My Blog

Posts for category: Dental Procedures

By Advance Family Dental Care
April 17, 2019
Category: Dental Procedures
WemayNeedtoBuilduptheBoneinYourJawbeforeImplants

Dental implant technology has advanced at such an astounding rate in recent years that you can now walk into a dentist's office with a problem tooth and out the same day with a new one. Unfortunately, not all dental situations allow for this possibility.

For example, you might be considering an implant many years after losing a tooth. But there's a potential problem: there might not be enough supporting bone. While an implant might still be possible, inadequate bone complicates the matter.

Because implants are essentially tooth root replacements, they require a certain amount of bone for stability and the best attractive outcome. As a general rule, implants need to be surrounded by  at least 1.5-2.0 millimeters of healthy bone to support an implant. But you might not have enough if your tooth has been missing for awhile, regardless if you have or haven't worn dentures or other restorations.

That's because bone has a life cycle in which older cells die and newer ones form to take their place. As we chew or bite, the force generated travels up through the teeth to the bone to stimulate this new growth. Without a tooth the bone doesn't receive this stimulus, which can slow the growth rate. Over time the affected bone can lose its volume and density.

If we find you've experienced loss to the point your bone won't support an implant, that doesn't automatically mean this popular restoration is out of the picture. But it will require us first performing a procedure known as augmentation or bone grafting to help rejuvenate some of the lost bone.

With grafting, we place processed bone grafting material in the jaw through a minor surgical procedure to form a scaffold for new bone to grow upon. After several months this can result in several millimeters of new growth maintaining the width of the underlying bone, which in turn may be able to support an implant.

Bone grafting is quite common, often performed at the same time as tooth extraction if there's going to be a time lag before installing an implant. Even if performed later, though, it can successfully rejuvenate lost bone and make it possible for you to take advantage of durable, life-like implants.

If you would like more information on dental implants, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Dental Implants after Previous Tooth Loss.”

0 Comment(s) Permalink
By Advance Family Dental Care
April 07, 2019
Category: Dental Procedures
ViggoMortensensRed-CarpetSmile

The Golden Globes ceremony is a night when Hollywood stars shine their brightest. At the recent red-carpet event, leading man Viggo Mortensen had plenty to smile about: Green Book, the movie in which he co-starred, picked up the award for Best Motion Picture—Musical or Comedy. But fans looking at the veteran actor's big smile today might not realize that it once looked very different. A few years ago, an accident during the filming of The Two Towers took a major chip out of Mortensen's front tooth!

That might be OK for some movies (think The Hangover or Dumb and Dumber)—but it's not so great for everyday life. Fortunately, Mortensen visited a dentist promptly, and now his smile is picture-perfect. How was that accomplished? He didn't say…but generally, the best treatment for a chipped tooth depends on how much of the tooth's structure is missing.

If the tooth has only a small chip or crack, it's often possible to restore it via cosmetic bonding. This procedure can be done right in the dental office, frequently in a single visit. Here's how it works: First the tooth is cleaned and prepared, and then a tooth-colored resin is applied to the area being restored. After it is cured (hardened) with a special light, additional layers may be applied to build up the missing structure. When properly cared for, a tooth restored this way can look good for several years.

For a longer-lasting restoration, veneers may be recommended. These are wafer-thin shells made of durable material (most often porcelain) that cover the front (visible) surfaces of teeth. Strong and lifelike, veneers can match the exact color of your natural teeth—or give you the bright, high-wattage smile you've always wanted. No wonder they're so popular in Hollywood! Because veneers are custom-made for you, getting them may require several office visits.

If a chip or crack extends to the inner pulp of the tooth, a root canal procedure will be needed to keep the tooth from becoming infected—a situation that could have serious consequences. But you shouldn't fear a root canal! The procedure generally causes no more discomfort than filling a cavity (though it takes a little longer), and it can help save teeth that would otherwise be lost. After a root canal, a crown (cap) is generally needed to restore the visible part of the tooth.

When a damaged tooth can't be restored, it needs to be extracted (removed) and replaced. Today's best option for tooth replacement is a dental implant—a small, screw-shaped post inserted into the bone of your jaw that anchors a lifelike, fully functional crown. Implants require very little special care and can look great for many years, making them a top choice for tooth replacement

If you have questions about chipped or damaged teeth, please contact our office or schedule a consultation. You can read more in the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Artistic Repair Of Front Teeth With Composite Resin” and “Porcelain Veneers.”

0 Comment(s) Permalink
By Advance Family Dental Care
March 28, 2019
Category: Dental Procedures
Tags: porcelain veneers  
AvoidPermanentToothAlterationwithNo-PrepVeneers

Porcelain veneers have become a popular way to transform a smile. They're ideal for stained, chipped or slightly misaligned teeth. But although they don't need as much tooth preparation as crowns or other bridgework, the traditional veneer still requires some permanent tooth alteration.

Now, there's an alternative: no-prep veneers. With this option we can avoid any tooth structure removal or keep it to a minimum. And it may not even require local anesthesia while applying them.

Veneers are as their name implies: a wafer-thin layer of tooth-colored porcelain that's bonded to the outside of a tooth, much like siding on a house. Although the traditional veneer is usually no more than a millimeter in width, they can still add an unnatural bulky look and feel to a tooth. To compensate, we remove portions of the enamel. A tooth permanently altered this way will henceforth require some form of restoration.

No-prep veneers are much thinner; they also don't extend under the gum line like traditional veneers. At the most the new veneers may only require us to perform some minor reshaping of the enamel, but not to the extent of traditional veneers. And because your tooth isn't permanently altered, we could presumably remove the veneer and return the tooth to its natural state and appearance (although removing the bonding might not be that easy).

There are some situations where some tooth alteration may still be necessary, like oversized or forward-jutting teeth. A bad bite (malocclusion) may require orthodontic treatment first — which in some cases could be an alternative treatment to veneers altogether.

To find out if you're a candidate for no-prep veneers, visit us for a complete examination. From there we can discuss your options and whether we can transform your smile with little change to your teeth.

If you would like more information on cosmetic solutions like porcelain veneers, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation.

0 Comment(s) Permalink
By Advance Family Dental Care
March 04, 2019
Category: Dental Procedures
Tags: Dental Bonding  

Find out how this simple cosmetic technique could improve the shape of your teeth.

It’s amazing how much someone can benefit from getting cosmetic dentistry; however, we know that it isn’t always within everyone’s dental bondingbudget to be able to get cosmetic dentistry. This is why our Naperville, IL, dentist Dr. Pirooz Zomorrodi is happy to offer a simple and inexpensive solution that could alter the shape, size or even color of a tooth or teeth.

What is dental bonding?

Bonding is a simple and non-invasive dental technique in which our Naperville, IL, cosmetic dentist will apply a moldable tooth-colored resin to hide minor defects in a tooth. Bonding can be a great way to improve the appearance of a chipped, cracked, discolored or oddly shaped tooth. Bonding can also fill small gaps between teeth to give you a more aligned smile.

What should I expect from the dental bonding procedure?

This is one of the simplest and easiest cosmetic options to enhance your smile. Anesthesia is rarely needed unless we detect decay, which we will need to remove first before performing dental bonding.

During dental bonding, we will apply a conditioning gel over the tooth. This gel will help to roughen the surface of the tooth so the resin sticks to the enamel better. This will make it easier for us to apply and shape the material over these imperfections. Once the proper shade of resin has been chosen and then applied and shaped, we will shine a dental light over the tooth to harden the resin to the tooth. Once the resin is in place it will look just like the rest of your natural tooth enamel.

If you are interested in finding out more about dental bonding and how it can improve the health and appearance of your smile then it’s time to schedule a consultation with Advance Family Dental Care in Naperville, IL.

0 Comment(s) Permalink
By Advance Family Dental Care
February 26, 2019
Category: Dental Procedures
HowKathyBatesRetainsHerMovie-StarSmile

In her decades-long career, renowned actress Kathy Bates has won Golden Globes, Emmys, and many other honors. Bates began acting in her twenties, but didn't achieve national recognition until she won the best actress Oscar for Misery — when she was 42 years old! “I was told early on that because of my physique and my look, I'd probably blossom more in my middle age,” she recently told Dear Doctor magazine. “[That] has certainly been true.” So if there's one lesson we can take from her success, it might be that persistence pays off.

When it comes to her smile, Kathy also recognizes the value of persistence. Now 67, the veteran actress had orthodontic treatment in her 50's to straighten her teeth. Yet she is still conscientious about wearing her retainer. “I wear a retainer every night,” she said. “I got lazy about it once, and then it was very difficult to put the retainer back in. So I was aware that the teeth really do move.”

Indeed they do. In fact, the ability to move teeth is what makes orthodontic treatment work. By applying consistent and gentle forces, the teeth can be shifted into better positions in the smile. That's called the active stage of orthodontic treatment. Once that stage is over, another begins: the retention stage. The purpose of retention is to keep that straightened smile looking as good as it did when the braces came off. And that's where the retainer comes in.

There are several different kinds of retainers, but all have the same purpose: To hold the teeth in their new positions and keep them from shifting back to where they were. We sometimes say teeth have a “memory” — not literally, but in the sense that if left alone, teeth tend to migrate back to their former locations. And if you've worn orthodontic appliances, like braces or aligners, that means right back where you started before treatment.

By holding the teeth in place, retainers help stabilize them in their new positions. They allow new bone and ligaments to re-form and mature around them, and give the gums time to remodel themselves. This process can take months to years to be complete. But you may not need to wear a retainer all the time: Often, removable retainers are worn 24 hours a day at first; later they are worn only at night. We will let you know what's best in your individual situation.

So take a tip from Kathy Bates, star of the hit TV series American Horror Story, and wear your retainer as instructed. That's the best way to keep your straight new smile from changing back to the way it was — and to keep a bad dream from coming true.

If you would like more information about orthodontic retainers, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can learn more about this topic in the Dear Doctor magazine articles “Why Orthodontic Retainers?” and “The Importance of Orthodontic Retainers.” The interview with Kathy Bates appears in the latest issue of Dear Doctor.

0 Comment(s) Permalink


Naperville, IL Dentist
Advance Family Dental Care
1567 N Aurora Road, Ste 143
Naperville, IL 60563
(630) 358-9899
Dentist in Naperville, IL Call For Pricing

Our Blog

Archive:

Tags

Facebook Twitter Our Blog Google Plus