Get those ugly metal fillings out!!

This is patient E.

She didn't like the look of her old metal fillings.

She wanted them out.

So we got her hopped up on some happy gas.

Numbed her up.

And away we went.

All the teeth before.

Individual tooth before.

All the teeth after.

Individual tooth after.

Patient E was very excited to be done with her metal fillings.

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I told you so!!

There is something that I hate to see and hear at my office.

It is to see a parent tell a child "I told you to brush your teeth"

while they are shaking their finger at them.

This phrase is said by parents whose children have cavities

and will need to get their teeth filled.

Now, I am a parent of 5 children myself.

And I am all for natural consequences.

If I tell you to bring a jacket and you don't and you get cold,

well then that is the child's fault and a little cold air won't do any harm.

But the whole scene in the dental office is different.

If we are putting fillings into permanent teeth, then your child

is bound to need fairly extensive work on these teeth later in life.

A tooth that has no filling is MUCH better of long term then

a tooth that has even a small filling that is placed very young.

I know dentistry does not seem like a serious health issue, but it can be.

Its like taking your kids to get immunized.

They cry and say they don't want to.

You then say, "Fine but you'll regret it."

Then 10 years down the road your kids gets some life threatening disease

and you just shake your finger and say "See. Told ya you should

have gotten those immunizations."

You would never do that.

Some things are just too important.

You force your kids to take vitamins.

You make them get their immunizations.

You SHOULD make them brush their teeth.

Either under your supervision or you do it for them when they are young.

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Can too much fluoride kill you?

You bet it can.

But, ANYTHING taken in too great of quantity can kill you!

Take water for instance.

Water is a necessity for life.

However, you drink too much water too quickly and

you will soon find yourself dead from water toxicity.

People take Tylenol for headaches.

Take 3 bottles of it.

You won't be with us much longer.

People take iron supplements.

Take 3 bottles of that stuff.

See how healthy you feel.

And the list can go on and on and on.

ANYTHING that is taken in the improper quantities can harm you.

Fluoride can absolutely have harmful effects.

That is why it is prescribed by a clinician who is trained

on how to prescribe the drug according to a strict set of

guidelines that take into account the area in which a person lives,

their age, their size, what other drugs they are taking, etc. etc.

"All substances are poisons; there is none which is not a poison.

The right dose differentiates a poison..." Paracelsus (1493- 1541)

I give my children and my patients children fluoride supplements.

I would encourage anyone who is nervous about fluoride to read

up on the subject from CREDIBLE sources and then make

whatever decision they feel comfortable with.

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I don't have dental insurance

I have people come into my office all the time with a really bad toothache.

I ask these folks why it is that they didn't come in sooner.

The answer that I get, a lot of the time, is that they didn't have dental insurance.

Now, this answer does have its merits.

Dental insurance does in deed help with the cost of dental care.

However, there is another side the story.

Say you have a small cavity.

This cavity would cost, lets say, $100 to fix.

If you let that small cavity go however, you may need a root canal.

A root canal would cost about $500.

If you needed a crown after the root canal then we need to add another $800.

So what would have cost you $100 will now cost you $1,300.

You still have no insurance but now you do not have a choice to

fix the problem because it is killing you.

The far better solution would be to come in and get the

problem fixed when it is small.

Financial arrangements can easily be made to accommodate anyone

who may be struggling to come up with the funds.

Say time, money, pain, and multiple trips to the dental office.

If there is a problem PLEASE do not put it off.

Your teeth and your wallet will thank you.

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Metal Fillings (amalgam)

Fewer and fewer people are asking this question, but occasionally we still do get it.

Are metal fillings safe?

The answer to this is, yes.

There have been studies done by the American Dental Association

and the Centers for Disease Control that both state that metal fillings

are safe to use.

In fact in certain cases we still use this material.

It is rare however, do to the fact that most people do not want the metal look.

You can go on the internet and find sites that tell you the horrors of amalgam.

But you can find a lot of stuff on the internet that isn't necessarily true.

If you have questions ask your dentist.

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Cosmetic Bonding Case

Case completed this morning.

No shots.

No drilling.

No pain.

30 Minutes.

Before.

After.

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Clear, Removable, Braces.

Everyone calls these types of braces Invisalign.

However, another product is out on the market that

does the exact same thing except less expensive.

This product is called Clear Correct.

The trays are still clear.

Your teeth still move.

You can still take them out.

If you have orthodontic insurance you are still covered.

The bottom line is you simply pay less.

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What is a sealant?

A sealant is a protective covering that is placed over a tooth

so that it is harder for the bacteria to attack it and cause a cavity.

Material is flowed into all of the cracks and grooves to protect

them and then the material is cured to a hard state.

99% of the time the teeth that are

sealed are the 1st and 2nd adult molars.

These teeth come in at ages 6 and 12 respectively.

Any tooth can be sealed but it is typically these two teeth

because they are the most likely to get cavities and they

are the ones the the insurance companies will pay for.

You children don't need sealants but it sure does help.

Adults can get sealants on their back teeth but you will pay for it all yourself.

If you are interested, talk to your dentist.

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But I brush?

Happens everyday.

I tell people they have cavities and they look at me

with this questioning and confused look and say,

"How do I have cavities? I brush my teeth."

This is probably just an eternal battle for me as a dentist.

For a person to say...

"How can I have cavities? I brush"

Is like saying...

"How did my engine overheat? I put water in the radiator."

Good job on the water.

That is a very necessary part of helping keep your engine cool.

However, so is adding oil to the engine itself.

Adding the water is nice but its not enough.

Just as brushing is nice but it is not enough, on its own, to prevent tooth decay.

Moral to the story.

Brush AND Floss

Brush AND Floss

Brush AND Floss

Brush AND Floss

Got it?

Good.

Now have a wonderful day.

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Yet another reason to go to the dentist.

Say someone kidnaps you.

Say they then put an end to your life.

Say they don't want anyone to be able to identify you.

Say they cut off your fingers so no fingerprints can be taken.

Say they then set you on fire so you can't be visually identified.

This may seem extreme but it happens.

If you have been watching the news you will know they have found

about 13 bodies on a beach in New York dumped by a murderer.

So why is this on a dental blog?????

Because, one of the last lines of identification for

otherwise unidentifiable remains is the teeth.

No murderer thinks to take someones teeth out and

they will not typically disintegrate in a fire.

Forensic dentists will do a visual exam of the teeth and x-ray them as well.

They will look at how many teeth you have, which ones are missing,

how many crown you have, how many root canals, how many fillings, etc. etc.

These will all help the police find out who the victim is

and help reunite the body with the family.

And help bring the murderer to justice.

However, if you have not gone to the dentist for years and years no one

will have any records of you. No x-rays, no records of crowns, fillings, or anything.

The more often you go the more exact the records will be.

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How long will it last?

When I inform people that they need a crown due to their

tooth cracking I usually get the same response.

How long will it last if I don't get the crown.

The answer to that is usually the same.

It depends.

Your tooth is cracking because of the pressure being placed upon it during chewing.

Therefore, if you went on an all liquid diet ( thus no longer chewing )

your tooth will last for a long time.

However, if you like to eat nuts, carrots, or anything else that is a

little hard then your tooth could fracture tonight.

There is no way to tell.

If all depends on how you use your teeth.

Cracks will not heal themselves.

They will continue to progress as you use the teeth to chew.

The eventual result will be a fracture.

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Are fluoride supplements important for your child?

In my humble opinion the answer to that is, yes.

Below you will see an artistic rendering of the skull of a child

between the ages of 2-5. The baby teeth are fully

erupted into the mouth and are in white.

The adult teeth, that will erupt later, are in blue.

As you can see the adult teeth are still in the process of forming. At this time the body is looking for the building blocks needed to form strong healthy teeth and placing those building blocks in an appropriate configuration. If the body can not find the proper materials that does not mean that the teeth will not be formed. It simply means that the teeth will be formed in an inferior fashion. The teeth will be more prone to decay and fracture over time.

Fluoride is an important part of the forming tooth.

Whether or not you get enough fluoride naturally is up to you to find out.

Check you local city or county to find out where your water

comes from and what the natural concentrations of fluoride is.

Then check to see if they are adding fluoride to it.

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What are dental implants?

The teeth that you see in your mouth are connected to you by the root of the tooth.

An implant is simply replacing the natural root with an artificial one and then attaching a tooth to the new artificial one.

Implants can replace single teeth, multiple teeth, or be the way of attaching a loose denture in the mouth with a more firm grip.

Almost anyone is a candidate for implants. Certain medical conditions and drugs that people are taking may present problems but other then that implants are getting to be a pretty universal from for replacing missing teeth.

Most insurances cover implants. Occasionally there are some insurances that are still in the dark ages and don't cover implants so you need to check with your particular company first.

There is no dental specialty that is in charge of placing implants. They are done by general dentists, periodontists, and oral surgeons. Just make sure that the person placing your implants can show you some before and after pictures of work they have done and then can adequately explain the procedure you will be going through so that you will fell comfortable with what will be happening in your mouth.

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I cracked my tooth, do I need a crown?

Okay so you, your child, your mom, your brother, etc. etc. just fell face first into something, over something, under something, etc. etc. and broke the corner of your/their front tooth off.

What do you do now?

Well, that depends. Lets break this down into 3 simplified categories.

The nerve of a tooth is in the middle of the tooth.

#1 If you just broke off a small corner of the tooth and it didn't reach the nerve then a simple filling is probably all you would need.

#2 If you broke off a larger corner but still didn't reach the nerve then you more then likely would need a crown.

#3 If you broke your tooth so severely that you got down into the nerve then you will need a root canal AND a crown.

And although all of this may be a traumatic experience don't worry. Your cracked and broken smile can be completely repaired and have you back to being the model you know you were born to be.

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Switching from soda to sports drinks.

I have many patients who have developed bad oral habits over the years.

One of these bad habits is drinking lots of soda pop.

Soda is terrible on your teeth.

I try to get people to stop drinking the stuff as much as I can.

Some folks have decided that they will kick the soda habit by going to something

much more healthy for them.

The stuff they decide to drink instead is sports drinks (gatorade, poweraid, red bull, etc.)

They see the commercials and see professional athletes drinking this stuff and think that it must be good for them.

Not so fast. The following is a study from the university of Iowa. and the results may shock you.

“The University of Iowa researchers covered extracted teeth with nail polish. They left bare two patches on each tooth, one on the enamel and one on the root. Then they dunked the teeth in test tubes filled with regular Coke, Diet Coke, Gatorade, Red Bull, or 100% apple juice. Every five hours, the researchers refreshed the beverages. After 25 hours, they examined the teeth with a microscope. All of the beverages eroded the bare spots on the teeth. But different beverages had significantly different effects. On the enamel, Gatorade was significantly more corrosive than Red Bull and Coke. Red Bull and Coke, in turn, were significantly more corrosive than Diet Coke and apple juice. On the roots of the teeth, Gatorade was more corrosive than Red Bull. Coke, apple juice, and Diet Coke followed in that order.”

So there you have it. People switching from soda pop to sports drinks thinking that they are helping their teeth are actually doing MORE damage to their teeth then before. Be careful what people tell you is better for you. It just may be worse.

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Dental Implants

When we talk to people about implants there is a lot of hesitation because people really do not know what is involved in getting an implant. If your tooth is already gone then its really very simple. If you still have a tooth in the spot where the implant needs to go then things can be a bit more challenging but its still not too bad. Here is a little, 30 second, video that shows an implant procedure.

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When should may baby get his/her first tooth?

There is nothing much cuter then an infants big gummy smile. After a while however, parents start to ask the question, "When are my babies first teeth going to start coming in"?

Below is a chart showing not only when the first teeth will come in but when they will come out as well. The first tooth to come in, is typically, the lower central incisor. The last should be the back molars. A quick way to check and see that your youngster has all of their teeth in is to count them. A full set of baby teeth will equal out to be 10 teeth on the top and a matching 10 teeth on the bottom.

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Technology

It happens all the time.

Someone comes into my office that hasn't been for a long long time. I ask why it is that they have not come for so many years. They reply that they had a bad experience once and that they can't stand the noise of the drill or the feel of the novocaine or something similar to that.

I ask them how long its been and the response comes back that they haven't been in 20 or 30 years.

I then ask them what their cell phone looked like 25 years ago.

After a puzzled look they go on to describe a boxy bulky phone that weighed a ton. I then ask them to describe their personal computer. They go on to talk about floppy disks and commodore 64s.

I then explain that just like in every other area of their life, things move on. Technology advances and things improve. Dentistry of 30 years ago is NOT dentistry of today. I tell them of quieter drills and how we don't use metal fillings anymore and on and on. The real kicker comes in when I tell them that we haven't used novocaine in over 20 years! I don't even know if you can buy the stuff anymore. Even the stuff we use to numb people up with has evolved immensely.

Moral to the story is this. If you have had a bad dental experience in the past. But it was the past of the 80s or even 90s. Please give the dentist another try. Things are so much better now then they have ever been. Technology can be a wonderful thing.

Don't know why I included this one. Just love the 80s hair.

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Cosmetic Dentistry

These are the days that make it really fun to be a dentist.

She told me that she hated her smile but that she didn't have the money to get braces or crowns. 1 hour later without any shots, and for a lot less then the cost of braces or crowns, she got out of the chair, looked in the mirror and started to cry.

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Baby Bottle Tooth Decay

There has been a lot of educational material put out there about not putting your kids to bed with bottles, or sippy cups, full of juice, milk, soda, or whatever. But it still happens on a pretty regular basis. The last thing that should touch your child's tooth before they go to bed is a glass of water, a toothbrush, or a pacifier.

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