400 Year Old Dentures

Archaeologists recently unearthed a 400 year old set of dentures from a monastery in Tuscany. The appliance, made from the wearer's lost teeth and gold bands, is the oldest ever discovered of its type. It is thought that the denture was held in place by looping string around four holes in the gold framework. We hope that the string was tight- the wearer couldn't exactly swing by the store for a tube of Poligrip!

Interestingly enough, this ancient denture still shares some features with its modern counterparts. Today we use plastic or porcelain teeth, but removable partial dentures still utilize a metal framework for rigidity. While you won't find a denture held in with strings, many appliances have wire clasps that achieve a similar function. Overall, the similarities are striking, though we much prefer today's offerings!

With the advent of implant dentistry, many patients may think of dentures as ancient history. However, they are still an important and viable option for replacing lost teeth. If you would like to know more about your choices in completing your smile, please give our office a call!

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Dental Questions: Why Do I Need A Deep Cleaning?

According to recent estimates from the CDC, about half of all American adults have some form of periodontal disease. In these patients, gingivitis (inflammation of the gum tissue) has progressed to affect the bone and tissue levels around the teeth. The body's natural response to tarter (hardened plaque) is to lower the bone levels around the teeth, creating deep periodontal pockets.

In normal, healthy tissue, the pockets around the teeth have a depth of about 1-3 millimeters. With a toothbrush or floss, you can clean to a depth of about 4mm at home. Additionally, a toothbrush can remove soft, loose plaque but is ineffective at removing hardened tartar. Cleaning pockets deeper than 5mm or removing tartar from teeth requires the skills of a dental hygienist or a dentist. 

Patients with Severe periodontitis have pockets over 5mm on multiple sites throughout their mouths along with gum recession, bleeding and excessive tartar. For this group, a simple cleaning will not suffice. To manage their disease, a hygienist/dentist will provide a deep cleaning, also known as scaling and root planing.  Here, the gums are numbed so that the ulcerated tissue around the deep pockets is undisturbed by the cleaning process. The practitioner then proceeds to remove all tartar and plaque from the teeth, including the areas far below the gum line. This process is commonly performed over multiple appointments, so that your entire mouth is not numbed at once. 

The ultimate goal of a deep cleaning is to plane the roots of the teeth so that new tissue can heal around them, creating shallower pockets. However, the deep cleaning session is only a half treatment. We can get the teeth cleaned and ready to heal, but periodontal disease can only be managed long term with good oral hygiene- brushing twice a day for two minutes and flossing daily. 

Scaling and root planing is only one of many options in treating periodontitis. Depending on the location and severity of the disease, a general dentist or periodontist might recommend anything from a deep cleaning to gum surgery. As with everything in dentistry, a complete exam (including X-rays) is imperative in creating an appropriate treatment plan. If you would like to schedule an appointment today, please contact our office!

Case Presentation: Anterior Crowns

Everyone wants beautiful and uniform teeth, but can you create a smile too "perfect?" In these before pictures, notice how this patient's teeth are smooth, consistently colored and similar in shape. While these qualities sound good on paper, they add up to a less than natural looking smile. We replaced the older porcelain and metal crowns with brand new Emax lithium disilicate restorations. The incisors were lengthened to fill out the smile line and gentle variations were added to the fronts of the teeth. Additionally, the translucent nature of Emax reacts to ambient light similarly to natural teeth. These small changes better mimic real dental enamel, and thus create a more life-like smile. 

If you would like to know more about our cosmetic dental services, please contact our office. We pride ourselves in creating beautiful smiles customized to the individual patient's wants and needs. Schedule an exam today!

Dental Sealants

According to a recent report from the CDC, dental sealants could potentially prevent 80% of cavities in school aged children. They also add that sealants generally save money over a child's lifetime and prevent the eating, speech and learning problems associated with cavities and dental pain. Could your child benefit from a sealant? What is a "sealant" anyways? Keep reading for the full story. 

A dental sealant is a thin layer of filling material placed in the pits and grooves of the back teeth. By blocking out these hard-to-clean areas, we can prevent food from sticking and eliminate spots that are difficult or impossible to clean with a toothbrush. First, the tooth is prepared using gentle air abrasion or an acid etch. We then flow the sealant material throughout the tooth and use a special light to harden it. Finally, we check to make sure the final product is completely smooth and doesn't interfere when your child bites or chews. The entire appointment takes about thirty minutes (varies with number of teeth to be sealed and cooperation) and doesn't require a shot. 

In the past, sealants received bad press for possibly "sealing in" decay or (if improperly placed) creating a catch to trap food. Recent research has shown that placing sealants over small areas of decay actually arrests bacterial grown and has the same effect as removing the decay. Likewise, we use a number of techniques to make sure our sealants are properly placed on clean, dry teeth. We wont let anything but the best leave our office!

Would your child benefit from sealants? Statistically, most children have at least one tooth that has pits or grooves that would qualify for this treatment. However, a complete dental examination is necessary to tell for certain. If you would like to know more about sealants or any other procedures offered at Thousand Oaks Family Dentistry, please give our office a call!

Cleanliness in the Dental Office

With our modern understanding of bacteria, infections and transmission of diseases, cleanliness is an absolute priority in the dental office. In any practice, one of the biggest concerns is patient health and safety. With this in mind, we would like to take a moment to show you what goes into keeping our office clean!

For starters, every instrument that we use in your mouth is either single-use or sterilized. In our office (and most offices nation wide) we use a device called an autoclave to ensure the sterility of our instruments.  After thoroughly washing our tools to remove off loose debris, they are dried and placed inside one of our two autoclaves.  These ovens use steam, heat and high pressure to kill bacteria, eliminate spores and destroy infectious agents like viruses or foreign proteins. We regularly test our autoclaves for their effectiveness using bacteria cultures to ensure nothing survives the cleaning cycle.  The end result of these practices is a safe dental experience that eliminates the possibility of patient-to-patient infection.

Beyond instruments, every surface the patient or our staff encounters in a treatment room is either covered with a disposable barrier or cleaned with a disinfectant.  Dentistry produces a number of potentially infectious aerosols, making thorough cleaning between patients an absolute necessity. Additionally, we use clean deionized water in our chairs that is further filtered before delivery.  Beyond any special techniques, keeping an organized and clutter free office allows us to ensure every surface is clean to the highest standards. We hope it shows!

At Thousand Oaks Family Dentistry, our goal is to provide high quality dentistry in a relaxing and safe environment. If you would like to know more about our cleaning protocols or any other procedure, please give our office a call. We want our patients to be confident that they are receiving the absolute best care possible!

Zirconia Crown and Bridge Replacement

Subtle changes can have powerful effects in cosmetic dentistry! Check out the crowns and bridge patient's before photos. The opaque shade and rounded features gave these teeth a definite "chiclet" appearance. Additionally, gum recession had left the teeth with dark lines surrounding their bases that contrasted with the white porcelain. By working with the Opus One Dental Laboratory, we were able to create new crowns with more lifelike shape and translucency. Even with similar color shades, the new crowns/bridge look infinitely more natural and beautiful in this patient's mouth. 

If you would like to know more about the amazing transformations we can achieve with crowns, bridges, implants and veneers, give our office a call. We specialize in providing the highest quality dentistry with a personal touch. Come see what Thousand Oaks Family Dentistry can do for you!

Dentistry and Diabetes

Across the United States, about 30 Million people suffer from type 1 or type 2 diabetes. Chances are a friend, a family member or even you yourself are affected by this condition. Most patients are familiar with the general process of diabetes: your body either doesn't make enough insulin or responds to insulin improperly, leading to high amounts of sugar in the blood (known as high blood glucose). However, diabetes has global effects on all parts of the body, ranging from the heart, muscles, limbs and even the mouth. In this article we would like to explore the relationship between diabetes and dentistry. Take a look!

As you may have expected, poorly controlled diabetes has a negative effect on your teeth and gum. On the very surface, the root cause of type 2 diabetes (over consumption of sugar) is the same as dental decay. However, while diabetes comes from the quantity of sugar, cavities are caused by the duration of consumption. Diabetes also has a significant effect on the health of the gums and bones. Periodontal disease is typically worse in patients with diabetes, and has a poorer response to cleanings. Additionally, all types of surgeries (gum grafts, implants, sinus lifts, etc.) take longer to heal and have a higher chance of failure. The high concentration of blood glucose decreases the bodies ability to self-heal, and thus interferes with the procedure's success. 

In an interesting turn, new research suggests that controlling periodontal disease has a positive effect on managing blood glucose in diabetics. It is though that by removing the chronic inflammation from your gum tissues, your body can better regulate it's response to inulin. This has had a profound effect on the management of diabetes and highlights the interplay between your mouth and your overall health. Some insurance companies, like Blue Cross Blue Shield, are now offering coverage for an additional yearly cleaning to their patients with diabetes. For them, better gum health results in better diabetes control and lower costs. For you, it means an easier path towards a healthy blood sugar level!

Of course, diabetes is only one of many conditions that has a delicate interplay with dentistry. Pregnancy, smoking, cancer treatment, HIV/AIDS and even stress can effect your dental treatment and how your body will respond. This highlights the importance of keeping us updated on all aspects of your health history- even the parts that seem irrelevant. If you would like to know more about the importance of dentistry in overall health, please contact our office!

We Want Your Candy, But Don't Worry It Is For a Good Cause

This Halloween local trick-or-treaters will join kids across the nation when they bring their Halloween candy and handwritten letters of gratitude to Thousand Oaks Family Dentistry.  The goodies will be shipped to Operation Gratitude for inclusion in care packages to U.S. Service Members deployed overseas in harm's way and to First Responders serving here at home.  Dr. Kari Ann Hong and staff are proud to participate in the Operation Gratitude Halloween GIVE-Back Program to reduce excess sugar consumption, prevent dental decay, and teach children the importance of saying "Thank you" to all who serve. 

What to Expect When Your Baby is Teething

This post comes courtesy of the American Dental Association's Mouth Healthy blog.  The original article can be found here. Enjoy!

Teething can be a very stressful time for parents between fussy daytime hours and restless nights. For better or for worse, it is a necessary, natural and healthy process of childhood development. Babies have twenty primary teeth that start coming in at about 6-12 months and finish at about three years of age. During this time, irritability, poor sleep, loss of appetite and increased drooling are common. Fever, rash and diarrhea are not normal signs and need to be evaluated by a pediatrician.

To sooth a teething baby, you might be tempted to try a anesthetic gel like Orajel or Orabase. These products may provide temporary relief, but pose a risk of inducing a rare but fatal condition known as methemoglobinemia. Rather, try gently rubbing your clean finger, a cold spoon or a piece of gauze over the irritated gums. You can also use a teething ring to alleviate some pain. This age range is a critical period for your child to become inoculated with decay causing bacteria, so make sure whatever you use is cleaned and not shared between family members or siblings. 

We know that caring for an infant is a true labor of love. If you ever have any questions about your child's dental needs, development or expectations, please give our office a call! 

Fall Festivals, Winter Parties and Dental Woes

The next three months will be marked by office parties, fun sized candy bars and indulgent meals with your friends and loved ones. For many of us, this can also be a stressful time between end-of-year obligations and hosting family gatherings. Thousand Oaks Family Dentistry wants to take a moment to remind our patients about the risks posed during these fall/winter months, and how to manage them. Remember, it only takes a few easy changes to protect your teeth and save yourself from future dental headaches. 

Firstly, avoid marathon meals and snack sessions. Does that bowl of halloween candy call to you at all hours of the day? Every time we eat or drink anything other than water, our mouths become acidic enough to demineralize enamel for thirty minutes. If you eat one candy bar every half hour, your teeth would spend the whole day in this softened state. Likewise, the classic 4pm to 9pm holiday meals have the exact same effect. Minimize your risks by paying attention to the duration over which you are eating. By limiting yourself to three meals a day with light sugar/carb free snacks in between, you give you saliva a chance to use its natural remineralizing powers. 

Another way to avoid dental troubles this holiday season is to stay hydrated with water. When the thermometer drops, we often gravitate towards teas, coffees and other warm beverages. Unfortunately, these are often acidic, sugary and sipped over a long period of time. This creates a perfect storm for cavities and damaged enamel. Try to swap out some of your favorite fall/winter drinks for an old fashioned glass of water. This small change spares your teeth from demineralization, provides a rinsing effect and (if you are drinking tap water in Southern California) provides a beneficial dose of fluoride. Its a win-win-win!

Finally, make sure to take care of yourself! As the days get shorter and the calendars get more full, it becomes easy to forget the basics. Make sure to brush twice a day with fluoride toothpaste and floss once a day. Additionally, don't ignore your regular dental cleanings and exams! It can make a huge difference in the longevity and comfort of your teeth. If you would like to know more about how to keep your teeth healthy this fall/winter season or schedule an exam, please give our office a call!