PREVENTIVE CARE

Prevention is always better than treatment. By actively preventing disease and decay through regular home care, professional dental cleanings and regular exams, you will maintain a healthy, beautiful smile. In addition, effective prevention can help you avoid costly treatments in the future to remove decay, restore teeth and treat gum disease. Regular prevention is truly your best investment.

We are committed to optimizing conservation of tooth structure and surrounding tissue. We emphasize prevention by controlling the process of tooth decay and gum disease. Routine dental check ups, which include an examination of the entire mouth are essential in the early detection of a potential problem.

Includes routine cleanings, oral cancer screening, fluoride treatment, sealants, night guards and athletic guards.

ROUTINE CLEANINGS

Professional cleanings (dental prophylaxis) performed by a certified dental hygienist from the foundation for preventing gum disease and tooth decay. In a professional cleaning, our hygienist will:

• Remove plaque from the teeth — Plaque is a sticky substance that forms in the mouth from food, saliva and bacteria. Plaque sticks to teeth and causes tooth decay and gum disease.
• Remove calculus (tarter) above the gum line — Calculus is plaque that has hardened on the tooth surface and is difficult to remove. (Calculus below the gum line indicates gum disease and requires a different procedure to remove it.)
• Polish and remove stains from teeth

ORAL CANCER SCREENINGS

A thorough screening is conducted during routing checkups for oral cancer.  If in the examination, a suspicious looking red or white spot is found, we may administer a new, painless brush biopsy test to determine if there are any potentially pre-cancerous or cancerous cells present or suggest another appropriate treatment option. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, early detection is key to increasing the survival rate for oral cancer and plays a significant role in patients’ success in fighting the disease.

FLUORIDE TREATMENT

If needed, professionally administered topical fluorides, such as gels or varnishes, are applied by the dentist and left on for about four minutes, usually during a cleaning treatment.  For patients with a high risk of dental cavities, the dentist may prescribe a special gel for daily home use to be applied with or without a mouth tray for up to six weeks.

SEALANTS

Sealants help protect the chewing surfaces of back teeth from decaying. Normal pits and grooves on the chewing surfaces of back teeth can trap food that can’t be removed by brushing or washed out by water or saliva. A sealant is a tough, plastic material designed to bond (stick) to tooth enamel. These clear or tooth colored sealants are painted onto the tooth surface to “seal” the pits and grooves and protect against decay. They are generally applied to children’s first permanent back teeth. They can also be useful for adults in certain situations. Sealants are an excellent way to protect chewing surfaces of teeth from decay. They are a much better financial investment than treating decay after it has started. Sealants are not permanent. They generally last about five years with normal wear, but can wear off or chip off earlier in certain instances. Also, sealants do not prevent decay between teeth or the onset of gum disease, so regular home care and dental visits are important.

ATHLETIC GUARDS

All mouth guards are not created equal. Depending upon the design and materials used, mouthpieces will vary in fit, protection, ease of maintenance and longevity. We offer custom-made mouth guards. Formed from a cast model of your teeth, these custom-made guards are designed to cover all the teeth and are shown in the literature to be the best type of protection. These mouth guards can cushion falls and blows to the chin. Custom-made mouth guards may be slightly more expensive than commercially produced mouthpieces, but they offer the best possible fit and protection and are the most comfortable.

NIGHT GUARDS

Clenching your teeth while you sleep and during the day is the result of some of the strongest muscles in your body tensing-up (up to 6 to 20 time more intensely then non-sufferers), which can cause morning and tension headaches and even damage surrounding joints, teeth and other muscles.  A custom made night guard can relieve that stress on your teeth and joints.

BOTOX & FILLER

Botox-Cosmetic

SIX MONTH SMILES

DENTAL IMPLANTS

Implants are the modern choice for tooth replacement. Dental implants have helped hundreds of thousands of people regain the function and confidence they once took for granted. Whether you’re missing a single tooth or require a complete set of teeth, with dental implants, you can laugh, bite and chew just as you would with your natural teeth.

A dental implant is an appliance used to replace the roots of teeth. The implant is surgically attached to the jaw bone and an artificial tooth is attached to the top of the implant, creating a natural looking, undetectable replacement for the missing tooth. In the event that more than one tooth is missing, several implants may provide a base for a series of artificial teeth known as a fixed bridge. Implants can even be used to secure a full set of removable dentures for people who have no remaining natural teeth. This can greatly improve chewing ability and reduce the risk of choking. It generally takes about six months for the surgical implant to heal before the final installation of the artificial tooth or teeth can be finished.

ROOT CANAL THERAPY

If you have been told that a root canal is necessary to save one of your teeth, it is important that you understand why this procedure is necessary and what happens during root canal treatment. This procedure can be done painlessly and is an effective way to treat a tooth that is infected.

Inside each tooth is a pulp chamber that contains the nerves and blood supply for the tooth. When the pulp becomes infected due to decay, fracture or injury to the tooth, the pulp must be removed from the center of the tooth and the canals of each root. Once the infected pulp is removed, the remaining chamber is filled with a rubber-based material to seal it off. All teeth that have had root canal therapy must be protected with a tooth-like artificial covering known as a crown. This is because teeth that have had the pulp removed are more susceptible to fracture. Most patients report that having root canal treatment today is as unremarkable as having a cavity filled.

PERIODONTAL (GUM) TREATMENT

Periodontal disease, called gingivitis in its early stages, is caused by excessive toxic bacteria (found in plaque) that attack your mouth’s soft tissues and bone. Early warning signs of the disease include red, swollen, bleeding gums. If caught early, we can help you reverse the damage or, if detected late, we can use periodontal treatment followed by maintenance procedures to restore your mouth to a healthy, beautiful state.

While there are many forms of gingival and periodontal diseases, the most common types are gingivitis and adult periodontitis:

Gingivitis is the earliest stage, and affects only the gum tissue. At this stage, the disease is still reversible.

Periodontitis is the more advanced stage of periodontal diseases. The gums, bone and other structures that support the teeth become damaged. Teeth can become loose and fall out – or may have to be removed. At this stage, the disease may require more complex treatment to prevent tooth loss. Usually, however, there are no painful symptoms of periodontal disease until it is at a severe stage, so often it goes untreated.

Whoopi Goldberg Shares Her Experience With Gum Disease

TREATMENT OF HEADACHES & TMJ PAIN

If you suffer from a painful and aching jaw. If your teeth are sore and sensitive. If you wake up with a stiff neck. If you suffer from frequent and recurring tension headaches and/or morning headaches then you might find the tension suppression system a big source of relief.

Clenching your teeth during the day or at night can cause headaches and migraines. The NTI Tension Suppression System is a dental device that can help stop headaches, sore jaws, stiff necks, and sensitive teeth. It is a prefabricated polycarbonate device that a dental practitioner retrofits to the patient’s teeth to reduce intensity of involuntary clenching at night while you are asleep. The NTI device may eliminate the need for prescription and over the counter pain medications that you take for morning headache, sore neck, sore jaws, and related pain associated with involuntary clenching of the teeth.