Air Abrasion
Air abrasion is a relatively new decay removal and tooth preparation tool that we often use in place of the traditional dental drill. This innovative system allows us to conserve more of the patient's natural tooth structure and reduce the risk of enamel micro-fracturing. Because the equipment does not produce vibration or heat, patients require little or no anesthetic. Air abrasion is quieter, faster, and more comfortable than traditional drilling.
So how does it work? Air abrasion applies the principle of kinetic energy to bombard the tooth area with a high-pressure stream of tiny aluminum oxide particles. As the particles bounce off the tooth's surface, they blast away decayed tissue and prepare the tooth for a filling. The process requires only a minute or so per tooth. Air abrasion is a popular choice for children, as well as adults.
Enjoy Renewed Oral Freshness with BreathRx
If you are one of the millions of Americans who lives with bad breath, or halitosis, BreathRx can help. Bad breath occurs when the bacteria in your mouth reproduce and feed at a faster rate than your saliva rinses them away. This process releases gaseous waste products, which cause foul-smelling odors known as volatile sulfur compounds, or VSCs.
Many people try to treat bad breath with minty gum or mouthwash, but these solutions only mask the problem without fixing the root cause. In fact, these products can dry out your mouth and actually aggravate halitosis. The BreathRx treatment system attacks the causes of breath problems, killing bad-breath causing bacteria and neutralizing foul smells.
With this system, you follow a simple three-step process: brush, scrape, and rinse. Using the BreathRx toothpaste takes your brushing regimen to the next level by breaking up trapped food particles and attacking stubborn VSCs. Because your tongue is usually a main culprit with bad breath, the system includes a tongue scraper that will sweep away leftover food and odor causing bacteria. The final step involves an antibacterial rinse that keeps your mouth and breath feeling fresh.
DIAGNOdent
Finding Decay the Easy Way
One of the most important things we do for our patients is identify and fill cavities. Since any spot of decay can threaten the integrity of an entire tooth, detection is key to preventing a host of potential problems. Lengthy poking and probing sessions have been an acceptable, if not very comfortable, part of dental exams for years. However, such methods of decay detection are only 50 to 75-percent successful. Cavities can hide along fissure lines or inside biting and occlusal surfaces. Further, mechanical exploratory methods are limited to finding only those cavities that are equal to or larger than the probe head. To make the process more comfortable and comprehensive, we use DIAGNOdent, a revolutionary dental laser that finds cavities in the earliest stages.
Laser Reflection Spots Imperfection
DIAGNOdent technology uses a laser diode to inspect teeth, comparing reflection wavelength against a healthy baseline wavelength to uncover decay. First, we take a benchmark reading by aiming the laser onto one of your healthy enamel tooth surfaces, shining the laser into all suspect areas. As it pulses into grooves, fissures and cracks, the laser reflects fluorescent light of a specific wavelength which is measured by receptors, converted to an acoustic signal, evaluated electronically to reveal a value between 1 and 100, and then displayed on a screen. Any variation from the healthy baseline value stimulates emission of a different wavelength and alerts us to a weakened area of decay. Not surprisingly, this technology quickly and precisely identifies even the tiniest bit of decay. This means shallower, simpler fillings, preserving more tooth structure, and providing a specific means of monitoring suspicious areas. No X-rays are required with DIAGNOdent, so patients do not have to worry about radiation exposure.
Panorex
A Panorex image is an X-ray that depicts a panoramic view of your mouth, from one side to the other. This image can help the dentist understand the relationship between your teeth, jaws, and occlusion (bite, or how your top and bottom teeth fit together). When planning extensive restorative or cosmetic cases, a Panorex may be necessary in addition to intra- and extra-oral photos and digital X-rays.
Digital Radiography
What We See Is What We Get
We've invested in a new way of looking into your mouth – a procedure that's fast, comfortable, and incredibly precise. Using digital radiography, we can clearly identify all external and internal anatomical structures and accurately diagnose your dental problems. Even more amazing, we can immediately translate that information into a large, clear, accurate image, projected onto a monitor that patient and doctor can study together in the operatory. You won't even have to leave your chair. Digital radiography's technology improves and simplifies the way we care for our patients' teeth, resulting in better dental evaluations and treatment decisions. As the most important member of your dental team, you need to understand the condition of your mouth, as well as our recommendations for treatment. Digital radiographs help us help you.
Reduced Radiation, Radical Results
Traditionally, dentists used X-rays to see what the naked eye could not; X-rays were developed in a darkroom with hazardous chemicals, and then viewed on a special light board. The developed X-rays had to be stored, which required large filing systems. By far, the worst part of traditional X-rays was the radiation exposure to patients. Digital radiography has completely transformed this process.
Now, when you come into the office for X-rays, a tiny sensor is placed in your mouth to emit a small amount of radiation – up to 90-percent less than traditional X-rays required. This creates a detailed image of your internal oral structures that is immediately viewable on a chairside monitor, carrying with it all the conveniences of other digitized images. We can rotate and magnify it, adjust it for contrast, and even color-code it for educational purposes. The digital images store easily and efficiently in our computer files, safe and sound. For insurance purposes, referrals, or patient education, digital X-rays can be easily, inexpensively, and accurately reproduced indefinitely.
Digital X-rays offer unparalleled benefits over traditional radiographs: they're convenient, safe for the environment, provide a great opportunity for patient education, can be transferred and copied accurately, and best of all, they're safer for our patients.
Intraoral Cameras and Chairside Monitors
People seldom have a clear idea of the actual status of their dental health. Even with lights and mirrors, a patient can't see what the dentist can – that is, until now.
We use intraoral cameras, so when you visit the dentist, you can sit comfortably back in the chair and get ready for the show. The dentist or hygienist will insert a pen-sized, camera-tipped wand into your mouth. Covered with a disposable plastic sheath for contamination prevention, the wand simply takes a video of the inside of your mouth and transmits the images via cable to a computing unit. The computing unit enlarges the full-color images and sends them to a TV screen that you can comfortably view from the dental chair. Aha! There it is – your mouth on the screen. The dentist can point out problem areas and explain his recommendations for treatment, so you'll become an informed partner in your dental care instead of a clueless bystander.
Seeing your dental problems may seem overwhelming at first, but consider the experience the first step toward a healthier, fresher smile. The camera may reveal the early stages of potentially serious problems, allowing you the opportunity to prevent small problems before they escalate. This is especially helpful with gum disease and conditions that cause damage without causing pain. The camera's honest survey can also show you how your regular home hygiene routine is paying off. The dental hygienist or dentist can recommend ways to improve your homecare based on their findings.
Soft-Tissue Laser Dentistry
LASER is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation, a complicated string of words that basically means a single wavelength beam of highly concentrated light energy.
Lasers have transformed medical surgery by offering minimally-invasive alternatives to traditional scalpel incisions and sutured closures. The laser's intense, narrow wavelength has precise, predictable, and powerful reactions when it contacts soft tissues of the body. Laser light is extremely efficient, producing very little heat as it acts on its target. This makes it ideal for oral surgery, since it seldom affects tissues other than those it targets. The laser provides precise control over the depth and extent of cutting, while simultaneously minimizing bleeding and sterilizing the treatment area.
Currently, dental applications include gum disease treatments, gum re-contouring, incision cauterizing and tissue fusion, lesion reparation, and biopsies
ViziLite Oral Cancer Screening
Did you know that oral cancer steals the life of one American every hour? We don't hear much about oral cancer, but 35,000 patients will be diagnosed in 2008. Only half of patients diagnosed with oral cancer will survive longer than five years. Because it is often detected in the later stages, oral cancer's mortality rate is higher than that of cervical cancer, Hodgkins disease, brain, liver, kidney, or ovarian cancer. Treatment for oral cancer often causes disfiguration and lessens the patients quality of life.
Thanks to an amazing new technology, ViziLite, dentists and hygienists can quickly and painlessly screen for oral cancer. ViziLite is an identification and marking system that detects tissue abnormalities and is used in combination with traditional visual exams.
All adults should have an annual ViziLite exam because a quarter of oral cancer victims are non-smokers, don't drink, and have no lifestyle factors to heighten their oral cancer risk. Men over 40 are the most prone to the disease, although the number of women with oral cancer has risen in recent years, due to the increased number of women smokers. Patients with lifestyle risks, including any tobacco use, daily alcohol consumption, viral infections, autoimmune deficiencies like HIV, and diabetes, may need more frequent evaluations.
The screening involves a few simple steps. First, you rinse thoroughly with a cleansing solution. Then, your dentist dims the overhead lights and examines your mouth using the ViziLite wand. If ViziLite finds a problem area, the spot will become illuminated and appear distinctly different from the surrounding normal tissue.
While all of this information sounds disheartening, if oral cancer is found and treated in the early stages the condition has an 80 to 90-percent cure rate.
Wax-Up Models
Just as an engineer creates a model to ensure that a machine will work correctly, the dentist often fabricates a wax-up model of jaws and teeth when working on more complex restorative or cosmetic cases. By building an accurate model of your mouth, we can test prosthetics, veneers, and other dental work to ensure a proper fit. You can also see what our proposed solutions will look like on the wax model, so you'll make a truly informed decision about your dental work. If adjustments are required, the dentist adapts the model to reflect changes before the case goes to the dental laboratory. Wax-ups provide us with a realistic projection of how your dental work will look and function, which results in more accurate restorations. |
