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Amalgam
The traditional silver filling. Actually a mixture of silver, mercury, copper,
and tin.Long- lasting, but expands and oxidizes over time. Can slow down the decay
process. Not esthetic.
Composite Resin
The material traditionally used for bonded restorations. Made from
an admixture of various glass particles in a polymerized gel-like matrix. This material is
generally applied to etched enamel and primed dentin. It is then polymerized with a curing light,
a visible blue light which activates a catalyst in the composite and causes it to harden almost instantly.
Today's composite bonding
materials are extremely esthetic because of the way the glass particles reflect and refract light similarly to natural enamel.
Crowns
A covering placed on a tooth to replace missing
structure and reinforce or strengthen it. The most common crowns made today
are from a cast metal (preferably a gold alloy) with esthetic porcelain baked to the outside.
In non- esthetic areas, or for patients with extremely strong masticatory musculature, gold crowns
are still used and are still the most durable restorations known. Today, we also have all-porcelain crowns, with
incredible esthetics (see Procera). Crowns are indicated for broken or cracked teeth, and any tooth in which the previous
filling encompassed more than one-half of the width of the tooth. Crowns are also still used to solve some cosmetic problems
when bonding or veneers would not be adequate. Crowns generally require two visits, and fine crafted provisional crowns
are placed for the interim.
Bridges
Replacing a missing tooth by placing at least two crowns on adjacent teeth and suspending a false tooth,
or pontic, in between or cantilevered from one end. This restoration is cemented to your teeth and is not removable.
It is carefully crafted for esthetics, fit, comfort, and cleansibility. Depending on the size and situation, the bridge
may take from two to six visits to complete. A quality provisional (temporary) bridge will be in place in-between
appointments.
Complete Dentures
A dental prosthesis that replaces all the natural
teeth and their associated maxillary and mandibular structures.
Removable partial denture
for a partially edentulous dental patient who desires to have replacement
teeth for functional or aesthetic reasons, and who cannot have a bridge
(a fixed partial denture) for any number of reasons, such as a lack of required
teeth to serve as support for a bridge (i.e. distal abutments) or due to financial limitations.
Generally an artificial structure placed into bone which provides for prosthetic replacement
of some missing structure. Also used to describe a graft placed in soft tissue.
This treatment refers to the removal of diseased or dying nerve tissue
from the inside of the tooth. It does NOT mean removing a root from the
tooth, and does not involve surgery. A rubber dam must be used to prevent
saliva from entering the tooth. The steps of the procedure are access
(opening into the nerve chamber), debridement (removing the diseased tissue),
working distance (measuring the exact length of the roots), cleaning and shaping
(preparing the tooth for filling), and obturation (filling the root with an inert
filling material called gutta percha). After a root canal most teeth require a
foundation filling for support and a crown for strength. Root canals are about
95% successful, and are no longer the nightmare that they were in our parents'
generation. Most root canals can be completed in one visit unless started in
an emergency, and are amazingly comfortable.
The removal of a tooth; their are generally two types, simple and surgical.
Tooth Whitening
A common procedure in general dentistry but most especially in the field of cosmetic dentistry.
There are many methods to whiten teeth: bleaching strips, bleaching pen, bleaching gel, laser bleaching, and natural bleaching.
Traditionally, at-home whitening involves applying bleaching gel to the teeth using thin guard trays. At-home whitening can also
be done by applying small strips that go over the front teeth. Oxidizing agents such as hydrogen peroxide or carbamide peroxide
are used to lighten the shade of the tooth. The oxidizing agent penetrates the porosities in the rod-like crystal structure of
enamel and oxidizes interprismatic stain deposits; over a period of time, the dentin layer, lying underneath the enamel, is
also bleached. Power bleaching uses light energy to accelerate the process of bleaching in a dental office. The effects of bleaching
can last for several months, but may vary depending on the lifestyle of the patient. Factors that decrease whitening include smoking
and the ingestion of dark colored liquids like coffee, tea and red wine.
Veneers
A thin layer of restorative material placed over a tooth
surface, either to improve the aesthetics of a tooth, or to
protect a damaged tooth surface. There are two main types of
material used to fabricate a veneer, composite and dental
porcelain. A composite veneer may be directly placed (built-up
in the mouth), or indirectly fabricated by a dental technician
in a dental laboratory, and later bonded to the tooth, typically
using a resin cement such as Panavia. In contrast, a porcelain
veneer may only be indirectly fabricated
Invisalign
Invisible way to straighten teeth without braces.
Invisalign® uses a series of clear removable aligners to
straighten teeth without metal wires or brackets. Invisalign®
has been proven effective in clinical research and in orthdontic
practices nationwide. You wear each set of aligners for about 2
weeks, removing them only to eat, drink, brush, and floss. As
you replace each aligner with the next in the series, your teeth
will move - little by little, week by week - until they have
straightened to the final position your dentist has prescribed.
You'll visit your dentist about once every 6-12 weeks to ensure
that your treatment is progressing as planned. Total treatment
time averages 9-18 months and the average number of aligners
worn during treatment is between 18 and 38, but both will vary
from case to case.
Pulpotomy
When the coronal tissue is infected, it can be
amputated and the remaining radicular tissue is judged to be
intact, or affected but still vital. A suitable base is applied
to the coronal part, and the tooth restored with a stainless
steel crown to prevent future fracture of the tooth.
Sealants
A protective coating painted into the grooves on the biting
surface of back teeth susceptible to decay. The ADA recommends
sealants for all back teeth as soon as they grow into the mouth.
Sealants can prevent cavities for adults too. They last for an
average of seven years and are very easily placed with no
discomfort.
Stainless Steel Crowns
A preformed steel crown
used for the restoration of badly broken-down primary teeth and
first permanent molars. Also used as a temporary restoration of
fractured permanent incisors.
Space Maintainers
A prosthetic replacement for prematurely lost deciduous teeth
intended to prevent closure of the space before eruption of the
permanent successors. Often an urgent necessity in the buccal
segment to prevent impaction of the permanent teeth and other
complications.
NuSmile Crowns
The latest in esthetics for the restoration of anterior teeth. NuSmile crowns are indicated in the following cases:
(1) in the place of anterior stainless steel crowns,
(2) extensive decay of anterior teeth, and
(3) in cases where anterior composites are not ideal.
A medical procedure that disables a human's ability to remain
active involving the administration of sedative drugs, generally
to facilitate a medical procedure or diagnostic procedure. The
most common types used in dentistry are nitrous oxide
(laughing gas), oral conscious sedation, and IV sedation.
