Why Are Regular Dental Checkups Important?

In most cases when there is a problem with our health we feel a symptom in our body. When we get a symptom, such as pain for example, it’s a signal for us to do something about it. Most of us go to the physician to find out what’s going on.  We want to find out what’s causing the pain/problem.

I don’t know why it is this way, but we have seen advanced dental disease in people who never had pain. There were signs and symptoms, but no pain in many instances. This isn’t unusual with dental disease. The signs were bleeding gums, loose teeth, gaps forming between teeth, bad taste or odor in the mouth, discoloration of teeth.  However, without any pain, it is often easy for some people to ignore or be unaware of the signs before it’s too late.

We have seen people with teeth so loose, the teeth come out by themselves – but the person didn’t have pain during the entire time the dental bone holding their teeth in their mouth was being destroyed by infectious bacteria.  We have also seen people with the entire crown of the tooth destroyed by decay, and there never was any pain.

Regular dental checkups are important so that we have an opportunity as dental professionals to find any problems that may be present at the earliest time during the disease process. We want to diagnose gum disease early, before there is any bone loss around the teeth and subsequent tooth loss. We want to discover any decay that might be present before it goes deeper into the tooth, destroys more tooth structure, and continues to enter the nerve of the tooth causing the need for root canal therapy in order to save the tooth. Finding any dental disease early takes less time and money and helps people to maintain their teeth for a lifetime. Dentures are not an inevitable result of aging. They can totally be avoided with regular dental checkups and necessary care when problems are minor.

For information about other dental topics visit www.TavorminaDentistry.com

The Stages of Periodontal Disease

We want you to be aware of how gums can go from healthy to severely infected with periodontal (gum) disease.  Be on the alert for the signs and symptoms and if you suspect you may have gum disease, don’t wait to see a dentist.  Remember that gum disease is related to systemic disease, so keeping your gums healthy also helps prevent heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and other illness.

Healthy gums have a healthy, pink color.  The gumline hugs the teeth tightly and there is no bleeding.

The first stage of gum disease is called gingivitis.  When you have gingivitis your gums bleed easily when you brush or when your gums are probed gently during a dental examination.  Gums with gingivitis are inflamed and can be sensitive to the touch.  Sometimes with gingivitis there is possible bad breath and a bad taste in the mouth.  The gums between your teeth may look blush-red in color.

The next stage is early periodontitis.  At this stage the gums may begin to pull away from the teeth.  The bleeding is more pronounced and gum puffiness and inflammation is more pronounced as well.  There is bad breath and bad taste with early periodontitis.  On the dental x-rays the dentist can see slight horizontal bone loss.  Pockets of 3-4mm between the teeth and the gums are in one or more areas of the mouth.

The disease progresses to moderate periodontitis in which gum boils or abscesses may develop.  The teeth look longer as gums begin to recede from the normal position against the teeth.  Your front teeth may begin to drift and show spaces between the teeth.  There’s bad breath and bad taste.  There is both horizontal and irregular bone loss on the x-ray.  You would have pockets between teeth and gums that range from 4-6mm deep.

With advanced periodontis your teeth may become mobile or loose.  Bad breath and bad taste are constant.  The roots of your teeth may be exposed and are sensitive to hot and cold.  There’s severe horizontal bone loss and varying heights of bone on x-rays.  The pockets between the teeth and the gums are now in excess of 6mm deep.

For information about other dental topics visit www.DrTav.com

Healthy Gums Don't Bleed

In our last blog post I mentioned that healthy gums don’t bleed.  I want to discuss this fact more thoroughly to really drive this point home. Why? Because most people just don’t realize this is a fact. It doesn’t make sense to most people that healthy gums don’t bleed because people think that “everybody’s gums bleed, so this must be normal.” 

Well, it is true that most people’s gums do bleed, but it’s not because it’s healthy. It is an indication of how prevalent some form of gum disease is in the general population. Statistically, depending upon which study you read, anywhere from 70% to 95% of the population has some form of gum disease.  That’s why most people’s gums bleed; they have some degree of gum disease. Just because something is prevalent doesn’t mean it’s normal. For example, obesity has become quite prevalent in the U.S., but we all consider it unhealthy and something to be corrected.

Ponder this please – if you took a brush to the skin on your arm or leg or anywhere on your body, and when you brushed your skin it started to bleed, you’d be alarmed. So why is it then that when you brush or floss your teeth and they bleed, you think nothing of it? It’s the belief that bleeding gums are normal that keeps you from being alarmed and taking action. 

If bacterial plaque stays undisturbed beneath the gumline, inflammation and early stages of gum disease set in.  Left unchecked, the inflammation is an infection and as it progresses, the gums detach from the teeth, and the bone that holds your teeth in your jaw is destroyed (and you might not feel a thing)!

The solution is simple. Have a partnership with your dentist to keep this from happening or to keep things under control. Your home care techniques must have the bacteria that causes gum disease be removed not only from tooth surfaces, but from underneath the gums.

For information about other dental topics visit our website at: http://www.tavorminadentistry.com/

Proper Flossing

Flossing daily removes plaque and food particles from between the teeth and below the gumline. A toothbrush only cleans approximately 20% of the tooth and gum surfaces. The remaining 80% of tooth and gum surfaces is between the teeth. That’s why flossing daily is so important to protect you from tooth decay and gum disease. Once a day flossing at night before you go to sleep is the best time to floss.

It’s best to use unwaxed dental floss so that when the floss is pressed against the tooth surface the fibers of the floss spread out. This fanning out of the floss produces a greater surface area of floss to do the job of removing the plaque. Sometimes when people have teeth that are very close to each other, it is difficult to get the floss between the teeth. If this sounds like you, you will need to use waxed dental floss. The wax helps the floss slide between the teeth.

Wrap an 18-inch strand of floss around your middle fingers and hold a one-inch section tightly. After you wrap the floss around your middle fingers, take your thumb and pointer finger and hold them as if you were pointing two guns away from you. Then take the fingers that are pretending to be the guns and put them down on the floss so that one inch is between your thumbs and pointer fingers. Holding the floss this way lets you be able to control the floss and be able to reach all the way to floss your back teeth.

Ease the floss between two teeth. Clean up and down several times while curving the floss around the teeth and going under the gumline. Don’t scrub. Just wrap the floss around the tooth and go up and down. Unwind the floss to put clean floss between your fingers that are holding the floss. A special tool called a floss threader is needed to floss between the teeth of a fixed bridge and under the fake teeth.

You may experience sore or bleeding gums for the first several days you floss, but the bleeding will stop because you are flossing. Remember that healthy gums don’t bleed.

For information about other dental topics visit DrTav.com

Plaque And Tartar Control

Patients often confuse plaque and tartar and how they relate to each other. Plaque is a sticky, colorless deposit of bacteria that is constantly forming on teeth. Saliva, food and fluids combine to produce these deposits that collect on teeth and where teeth and gums meet.

Plaque buildup is the primary factor in gum (periodontal) disease.  Fighting plaque is a life-long component of oral care. Plaque begins forming on teeth 4 to 12 hours after brushing, which is why it is so important to brush at least twice a day and floss daily.

Plaque which is not removed by regular brushing and flossing can harden into tartar (also called calculus).  This crusty deposit creates a cohesive bond that can only be removed by a dentist or hygienist. Tartar formation may also make it more difficult for you to remove new plaque and bacteria. 

You can help reduce the formation of calculus by brushing with the correct technique so that the toothbrush bristles go beneath the gums and by flossing on a daily basis. Having the appropriate interval between professional cleanings is also important. Not everyone forms calculus at the same rate, so some people need more professional help than others.

If there is any sign of gum disease, the research has shown that the ideal interval between professional cleanings is 3 months. Plaque is a collection of different bacteria and as it matures it colonizes and reaches the stage of being destructive to gums and dental bone at 3 months. When you have a professional cleaning at 3 month intervals you are disrupting the bacterial colonies and are basically making them start all over again, thereby stopping or at least slowing down the harm plaque bacteria can cause.

For information about other dental topics visit our website: http://www.tavorminadentistry.com

How Are Lasers Used To Treat Gum Disease?

If you have gum disease you are not alone. It is estimated that over 80 percent of the adult population has gum disease to one degree or another.  Gum disease (periodontal disease) leads to destruction of the fibers that connect teeth to bone and can create a space that is called a periodontal pocket. You can keep 3mm or less pockets clean by yourself with routine brushing and flossing, but if you have pockets deeper than 3mm, it is impossible for you to clean and maintain them. As a result you have debris and bacteria living at the bottom of these pockets which leads to chronic gum infection. You may have noticed a bad taste or odor in your mouth at times from the gum disease.

Dr Vincent Tavormina may recommend a conservative non surgical treatment. First scaling and root planing removes the mechanical irritants to your gums and supporting bone and also removes a major part of the periodontal bacteria. After removing the tartar a laser is used to selectively remove diseased or infected tissues lining the pockets around the teeth. At the same time the laser will kill the bacteria that cause your gum disease and promote healing of your gums around your teeth. The FDA has approved the use of lasers for many dental procedures including the one just described.

Lasers are used because of the precise control they afford and the comfort they provide to the patient.  Lasers perform many functions at once. Not only can a laser remove tissue, but it can also be used to seal blood vessels and nerve endings, reducing bleeding and postoperative pain and swelling. One of the biggest advantages of laser therapy is the fact that many times procedures can be performed with much less discomfort and postoperative pain than with conventional methods.

For information about other dental topics visit DrTav.com

Non-Surgical Treatment Of Gum Disease

Gum disease is a chronic bacterial infection that affects nearly 75-90 percent of the general population at one time or another. These chronic infections have been linked to increased risk of heart attack, stroke, ulcers, diabetes, respiratory diseases and pregnancy complications.

It does not have to be this way! Gum disease is easily prevented and gum treatment can be non-surgical, using a simple, antibacterial program pioneered in the 1970s by Dr. Paul Keyes (Keyes Technique).

Our approach often uses the phase contrast microscope to test for bone destroying infectious bacteria beneath the gums. With this microscope we can take a sample from under the gums and look at a slide that shows the live bacteria. The microscope is connected to a monitor so that the patient can see the live bacteria on the TV monitor with us. The microscopic information combined with the information we gather during the exam, enables us to determine how severe the infection is and work with the patient to get things under control.

Periodontal disease is an infection of the tissues and bone that surround and support the teeth. There are two basic stages of gum disease- gingivitis and periodontitis. Gingivitis is an inflammation of the gums caused by a buildup of bacteria in the mouth called plaque. This causes red, swollen gums that typically bleed easily. Healthy gums don’t bleed. Periodontitis occurs when gingivitis goes untreated and progresses to an advanced  form of gum disease. The bacteria cause the gums to pull away from the teeth, creating bone loss and pockets where the bone used to be. The bacteria can proliferate in the pockets and further damage the bone that supports the teeth. Teeth may become loose, fall out or have to be extracted.

To treat the disease non-surgically deep cleanings called scaling and root planing are performed to clean and smooth the root surfaces. We then treat the infection with antibacterial solutions flowed under the gums to help eliminate the infection. In some cases localized antibiotics must be placed under the gums in deep pockets. The patient is given thorough lessons in proper tooth brushing, flossing and home irrigation to ensure that the periodontal disease process is eliminated and doesn’t return.

For information about other dental topics visit DrTav.com.

What Type Of Care Is Required For Dental Implants?

Once you have had your dental implants you want to make sure you protect your investment in your health and the time and money you’ve invested, too. It’s essential you understand that the gums and the bone that your dental implants sit in, are the foundation of your smile. The area around the gumline of your implants must be kept clean daily and regularly professionally.

Your dental implants aren’t subject to dental decay, but they are at risk of gum disease in the same way your natural teeth are at risk of gum disease. We recommend that you floss daily. You can also clean the teeth with brushes that fit in the spaces between the teeth. These are called interproximal dental brushes. Brush for approximately 2 minutes twice daily with a soft toothbrush. We also recommend using the Hydrofloss once daily. At night before you go to sleep, or in the evening after you’ve eaten your last meal, are the best times to use a Hydrofloss. The Hydrofloss is a dental irrigator and in the head of the irrigator tip is a magnet that changes the polarity of the water. This change in polarity interferes with plaque bacteria, the cause of gum disease, sticking to the teeth and building up at the gumline.

Research has taught us that the plaque that grows at the gumline has a specific pattern of growth. The bacteria form what are called colonies and with time, the colonies of bacteria become more mature and more destructive. Research has shown that the optimum time period to break up the bacterial colonies is at 3 months. Therefore, it makes sense that to give yourself and your dental implants optimum protection, the most favorable time interval between professional dental cleanings is 3 months. In this way, if there are any bone-destroying bacteria present, the professional cleaning is disrupting the bacterial colonization so that it has to start all over again. This helps stop the establishment and progress of any gum disease.

For information about taking care of your dental implants or other dental topics please visit DrTav.com