a dentist for annual teeth cleanings. Baby teeth need to remain in place until the adult teeth are ready to come in, because they hold a space for the permanent adult teeth to go, as well as make it possible to develop clear speech patterns and smile boldly.

Myth #3: Root canals are painful.

The Truth – When you visit our dental office, we can remove the infection from your tooth using a root canal. This is a standard procedure we perform on a regular basis, and we do so without causing patients any discomfort. We can provide you with medication so you do not feel anything other than slight pressure. Afterward, you will feel significantly better than before your root canal.

Family Dentistry  >  General Dentist

The Different Types of Dental Crowns You Can Use

Dental crowns are one of those staples that we use to repair teeth. They can correct a large number of problems, which is why a lot of time and innovation has been invested in making sure that they continue to improve. Full porcelain crowns are very popular, and many people prefer them as a natural-looking solution. While this may be true for some patients, there is also no such thing as a one size fits all solution in dental crowns. Different materials have different pros and cons, which means that you must select the one that is the best fit for you and gives you the best results. Most of the time our patients do not know that we still use different materials to make the crown or which one they should choose.

Using porcelain dental crowns has become almost a given in many cases. This is because porcelain has qualities, which make it ideal for replacing or repairing teeth. From an aesthetic point of view porcelain dental crowns look exactly like enamel. In fact, they even feel like enamel to the tongue, which makes them very popular. In addition to this, porcelain dental crowns take on a lot of the same qualities as your naturally occurring enamel. For example, porcelain crowns are very hard which makes them extremely durable and long lasting. Another benefit to porcelain is that it conducts heat poorly. For you that means that immediately after we have placed the crowns, your teeth will not be quite as sensitive as they would have been using a metal crown base. The enamel-like qualities of porcelain are also a disadvantage in some areas. Being like enamel, the porcelain is brittle and given to cracking if you are not careful with how you use your teeth. The hardness, while a benefit in terms of longevity, can work against you by wearing down the opposing teeth.

Gold dental crowns are also extremely popular. While they have gone down in popularity since the invention of porcelain crowns, gold has always been used for making them. Gold has a number of qualities that makes it extremely viable for creating dental crowns. Gold, when mixed with metals like palladium, titanium, and silver, is extremely strong which makes the crowns last for longer. At the same time, gold is soft enough to not wear down the opposing teeth quite as quickly as porcelain can. Another benefit is that gold can be bonded to the tooth using a glass ionomer, which causes less sensitivity in many patients than the techniques used in full porcelain bonding. While gold has advantages, there are also some serious disadvantages. The most obvious of these is the fact that you cannot use gold on a prominent tooth, because of its coloring. Additionally, gold is a very good conductor of heat, making it increasingly likely that you will have more sensitivity to heat and cold on a dental crown repaired with gold.

Most of our patients select tooth-colored dental crowns, but we can discuss all options with you during your appointment.

Dental Veneers  >  Cosmetic Dentistry

Learn How an Implant Restoration Can Help You

Using an implant restoration, to replace a tooth that has been lost, is a technique that has survived the test of time. Using dental implants has been around since the very dawn of dentistry, however, there is a growing awareness and demand for implant restorations sweeping across the country. With over 3 million people having successfully received the restoration, more people are starting to realize that they would rather have a permanent replacement to their teeth than dentures or bridges. The implant works on a simple idea. This being that the root is the core structural support of the tooth. When we replace the root with a dental implant, the implant creates a stable base for us to place a crown on. The implant, which is typically made of titanium, is able to form a mutually beneficial bond with the jawbone in much the same manner as a natural root would. This helps the newly implanted tooth last longer and be more durable.

The process of placing dental implants has gone through a number of changes, including how people perceive it. For the longest time implant restoration surgeries were viewed by people, and more importantly by insurance carriers, as strictly aesthetic in nature. It is understandable how implants could have gotten this reputation. Dental implants give people back teeth that look, feel, and act real. For patients who have lost teeth, getting back teeth that are so realistic that no one can tell the difference, is a huge victory. It brings back confidence, a certain standard of living, and the ability to experience life normally again. All of these have contributed to people wanting perfect teeth, and looking to an implant restoration to achieve this goal. It has also lead to the idea that implants are purely cosmetic in nature, which is simply not the case. As science is catching up with the narrative, we know that implants are not only aesthetic but that they go a long way to helping with facial structure, are critical for restoring a jawbone that may have been going through resorption, and even have an effect on people who have an issues with their bite.

Not only is the dental implant restoration growing in popularity, it has not even begun to make the impact it can as large segments of the population are still unaware of the benefits of having an implant placed. The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons found that there is a huge demand for this technology, once people start to realize that it can restore their way of life. The study showed that 69% of all adults between the ages of 35 and 44 have lost at least one tooth. The causes of this were varied and ranged from diseases to accidents, from tooth decay to a failed root canal. When you start thinking about the fact that there are over 15 million adults in the U.S. who are still using antiquated technologies like dentures and bridges for tooth loss, it become apparent how many people dental implants can help - including you.

Dental Veneers  >  Cosmetic Dentistry

What You Can Expect from a Visit to Our Family Dentistry Office

In our family dentistry office, we are passionate about oral health.  We know how important teeth are to your ability to engage in normal daily activities.  Without your teeth, you would be unable to enjoy your favorite meal, eat the latest dish at a new restaurant in town, or even speak clearly when chatting on your cell phone.  Your teeth are integral to virtually everything that you do, even if they are rarely thought about.  In fact, few people think about their teeth unless it is time to brush them.  As long as your teeth and gums are healthy, that is possible.  If you develop a cavity, infection or gum disease, it no longer is.  Our job is to help to keep your teeth healthy so that you don't have to think about them.  To do so, we invite you to visit our dental office twice a year so that we can remove the plaque and bacteria that build up on your teeth over time.

Philosophy of Care: Our Family Dentistry Promise
We promise that when you visit our dental office, you will receive expert level dental care from a team of people that will listen to your needs.  Everyone from the person scheduling your appointment, to those cleaning your teeth, to our dentist are all committed to listening to your concerns.  This is critical to our approach because most oral health problems can be corrected using more than one method.  That means that which one we select is just as much influenced by your lifestyle goals as it is your health.  For example, if you want to fix a tooth that has been chipped, there are several things to take into consideration.  If you are looking to find a solution that will offer the best long-term protection, you should use a dental crown that is tooth-colored for a natural appearance.  If, however, you need a solution right that moment, dental bonding is the best potential procedure for you.  We need to understand the nuances of what you are looking for in order to make this level of recommendation.  By taking the time to listen, we can get it right the first time.

The Procedures We Perform in our Family Dentistry Office
In our dental office, we provide preventative care, cosmetic dentistry, and restorative dentistry.  That means that we can start by cleaning your teeth and providing fluoride treatments while also being able to improve the appearance of your teeth.  We can do so by offering a teeth whitening treatment to remove stains and brighten them, dental veneers to close gaps in between your teeth and make them appear uniform, dental crowns to protect teeth while covering dark stains and more.  We can even replace your missing teeth with dental bridges or dental implants.  Given the diversity of the solutions that we offer, there is virtually no health or appearance issue with your smile that we cannot correct.  To learn more, we invite you to call and schedule your dental exam today.

Dentist  >  General Dentist

Keeping Teeth Healthy During an Orthodontics Treatment

Proper teeth and gum care are essential during an orthodontics treatment. When you have braces or an aligner, your teeth are more vulnerable to decay, and your gums are more vulnerable to disease. Take these liabilities seriously by learning how to clean your teeth and gums correctly and thoroughly during this time of dental improvement. Not only will learning proper dental care help to prevent decay during your orthodontics treatment, but it will also create an excellent oral hygiene habit that will extend for the rest of your life. This will help to prevent emergency dental visits and unnecessary financial expenses in the future.
While you are having your teeth straightened, it is important to maintain a proper diet. When you eat certain things, you increase your risk of decay. You could also get uncomfortable food particles stuck in your braces that are hard to remove. For aligners, you should watch what you eat because certain foods may cause bacteria growth within your aligner while you are wearing it, and your aligner could get cloudy or stained. As a general rule, don't eat anything hard, fibrous, with high acidity, or anything sticky like candy or gum. Also, try to avoid sugary or acidic drinks like soda. Always remove your aligner when you eat and drink and as soon as possible, brush or floss following meals.
During your orthodontics treatment, it is important to continue brushing and flossing twice daily. We also encourage you to brush and floss more often. This will help you prevent decay, bacteria growth, and it will ensure that your gums stay healthy and disease free.
Flossing: With braces, you should continue to floss no matter how complicated it may seem. You can get flossers created for braces and an appliance called a proxy brush that is shaped for use with braces. Proxy brushes allow you to insert the flosser above and below your braces line for optimal cleaning. These should not, however, be used as a substitute for brushing. Always brush following flossing with a fluoride toothpaste. Regular floss can also be used by sticking an end above your wire and pulling back and forth with both of your hands.
Flossing with an aligner is much like flossing before alignment, except you should floss more often. Floss in the morning and evening and after every meal as frequently as you are able. Never allow food particles to remain in between your teeth while you are wearing your aligner as this will encourage bacteria growth and decay.
Brushing: Brush your teeth after flossing with any orthodontics treatment. You should brush your teeth more frequently while your teeth are being aligned because you have a greater chance of plaque build-up. With aligners, remove the aligner and clean it with warm water so that it won't harbor its own grime or bacteria.
Keep these cleaning methods in mind throughout your orthodontics treatment, and do them often. Don't let your teeth suffer from decay during your treatment so that they remain healthy and beautiful. Visit our office for more information regarding your dental care.

Family Dentistry  >  Implant Restoration

The New Style of Dental Veneers

Most people think of dental veneers as a purely cosmetic endeavor, as a way to have a beautiful smile and not much else. The truth is that there are two very distinct uses for dental veneers. While it is also true that, in either case, the use of dental veneers makes your smile brighter and gives you better-looking teeth, the applications are slightly beyond being purely cosmetic. How many people ever consider that they might have a dental emergency, where they have broken or chipped a tooth? The answer is virtually no one. It is important for you to realize that if you have had an accident that has caused your teeth trauma, you need to get your tooth repaired immediately.

A broken or chipped tooth can result in you biting or damaging your lips or your gums, which can lead to an infection and further trauma. A cracked tooth provides an ideal breeding ground for bacterial infections and plaque to build up. Even if you can avoid these situations, a tooth cannot repair itself. Over time the tooth will continue to sustain damage, eventually you will lose the tooth. Virtually no one realizes that the best way to fix a tooth in this situation when it is not sufficiently damaged to warrant a full crown is to use a veneer. As such there are two kinds of patients that use dental veneers.

Today, couture dental veneers have become the fastest growing trend in dental veneers. The technology sprung from an idea that veneers should be made to look a lot more like actual teeth, with some of the same defects and flaws that are common in natural teeth. As such there is a growing market demand for veneers that have some color defects and are placed to mimic the challenges of normal teeth. With a growing market, 600,000 in 2006 alone, there is a huge demand for veneers, especially couture veneers.

Regardless of whether dental veneers are being used for emergency replacements or carefully thought out esthetic improvements to the teeth, veneers are now able to recreate your teeth with slight and measured improvements. Some of the techniques we employ to make veneers look extremely realistic are shading them to be slightly discolored around the gum line, attaching them at a slight angle so that there is some overlap among the teeth, and even using natural light to give them a luminescent quality common to natural teeth. By shading the dental veneers, shaping them, placing them, and giving them just the sufficient translucency, we can mimic your original teeth almost perfectly. Naturally there are some improvements made so that your veneers look better.

Whether you have had an accident and need dental veneers to replace the enamel of a badly chipped tooth, or if you simply have decided that you want better-looking teeth, couture veneers give you the option of an improved smile. The one word of caution, when you are selecting couture dental veneers is that they can be slightly more expensive than the traditional dentures. 

Teeth Whitening and Science - What You Should Know

Modern teeth whitening products are incredibly effective and they have to be.  Today, we have access to many different types of foods and tend to consume large quantities of things that can and often will influence the color of your teeth. From people who like to eat healthily and eat large quantities of berries to folks who like to drink that first perfect cup of coffee the morning, it is incredibly common and easy to stain teeth.

Over 68% of people who drink coffee in America claim to need to drink at least one cup within the first hour of waking up. This makes many of us feel “awake and normal”. Naturally this means that your coffee drinking is taking place shortly before or shortly after your morning oral hygiene routine. Coffee is rich in chromogens, which stain and discolor teeth so the fact that 54% of the adult population of the United States will partake in at least one cup every day, bought from one of the over 53 thousand coffee shops dotting the country, means that there is a tremendous risk for most people of ruining their perfectly white teeth. Access to inexpensive and effective teeth whitening has improved because of the demand for such services, possibly due to the proliferation of a laundry list of food and drinks that stain teeth.

The process of teeth whitening is a chemical process that depends heavily on the interaction and reaction between the whitening gel we use and the natural organic chemical composition of your mouth. The composition of your teeth's organic makeup creates a surface that reflects natural light. All substances do this, reflecting the light at a certain degree which makes the brain see them as a specific color. With teeth, the more colorless the teeth are, the brighter white they appear to the brain. We use a peroxide based formula to achieve this. The peroxide is designed to penetrate quickly below the surface of the enamel, essentially working from the inside out. There it releases free radicals which make the tooth go more colorless, thereby achieving the goal of whiter teeth. Stains and discoloration distort the way the light is reflected and are chemically removed during the teeth whitening process through oxidization. There are two basic types of whitening agents available, one over the counter, and the other you can only find in a dentist office.

The solutions you can buy over the counter are based on hydrogen peroxide, which is considered more stable for a longer shelf life. These formulas have between 3% and 20% hydrogen peroxide. The formulas that we use for teeth whitening is based on carbamide peroxide, and the strengths vary between 15% and 43%. Carbamide also contains 35% hydrogen peroxide, so you are getting more hydrogen peroxide in our solution as well. This means that the results will be more dramatic when you have your teeth whitened with us.  In either case, it is advisable to consult with a dentist before whitening your teeth, in the event that there are some underlying challenges with your teeth that should be addressed before teeth whitening begins.

Dental Veneers  >  Cosmetic Dentistry