www.BestOgdenDentist.com Blog

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Those bumps are called tori.

Tori.

Ever heard of the word?

A tori is a lump of bone that resides in the mouth.

Most people that have tori think nothing of it because they have always had it.

Well, not everyone does have it.

But even if you do have it it really not that big of a deal.

Its just bone and likely wont ever cause you any problems.

One of the only times that it may cause you problems is if you need a denture.

Dentures are very hard to fabricate over the top of tori.

It is only a minor problem however due to the fact that tori can be removed.

So if you have a hard boney lump that has been in your mouth forever,

it may not hurt to get it checked out, but more often then not its simply just a tori.

Tori in the floor of the mouth.

Tori in the roof of the mouth.

Monday, March 5, 2012

Which retainer is best for me?

Lots of people ask me about retainers.

Most retainers are given to folks from their orthodontists.

The type of retainer you have really depends on the personal preference of the Orthodontist.

Some orthodontists like the retainers that you can take in and out every night.

These come in two forms. The ones that use wire to retain the teeth position

and the ones that are made simply of clear plastic.

Other orthodontists like the small metal wires that are actually

glued to the teeth and can not be removed.

So which one is better?

That depends on what irritates you most.

Would it irritate you more to have something glued into your

mouth that you could never take out?

Or would it irritate you more to always have to remember to put your retainer

in every night and take it with you on every trip vacation and overnighter you go on?

Both will do a fine job.

My Mother has a retainer that she puts in every night and has done so for over 30 years.

My wife has a bonded metal wire that she has had in place for over 20 years.

Both seem to like what they have and wouldn't change.

If you have a particular type of retainer and you would like

to try another kind that is no problem.

We can switch you to another kind, let you try it for a while, and then

switch you back if you don't like it.

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Thursday, March 1, 2012

Waiting too long.

This happens all the time.

People, who neglect their teeth to the point that they break off at the

gums. THEN they come in and want it extracted.

They laugh a little nervous laugh and say...

"well, not much left so it should be pretty easy yo pull out, right?"

The answer to that is, NO.

Imagine getting a fence post out of the ground.

Not the easiest thing in the world, right?

Now, take a chain saw and cut the fence post off at the ground.

How easy is that going to be now?

If you want a tooth out, please, please, please, do not wait until

it is so broken down that there is nothing to grab on to.

It is NOT easier.

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Tuesday, February 28, 2012

My canine teeth are too pointy! What can be done?

Canines are unlike any other teeth in the mouth.

Every other tooth in the mouth is, almost, a copy of a another
tooth in the same corner of the mouth.

You have 2 incisors, 2 pre-molars, and 2 molars per quadrant but only 1 canine.

These teeth are also, typically, the longest rooted teeth in the mouth.

One problem that people have with their canines is that sometimes

they feel as if they are a bit too pointed.

They hide them when they smile for fear that they look too much like a vampire.

Well there has never been an easier fix for just about anything.

All you need to do is file those bad boys down just a bit.

You do not need to be numbed up and it will only take a moment to do.

You will have less enamel so the chances that you could get decay in the

future are slightly higher. But, with a little added attention to your home
care that should never end up being a problem.

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Monday, February 27, 2012

Give me some of that gas!

So what is laughing gas?

Why do we use it?

Is it okay for anyone to have?

Technically speaking laughing gas is Nitrous Oxide or N20.

Here is a nice little diagram of its chemical make-up.

We use laughing gas to take the "edge" off.

When someone is nervous about a situation then any little stimulus will

seem a bigger then it actually is.

This is true for the dentist office as well.

Routine procedures can become overwhelming to dental phobic patients.

We therefore administer gas to remove that overly tense feel and

make the routine seem routine again.

The effect of the gas creates a slightly euphoric state in people.

Feelings of floating or tingling all over are very common.

But most of all it just makes you more relaxed.

It is a very safe product to use and unless you have some sort of respiratory

problem almost anyone can safely use it.

To tell you what exactly it does would sound something like this.......

"It seems N₂O-induced release of endogenous opioids causes

disinhibition of brain stem noradrenergic neurons,

which release norepinephrine into the spinal cord and inhibit pain signaling."

But since most people have no idea what that means just trust me when I tell you

that it works, its safe, and you feel much better for having it : )

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Which electric toothbrush is better?

Okay, because you asked.

When the topic of electric toothbrushes comes up there are two big questions that I always get asked.

Questions.

#1 Do I need one.

#2 Which one is the best.

Answers

#1 No. You do not need an electric tooth brush. If you are a diligent brusher then it does not really matter if your tooth brush uses batteries for power or uses you for power. The results can be the same. This is not to say that the results will be the same in the same amount of time. Because they wont. The manual tooth brush will take a little longer but it is capable of doing the same thing.

# 2 This question is like asking which car is the best. Well, a Ferrari is the fastest and looks the best, but a Toyota Camry will do you just fine. The same is true for tooth brushes. There are tooth brushes out there that can run you over $300. They have timers to tell you when to stop. they will talk to you and tell you to switch sides of the mouth. They have pressure sensors to tell you if you are brushing too hard. And they look really cool. However, the electric toothbrushes that cost $10 can do just as much for cleaning your teeth. The whole idea behind cleaning your teeth is just to get the bristles to remove the plaque. Little timers are nice but if you are capable of getting your teeth clean without a timer then what is the point.

So what do I use?

I use an Oral B electric. I like the way it feels when it cleans and it seems to work well for me. My wife uses a Sonicare, and can't stand my Oral B. Conversely I have used her Sonicare and that thing drives me up the wall. So there is a lot to be said here about personal preference.

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Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Its called pericoronitis

That's right. You may have a Pericoronits.

It simple terms it is a little flap of skin that is hanging over the top of your last tooth.

Or it may be that the tooth isn't all the way in yet and its half covered by tissue.

Whichever it is, this tissue will tend to get inflamed from time to time.

When it does get inflamed chewing can become very painful.

The problem can be helped by swishing with a mouthwash and ridding the area of debris.

But this is only a short term solution.

What is the long term solution?

# 1 You can get the tooth that is partially erupted taken out.

That works well if the tooth happens to be a wisdom tooth.

But not so well if it happens to be a normal molar.

#2 You can get the tissue trimmed off.

This works very well for normal molars but not so well if the problem is a wisdom tooth.

Whatever the problem happens to be just know that you are not alone

in having this problem and that there are several simple solutions.

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Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Does Grandpa have loose dentures?

It happens all the time.

Grandpa/Grandma/You have a top denture that fits

great but the lower denture is awful.

There is help.

2 implants need to be placed in the lower jaw.

Each one of those implants will have a gold housing on top of it.

These housings have undercuts in them that will serve as retention for the denture.

The old denture then gets holes drilled into it and metal

receptors with o-rings place in the holes.

These receptors with the o-rings will fit down over the implant housings and

secure the denture to the jaw.

It works very well and people are very happy that their denture is

no longer floating around in their mouth.

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Monday, February 20, 2012

Do you have bad breath?

What is the cause of bad breath??

There are many causes.

Teeth that are decayed.

Gum disease.

Bacteria.

Digestion problems.

Etc.

One of the first things to do in order to determine the cause of your

bad breath is to get to a dentist and get a good cleaning.

This will make sure you start off with a clean slate.

Then.....

For 2 weeks commit to brushing after each meal.

For 2 weeks commit to flossing daily.

And for 2 weeks commit to rinsing with a mouthwash such as Listerine, daily.

(Important note: You also need to brush your tongue.

Tongue scrapers, pictured below, are also available.)

After the 2 week period see how your breath is.

If it still smells as fresh and clean as it did when you left the dentist office

then your bad breath was, more then likely, a result of poor oral care.

This would be good news because all you need to do is continue

your new pattern of brushing, flossing, and rinsing and your bad breath should be history.

If things return to there normal, bad breath, state then other things need to be considered.

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Thursday, February 9, 2012

What is the black line around the base of my crown?

Nothing is wrong.

What you are seeing is simply the metal that your crown is

made out of showing out from underneath.

I know I know, you thought that your crown was white and that

there wasn't any metal in it.

Well, there is. You have what is referred to as a porcelain

fused to metal crown of (PFM).

The crown is made of a metal substructure to give it it's strength and

then porcelain is layered over the top to make it look like a tooth.

The PFM has been used for years and has had remarkable success.

The only draw back to these types of crowns is the metal line showing through

and the fact that the porcelain layers can begin to separate from each other

and cause the pieces of porcelain to fall off the crowns.

Today there are new advances in crown technology that have

eliminated both of these problems.

There is a new material, to the world of dentistry that is, called zirconium.

Zirconium crowns are milled from a solid block and are very very strong.

This milling process means that they are not put together piece by piece.

Therefore there are no pieces to come apart. The crown is one solid unit.

Zirconium is also white so the color is that of most teeth and will never show a

metallic line because there is no metal.

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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Periodontitis

Periodontitis is a condition where the gums and bone that surround your

teeth slowly deteriorate due to large amounts of, unremoved, bacteria.

I have seen perfectly healthy teeth be pulled out of someones mouth with

their own fingers because the gums and bone could no longer support them.

It is an absolute must that you get into your dentist at lease once a year to

get the bacteria plaque and other contaminants removed from your teeth

to maintain good gum and bone health.

Here are some healthy gums.

Here are some gums that are in trouble.

One of the symptoms of periodontal disease is swollen, red, painful gums.

This patient is also in trouble.

Another symptom of periodontal disease is that your teeth will begin to loosen up.

As the bone looses its ability to hold the teeth in

you teeth will shift and, or drop out of the gums.

Please please please get to your dentist for a good cleaning BEFORE your

mouth begins to resemble one of these last two pictures.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Meet Mike

Today we are going to meet Mike.

Mike was a good guy.

But, Mike was not having a good day.

Mike really needed that tooth because Mike

Really wanted to meet a nice lady.

This is Mike now.

Ladies, Mike is 29 and now has an AMAZING smile!

Anyone interested can let us know and we will get you in touch with Mike.