Our goal is to provide you with the highest
quality of care in a compassionate and safe environment.
In order to do this, we use the most current periodontal
procedures, instruments, medications, and sterilization
techniques.
In this ever changing world one of the
most important ingredients is trust. We go to great
lengths to always be honest, dependable and professional.
The following is a brief description of our procedures.
We know that preventing the spread of
infectious diseases such as AIDS, herpes, hepatitis
and even the cold virus is critical and take sterilization
very seriously. For this reason we use extensive sterilization
procedures, going well beyond those recommended by the
American Dental Association and Centers for Disease
Control.
We use barrier techniques such as disposable
masks and gloves and change them for every patient.
Every piece of equipment is wiped-down with antibacterial
solution prior to every dental procedure. Sterile water
delivery systems are utilized. We use autoclave sterilization
for all instruments prior to dental examination and
treatment. You can be assured that our staff has been
specifically trained on sterilization procedures and
their importance.
While no dental procedure is 100% comfortable,
we go to great lengths to minimize any discomfort you
might feel. Many of our patients make statements like,
"This wasn't even painful? How did you do that?"
The following are some of the latest techniques we use
to provide you with as comfortable an experience as
possible.
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Relaxing Shoulder Pads
which relieve tension during procedures. |
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Headphones with a choice of
music. |
Patient comfort is one of the most important
aspects of care. Different patients have different needs
for pain and anxiety control medication. Depending upon
the procedure and your wishes, there are many medications
we can prescribe.
Injections of dental anesthesia can become
more painful if not precisely done or if the injection
is done at too rapid a rate. We give topical pre-anesthesia
before injections and take extra care to be slow and
precise.
For those patients that would feel more
comfortable with conscious sedation, we are pleased
to offer both intravenous sedation and nitrous oxide
analgesia. Both of these techniques will make you feel
relaxed and at ease. Although you will be awake, you
will not be aware of your surroundings. Conscious sedation
can allow you to remain calm during dental procedures,
with minimal recollection of your visit.
We strive to stay on the leading edge
of periodontal techniques and equipment. In order to
do this, we take a great deal of continuing education.
We also utilize advanced equipment in our office. This
includes:
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Low Radiation Digital X-Rays
which are safer than traditional X-rays and are
more convenient when planning treatment with your
general dentist. |
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Panoramic Radiography to be able to more
precisely diagnose and treat periodontal disease.
It also allows us to more accurately place dental
implants.
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Periodontal disease is a bacterial infection
that gets under the gums and into the bone around your
teeth. This infection must be removed and the area given
a chance to heal. There are two generally accepted treatments
for this depending upon the severity of your infection.
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The upper level of infection in
the pockets around your teeth can be removed
using specialized instruments. This procedure
is called, “Scaling and Root Planing”, “Phase
One Treatment” or “Initial Therapy”.
It is done under local anesthesia and is quite
different from the routine dental cleaning or “deep
cleaning” that is traditionally done in
the general dentist's office.
If your infection has spread into
the bone which supports your teeth, and is beyond
the level that can be reached in “Upper
Level Infection Removal”, then a surgical
procedure must be done to pull back the gums
and remove the lower level of infection. |
Dental implants have their own section
which describes their benefits and procedures. Click
here to view the page on dental implants.
When getting a new crown, the general
dentist must prepare your tooth to receive it. Sometimes
there is not enough tooth structure above the gumline
to accept a new crown. Crown lengthening provides more
tooth for your crown. This ensures a more stable crown
with less gum irritation afterwards.
Procedure: The periodontist
gives you a local anesthetic and gently recontours excess
gum and bone tissue to expose more of your natural teeth
Often times, the first thing people notice
about you is your smile. If your teeth appear small
when smiling, it can look unattractive. This is known
as a "gummy" smile. An uneven gum line can
also be distracting. In many cases multiple-tooth crown
lengthening can be done to give your teeth a longer
and more attractive appearance.
Procedure: The periodontist
gives you a local anesthetic and gently recontours excess
gum and bone tissue to expose more of your natural teeth.
Your jawbone is what supports your teeth
and gums. Unfortunately, periodontal disease dissolves
parts of your jawbone. This causes bone loss and eventual
loss of teeth. The first step is to remove the periodontal
disease and stop the bone loss. Then, in many cases,
various bone grafting techniques can be used to grow
back some of the jawbone that was lost.
Procedure: The periodontist
gives you a local anesthetic and gently opens the area
filling in the missing section with bone grafting material.
Longer teeth or exposed tooth roots can
look unsightly. They can also increase your sensitivity
to heat, cold or sweets. In some cases, gum tissue can
be placed in these areas.
Procedure: The periodontist
gives you a local anesthetic and gently places a gum
tissue graft over the area.
Some localized, topical antibiotics can
enhance your periodontal treatment. In certain isolated
circumstances, placement of antibiotic medicine can
also reduce infection.
Procedure: Topical antibiotics,
in various forms, are precisely placed in isolated
areas to improve healing. Afterwards the results are
closely monitored during follow-up visits.
Sometimes after an extraction there will
be a sunken spot in your gumline. This looks unsightly
and can jeopardize the appearance of a bridge that goes
over the area. Grafting material can be inserted under
the gum to fill out this depression.
Ridge augmentation can also be used to build up an area
so that a dental implant can be placed.
Procedure: The periodontist
gives you a local anesthetic and gently opens the area.
He then fills the sunken area with grafting material.
Each procedure is done with your comfort
and safety in mind. We work closely with your general
dentist to ensure you get the best possible result in
accordance with your general dentist's wishes. Please
feel free to ask questions before, during, or after
any of these procedures.
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