Tooth Whitening
Reasons for Flossing
by DEIDRIX CATCHINGS on 07/13/11
The destiny of your brain may hang by a thread. Not the one undone on your shirt collar, but thread as in a few inches of floss. Waxed, plain, flat, round, mint and cinnamon, it doesn't matter; just use dental floss once a day. Flossing is a great defense of gum disease and ensures good oral hygiene practices. A new study showed that gum disease is a big risk factor for Alzheimer's disease and memory loss.
Researchers found that gum iflammation decreases intellectual skills nine times higher than normal. When people in their seventies playes a brain game, the people with the highest levels of antibodies and inflammatory compounds from gum disease constantly had the lowest memory scores. There's also plenty of evidence that inflammation harms your brain, perhaps by limiting it with the clean-up system that normally whisks risky brain cell matter, like amyloid plaque,out of your head. More and more research is pointing to ties between oral health and overall health. Even when taking into comsideration other bad habits, such as smoking or excessive drinking, studies such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes amongst other disorders.
Know Your Insurance Benefits
by DEIDRIX CATCHINGS on 04/28/11
Often times, our patients enroll in new insurance plans and no one explains to them what they are getting into. If you are unaware of your benefits and how they work, research the insurance company and even call them to inquire how your benefits work.
In your best interest, before you call the dentist or your primary care physician, talk to the insurance company. Ask questions like:
If you are a Federal employee and have a basic FEP policy for dental, there are multiple options for secondary insurance, that will cover many procedures that the FEP plan does not.
The more you know when you arrive at the dentist office, the easier it will be for you to understand the copays and percentages for patient responsibility if applicable.
Tooth Whitening
by DEIDRIX CATCHINGS on 02/28/11
Boosting Patient Self Esteem and Confidence with
Tooth Whitening
Minimally invasive smile enhancements are increasingly requested in many dental practices today, and the most common and conservative method for superior results in altering someone’s smile is the combination of in-office tooth whitening followed by take –home tray bleaching. Whether to lighten and enhance the smile or to remove noticeable and severe stains, vital tooth bleaching is a viable and realistic option for many patients as a means to improve the appearance of their teeth and boost their self-confident.
Using a combination of in-office and take-home whitening treatments enables dentists to offer their patients superior whitening results. Tooth discoloration may be the result of aging, disease, or exposure to medications, food and beverages. Intrinsic stains occur as a product of tooth development, fluorosis, or the use of tetracycline. Extrinsic stains form in the pellicle of the teeth and are produced by the reaction that occurs between sugars and amino acids or result from the retention of exogenous chromophores in the pellicle.
Overall, the potential causes of tooth discoloration and stains may varied and be complex. Further, the tooth discoloration itself can vary in appearance, location, and severity in a tooth or across multiple teeth. The intensity of discoloration may be worse in the presence of enamel surface defects.
Whitening regimens of various durations using peroxide agents have been described in the literature for treating intrinsic and extrinsic stains. To remove intrinsic stains and alter the inherent tooth color, dentist-monitored tooth whitening products that rely on proven technologies- such as 35% hydrogen peroxide for in-office power bleaching or 10% to 15% carbamide peroxide for at home bleaching – have been used most often. However, a 38% hydrogen peroxide whitening gel for in-office bleaching treatment- followed by the use of a10% carbamide peroxide at- home bleaching kit-has also been shown to produce significant tooth lightening.
Depending upon the degree of tooth discoloration, take-home, patient-controlled but dentist-monitored vital tooth bleaching may be deemed adequate to effect the necessary color change in the teeth that will result in a significantly different smile appearance. In other cases, the take-home treatment may be preceded by in-office bleaching. Using a combination of in-office and take –home whitening enables dental professionals to offer patients superior results.
There are many do it yourself- bleaching kits sold daily but without a thorough clinical examination that includes radiographs and intraoral digital photographs. You may not know if pathologies exist and if so, then take-home vital tooth bleaching is contraindicated. It is recommended that a thorough examination, clinical diagnosis and preoperative treatment plan before vital tooth bleaching is done for superior results and zero sensitivity.
The patient is instructed about the variety of tooth-bleaching alternatives available, including light-activated, in-office bleaching followed by home bleaching using prefilled disposable whitening trays. The patient elected to whiten their teeth through a combination of in-office and take-home products.
Preparation for In-Office Bleaching
Before initiating the in-office whitening procedure, the tooth surfaces will be cleansed to remove any calculus or extrinsic stains. A thorough clinical and radiographs examination is performed to make sure no pathologies were found that would contraindicate vital tooth bleaching. The shade of the patient’s teeth was evaluated against the classic vita shade tabs and recorded. The goal of the whitening procedures is to achieve a brighter smile.
Take-Home Vita Tooth Bleaching
Before demonstrating and dispensing the selected take-home vital tooth-bleaching system, a subjective shade analysis of the patient’s teeth is done. The postbleaching shade is determined.
The patient is provided with a demonstration of the easy-to-use, pre-loaded maxillary and mandibular trays for the take-home vital tooth-bleaching system. This bleaching is selected based on the concentration of the active ingredient (ie,10% hydrogen peroxide for faster whitening results), a more comfortable and conveniently pre-loaded tray/membrane design to help ensure patient compliance, and its fluoridated formula to reduce sensitivity, rebuild enamel, and prevent caries.
The patient used the take-home regimen for ten days for between thirty minutes and one hour each day. It is important to note that regardless of changes in formulations and delivery systems, the literature states that the efficacy of vital tooth-bleaching remains dependent upon tooth surfaces being in direct contact with the appropriate concentration of active whitening agents for a specific period of time.
Ten days after the completion of at-home bleaching, the color change of the patient’s teeth should be assessed and post bleaching shade achieved and recorded.
Effective combinations of in-office and take-home bleaching systems can accelerate the whitening process and make it more comfortable and convenient for the patients. By allowing the patient to aid in control and determine achieved desired whitening , their satisfaction with final outcome is ensure.
Conclusion
In aesthetic dentistry, we can take care of dental crowns, tooth implants, dentures, veneers, lumineers, and bridges. Many times, we can do what is called a smile makeover. We can take every aspect of your smile and construct it into something you could never invisulized based upon your existing smile. It is truly amazing how we can rebuild everything from merely nothing.
But one of the biggest areas of aesthetic dentistry is the implants. This is because a single implant can make a considerable difference in a person’s smile. This also makes a considerable difference in self confidence and how a person sees him or herself in a mirror.
