General Treatment
Our practice can provide a wide range of dental services for General Treatment. Our emphasis is on total preventive care for our patients. Total care begins with regular hygiene visits, regular check-ups, and continued home oral health routines.
Our practice also provides the highest-quality services for restoring mouths that have been damaged by dental disease and injury and common problems that require cosmetic dentistry. Our primary goal for our patients is to achieve and maintain optimum oral health through advances in techniques and by maintaining regular dental exams.
Fillings
The concept of a “filling” is replacing your tooth structure that is damaged due to decay or fracture with a material to restore the tooth’s function and esthetics. Advances in modern dental materials and techniques increasingly offer new ways to create more pleasing natural-looking smiles.
We offer state-of-the-art tooth-colored resin (composite) or porcelain materials to fit your esthetic needs. A composite filling usually requires only one visit, during which the tooth is prepared and restored. An advantage of composite fillings, as compared with other dental restorations, is that they require less removal of healthy tooth structure to hold the filling in place. This is due to the composite’s ability to bond to the natural tooth. Composites are also preferable for cosmetic reasons. Other materials may be recommended if there is a large decayed area or the tooth is subject to heavy chewing forces. Some people may experience some sensitivity to hot and cold temperatures in the newly filled tooth for a few days or as long as a week. If the sensitivity continues beyond a week, contact your dentist.
Other types of white fillings include composite inlays and porcelain inlays and onlays. Inlays and onlays are used to restore teeth that are significantly damaged by decay or trauma. White fillings may be more costly than other dental materials, but most patients prefer these natural-looking restorations. White fillings, like other dental materials, may require periodic replacement. If the edge of the filling eventually pulls away from the tooth, bacteria can get in between the filling and the tooth and can lead to decay. Regular dental check-ups are important because they allow the dentist to detect a problem in the early stage.
Root Canals
A root canal is a procedure that extracts the decayed pulp (nerve and blood supply) from the central part of the tooth, reshapes the canal, and replaces it with a strengthening filler. Root canals require the expertise of an endodontist in most cases.
Tooth Extractions
In some cases due to severe decay, crowding, or periodontal disease teeth cannot be saved. They may require extraction. Some extractions may require the expertise of an oral surgeon.
Crowns
A crown is a permanent covering that fits over an original tooth that is either decayed, damaged, or cracked. Crowns are made of a variety of different materials such as porcelain, gold, or porcelain fused to gold. Porcelain generally has the most natural appearance
The treatment plan for a patient receiving a crown involves:
- Numbing the tooth to remove the decay in or around it.
- Re-sculpturing the tooth to provide an ideal fit for the crown.
- Making an impression of your teeth in order to create a custom-made crown (usually takes one to two weeks).
- Making a temporary crown out of acrylic resin and fitting it onto the tooth during the interim period when the permanent custom-made crown is being created.
- Applying the permanent crown (when received from the lab) by removing the temporary crown and fitting the permanent one onto the tooth.
- After ensuring that the crown has the proper look and fit, the dentist cements it into place.
This process generally consists of a minimum of two-to-three visits over a three-to-four week period.
Once the procedure is completed, proper dental hygiene, including daily brushing and flossing, is required to maintain healthy, bacteria-free teeth, gums and crowns. This helps in the prevention of gum disease.
Bridges
A bridge is a dental device that fills a space that a tooth previously occupied. A bridge may be necessary to:
- Prevent shifting of the teeth that can lead to bite (occlusion) problems and/or jaw problems and resultant periodontal disease.
- Replace a missing tooth and therefore restore function and esthetics.
- Safeguard the integrity of existing teeth and help maintain a healthy, vibrant smile.
There are three main types of bridges, namely:
- Fixed bridge- this is the most popular and consists of a filler tooth that is attached to two crowns, which fit over the existing teeth and hold the bridge in place.
- The “Maryland” bridge is commonly used to replace missing front teeth and consists of a filler that is attached to metal bands that are bonded to the abutment teeth. The metal bands consist of a white-colored composite resin that matches the existing tooth color.
- The Cantilever bridge is often used when there are teeth on only one side of the span. A typical three-unit cantilever bridge consists of two crowned teeth positioned next to each other on the same side of the missing tooth space. The filler tooth is then connected to the two crowned teeth, which extend into the missing tooth space or end.