Author Archives: SH

How to Use Fluoride Therapy to Prevent Cavities

credits to greenstudentu.com

Fluoride is available in many ways:

1. Through water fluoridation.

Water fluoridation is listed as one of the ten great public health achievements of the 20th century by U.S Centers for Disease control as it is a feasible way to introduce fluoride to the public. Although there may be different opinions regarding to adding fluoride to our water but it is undeniable that water fluoridation is an inexpensive and feasible way especially to people which stay in rural areas and fluoridated water might be the only source of fluoride. Continue reading →

Dental health and Smoking

Smoking is known to bring a lot of side effects to human body including the oral cavity. Most obvious side effect you can notice on smokers is the heavy staining on their teeth. Cigarettes contain nicotine which not only causes addiction but also causing brown staining on smokers teeth which is hard to remove by brushing alone. Professional scaling has to be done to remove them and staining can reappear quickly if patient continues to smoke. Continue reading →

Wisdom Teeth Extraction Complications

credits to freecosmeticdentistry.net

 

 

There might be complications after any kind of extraction including wisdom teeth extraction. It is either due to the natural of the surgery itself or due to insufficient experience by the clinician.

1.       Soft tissue injury – The flap that the dentist raised ( cut so that the he can visualize and access to the embedded wisdom tooth) might be tear off during the procedure,it might be due to inadequate size of the flap or he uses excessive force to retract the flap. To manage it, the clinician will smoothen the edges and suture back the flap. The rotating bur that the dentist uses to remove bone to allow removal of your wisdom tooth might injures your lips or any soft tissues if he is not careful.  If it happens, Vaseline or any antibiotic ointment can be applied to cool that area and it can heal around 5 to 10 days time.To prevent any scarring or to decrease healing time, you can keep the injured area moist. Continue reading →

Alternatives to Root Canals

credits to sapphirewhitening.com

Root canal treatment can be avoided and some other alternative procedures can be done to maintain pulp vitality if:

(1)    The pulp should have symptoms of reversible pulpitis ( application of hot, cold stimulus will cause sharp pain for 10-15 seconds but resolves upon removal)

(2)    No periradicular disease is shown in radiograph ( no radiolucency/transparency  around the roots)

(3)    Tooth of interest should respond to pulp testing (to test for whether your tooth is still alive)

Continue reading →

How to Care for New Dentures

credits to toothpaintest.com

It is common to feel weird or uncomfortable with new dentures in your mouth especially for those who never had any dentures before. Your dentist might extend the denture base so that the newly fabricated denture will be more retentive .  You will feel uncomfortable even though it might be a small change compared to your old denture. Certain amount of perseverance is needed as it takes time for you to get used to your new dentures. Continue reading →

How Long Do Dental Bridges Last?

There is no exact figure regarding the success rate of crown and bridges. According to some surveys, small conventional bridges can last around 20-40 years where as larger conventional bridges can last 10-30 years. For adhesive bridges, they last approximately 10-20 years or more.  Evidences to prove the success rate for adhesive bridges are not very strong due to they are being introduced long time after conventional rate.  Success rate of bridges depend strongly on the maintenance by the patient him/herself. Continue reading →