Our Services
Preventative Care
Both natural teeth and teeth with restorations survive best in an oral environment that is clean, and where the intake of harmful foods is controlled. Our program is designed to help preserve your natural and restored teeth, prevent new cavities, maximize the life of your restorations, and manage periodontal (gum) disease and oral tissues. At the initial cleaning visit oral hygiene instructions are reviewed and are reinforced at subsequent visits.
Restorative Care
Advances in modern dental materials and techniques increasingly offer new ways to create more pleasing, natural-looking smiles. Researchers are continuing their often decades-long work developing esthetic materials, such as ceramic and plastic compounds that mimic the appearance of natural teeth. As a result, dentists and patients today have several choices when it comes to selecting materials used to repair missing, worn, damaged or decayed teeth.
- Composite fillings
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Composite fillings are a mixture of acrylic resin and finely ground glasslike particles that produce a tooth-colored restoration. They provide good durability and resistance to fracture in small-to-mid size restorations that need to withstand moderate chewing pressure. Less tooth structure is removed when the dentist prepares the tooth, and this may result in a smaller filling than that of an amalgam. Composites can also be "bonded" or adhesively held in a cavity, often allowing the dentist to make a more conservative repair to the tooth. In teeth where chewing loads are high, composite fillings are less resistant to wear than silver amalgams.
- Porcelain (ceramic) crowns & bridges
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All-porcelain (ceramic) dental materials include porcelain, ceramic or glasslike fillings and crowns. They are used as inlays, onlays, crowns and aesthetic veneers. A veneer is a very thin shell of porcelain that can replace or cover part of the enamel of the tooth. All-porcelain (ceramic) restorations are particularly desirable because their color and translucency mimic natural tooth enamel. All-porcelain restorations require a minimum of two visits and possibly more. The restorations are prone to fracture when placed under tension or on impact. Their strength depends on an adequate thickness of porcelain and the ability to be bonded to the underlying tooth. They are highly resistant to wear.
- Sealants
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Research has shown that almost everybody has a 95 percent chance of eventually experiencing cavities in the pits and grooves of their teeth.
Sealants were developed in the 1950s and first became available commercially in the early 1970s. The first sealant was accepted by the American Dental Association Council on Dental Therapeutics in 1972. Sealants work by filling in the crevasses on the chewing surfaces of the teeth. This shuts out food particles that could get caught in the teeth, causing cavities. The application is fast and comfortable and can effectively protect teeth for many years. In fact, research has shown that sealants actually stop cavities when placed on top of a slightly decayed tooth by sealing off the supply of nutrients to the bacteria that causes a cavity.
Sealants act as a barrier to prevent bacteria and food from collecting and sitting on the grooves and pits of teeth. Sealants are best suited for permanent first molars, which erupt around the age of 6, and second molars, which erupt around the age of 12.
- Dental Implants
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Implants are designed to replace the root of a missing tooth. Once placed in the jaw this critical understructure serves as a foundation on which to fabricate a stand alone replacement tooth. We work with many highly qualified specialists (oral surgeons & periodontists) who will place the implant and allow our office to perform the restorative phase.
- Partial & Full Dentures
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There are many choices of materials to use to create your custom designed denture. Starting with an exam and taking impressions will allow us to develop a treatment plan and design that will suit your individual needs.
- Night Guards
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If you wake up with a stiff, tired jaw or have unusually sensitive teeth you may be grinding or clenching your teeth while sleeping. Over time this may wear down your teeth or restorations prematurely. Reduce the risk of wear and tear on your existing teeth by using a night guard. These clear, thin removable devices are custom fitted for you.
- Sports Mouth guards
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According to the American Dental Association, more than 200,000 oral injuries are prevented annually by the wear of sports mouth guards. Dentist fabricated, custom guards in comparison with stock or boil & bite type typically found in sporting good stores yield a guard that fits accurately, is more comfortable and thus more often is worn consistently.