Dental Implant Surgery Recovery

While dental implant surgery offers a long-term solution for missing teeth, a smooth recovery process is crucial for optimal results. Here’s a guide to what you can expect and how to promote proper healing:

Pain and Discomfort: Mild to moderate pain is expected. Your dentist will prescribe medication to manage this effectively.

Swelling: Facial swelling around the implant site is common and typically subsides within 2-3 days. Apply ice packs to the area for short intervals (15 minutes on, 15 minutes off) to reduce swelling.

Bleeding: Minor bleeding at the implant site might occur for the first 1-2 days. Gauze packs can be used to control minor bleeding.

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Dental Implant Surgery Side Effects

Dental implant surgery is a well-established procedure for replacing missing teeth, offering significant benefits. However, like any surgery, it’s essential to be aware of potential side effects. Here’s a breakdown of what you might encounter:

Discomfort and Pain: Mild to moderate pain is expected after surgery, manageable with medication prescribed by your dentist.

Swelling: Facial swelling around the implant site is common and usually subsides within a few days.

Bruising: Bruising may occur in the surgical area and typically fades within a week.

1952: The Pivotal Discovery: A Swedish orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Per-Ingvar Brånemark, made a groundbreaking discovery. During a study on bone healing, he observed that titanium cylinders implanted in rabbit bones fused seamlessly. This phenomenon, termed osseointegration, became the foundation for modern dental implants.

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Single Tooth vs. Multiple Teeth Replacement Options

Missing teeth can significantly impact your smile, confidence, and even chewing ability. Fortunately, modern dentistry offers various solutions to restore your oral health and function. Here’s a comparison of two common approaches:

Dental Implant: Considered the gold standard due to its durability, natural look, and function. An implant screw is surgically placed in the jawbone to act as an artificial tooth root. A crown is then attached to the implant for a permanent restoration.

Dental Bridge: A fixed bridge involves placing crowns on the teeth adjacent to the gap and attaching an artificial tooth in between. Requires modifying healthy teeth, potentially compromising their long-term health.

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All-on-4 vs. Traditional Dental Implants

Both All-on-4 and traditional dental implants aim to replace missing or damaged teeth, but they differ significantly in their approach. Here’s a breakdown to help you understand:

Traditional Implants: Each missing tooth typically requires a single implant. Depending on the number of teeth missing, this could involve multiple implants (up to 10 or more for a full arch).

All-on-4: This technique utilizes only four implants per jaw (upper or lower) to support a fixed denture. Strategic placement, including strategically angled implants in the back, allows for this efficient approach.

Traditional Implants: A multi-step process. Initial surgery inserts the implants, followed by a healing period (several months) for osseointegration (fusion with jawbone). After healing, another procedure attaches the replacement teeth.

All-on-4: Often completed in one surgery. The implants are placed, and a temporary fixed denture is attached on the same day. After healing and osseointegration, a permanent denture is secured.

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Aesthetic Dentistry

Bleaching/whitening

What Is It?

Tooth whitening lightens teeth and helps to remove stains and discoloration. Whitening is among the most popular cosmetic dental procedures because it can greatly improve how your teeth look. Most dentists perform tooth whitening.

Whitening is not a one-time procedure. It will need to be repeated from time to time if you want to maintain the brighter color.

Bleaching/whitening

Veeners

Dental veneers (sometimes called porcelain veneers or dental porcelain laminates) are wafer-thin, custom-made shells of tooth-colored materials designed to cover the front surface of teeth to improve your appearance. These shells are bonded to the front of the teeth changing their color, shape, size, or length.

Veeners
Veeners

Aesthetic Inlays / Onlays

Aesthetic inlays / onlays are the common preference now over traditional amalgam filling. Many people are choosing to replace their fillings with natural-colored inlays and onlays for aesthetic reasons.

Aesthetic Inlays / Onlays

WHAT ARE AESTHETIC INLAYS AND ONLAYS?

Aesthetic Inlays / Onlays

An inlay or onlay is a type of material which is placed inside or over the surface of a decayed or damaged tooth and are seen as a good alternative to a crown. Placed to cover the top surface of the tooth, they are made from a variety of materials which resembles the natural color of your own teeth to make it more visually attractive.

ADVANTAGES OF AESTHETIC INLAYS AND ONLAYS

The main benefit is that they fit in very well with the rest of your teeth. The material used is ‘tooth colored‘ and has a realistic appearance, which is good news from a cosmetic point of view.

This procedure is often part of an overall ‘smile makeover, in which various procedures are performed to enhance the appearance of teeth and provide a huge confidence boost.

There is no risk of the inlays and onlays becoming discolored over time. They are also easy to clean as part of a daily dental routine and provide extra support for a tooth.

What Can You Do About Sensitive Teeth?

If you pass on hot or cold drinks because you know they’ll make your teeth hurt, it may be time to talk to your dentist about the possibility that you have sensitive teeth.

Sometimes other things can aggravate them, too, like sweet and sour foods or even cold air.

To be able to treat these tooth twinges, it helps to know what might be behind them. Once you’ve nailed down the cause, you can find a solution.

Take Care of Your Tooth Enamel

That’s a hard, protective layer that helps your teeth deal with everything you put them through. When it’s gone, nerve endings that cause pain are exposed.

If you have sensitive teeth, it’s possible some of your enamel has worn away.

To prevent or put the brakes on that damage:

Don’t brush too hard. Do you clean your teeth with a heavy hand? You might be taking off more than just plaque. Side-to-side brushing right at the gum line can make your enamel go away faster. You should use a soft-bristled brush and work at a 45-degree angle to your gum to keep enamel clean and strong.

Avoid acidic foods and drinks. Soda, sticky candy, high-sugar carbs — all of these treats attack enamel. Instead, snack on:

  • Fiber-rich fruits and vegetables
  • Cheese
  • Milk
  • Plain yogurt

These will moisten your mouth and help fight acid and bacteria that can eat away at your teeth. Saliva is one way your mouth deals with them.

You can also drink green or black tea or chew sugarless gum. If you do eat something acidic, don’t rush to brush. Wait an hour or so to strengthen before you scrub.

Unclench your teeth. Over time, teeth grinding wears away your enamel. Sometimes, addressing your stress can stop the problem. If that doesn’t work, your dentist can fit you for a splint or a mouth guard.

If the problem is severe, you may need dental work to change your teeth’s position, or a muscle relaxant.

Take a break from bleaching. The quest for pearly whites may cause your pain. Thankfully, sensitivity from bleaching is usually temporary. Talk to your dentist about how the treatment might be affecting you, and whether you should continue it.

Get to the Root of the Problem

Sometimes, tooth sensitivity can be a sign of other issues, like:

Naturally shrinking gums. If you’re over 40, it could be that your gums are showing signs of wear and tear by pulling away from your teeth and uncovering your tooth roots. Those roots don’t have enamel to protect them, so they’re much more sensitive than the rest of your tooth.

Tell your dentist if your gums look like they’re receding. It can be a sign of other problems, like gum disease. Serious cases may need a gum graft. That moves tissue from somewhere else to cover the bare area.

Gum disease. Plaque and tartar buildup on your teeth can make your gums pull back. Sometimes, disease can set in. It can destroy the bony support of your tooth. Don’t smoke. It can lead to gum disease. To treat it, your dentist may do a deep clean of your teeth, called planing or scaling, that scrapes tartar and plaque below the gum line. You could also need medication or surgery to fix the problem.

A cracked tooth or filling: When you break a tooth, the crack can go all the way down to your root. You’ll notice pain when your tooth is cold. How your dentist fixes the crack depends on how deep it goes. If it’s a small crack that ends before your gums start, your dentist can fill it. If it’s below your gum line, your tooth will have to be pulled.

Treatment

Once you’ve found the problem, there are things your dentist can use to help ease your pain, including:

  • Toothpaste for sensitive teeth
  • Fluoride gel
  • Fillings that cover exposed roots
  • Sealants
  • Desensitizing pastes (not used with a toothbrush) you can get from your dentist
  • Mouthguard to protect teeth if you grind

If your case is serious, your dentist might suggest a root canal.

It’s also important not to shy away from dental care because of tooth pain. Ignoring your teeth can make things worse. Brush and floss twice a day to help keep your smile bright and pain-free. And see your dentist for a checkup twice a year.

Smoking Effect On Teeth

How Does Smoking Lead to Gum Disease?

Smoking and other tobacco products can lead to gum disease by affecting the attachment of bone and soft tissue to your teeth. More specifically, it appears that smoking interferes with the normal function of gum tissue cells. This interference makes smokers more susceptible to infections, such as periodontal disease, and also seems to impair blood flow to the gums – which may affect wound healing.

Do Pipe and Cigar Smoking Cause Dental Problems?

Yes, like cigarettes, pipes and cigars do lead to oral health problems. According to results of a 23-year long study published in the Journalof the American Dental Association, cigar smokers experience tooth loss and alveolar bone loss (bone loss within the jawbone that anchors teeth) at rates equivalent to those of cigarette smokers. Pipe smokers also have a similar risk of tooth loss as cigarette smokers. Beyond these risks, pipe and cigar smokers are still at risk for oral and pharyngeal (throat) cancers — even if they don’t inhale — and other oral consequences — bad breath, stained teeth, and increased risk of periodontal (gum) disease.

Are Smokeless Tobacco Products Safer?

No. Like cigars and cigarettes, smokeless tobacco products (for example, snuff and chewing tobacco) contain at least 28 chemicals that have been shown to increase the risk of oral cancer and cancer of the throat and esophagus. In fact, chewing tobacco contains higher levels of nicotine than cigarettes, making it harder to quit than cigarettes. And one can of snuff delivers more nicotine than over 60 cigarettes.

Smokeless tobacco can irritate your gum tissue, causing it to recede or pull away from your teeth. Once the gum tissue recedes, your teeth roots become exposed, creating an increased risk of tooth decay. Exposed roots are also more sensitive to hot and cold or other irritants, making eating and drinking uncomfortable.

In addition, sugars, which are often added to enhance the flavor of smokeless tobacco, can increase your risk for tooth decay. A study published in the Journal of the American Dental Association showed that chewing tobacco users were four times more likely than nonusers to develop tooth decay.

Smokeless tobacco also typically contains sand and grit, which can wear down your teeth.

Kick the Tobacco Habit

Regardless of how long you have used tobacco products, quitting now can greatly reduce serious risks to your health. Eleven years after quitting, former smokers’ likelihood of having periodontal (gum) disease was not significantly different from people who never smoked.

Even reducing the amount you smoke appears to help. One study found that smokers who reduced their smoking habit to less than half a pack a day had only three times the risk of developing gum disease compared with nonsmokers, which was significantly lower than the six times higher risk seen in those who smoked more than a pack and a half per day. Another study published in the Journal of the AmericanDental Association found that the mouth lesion leukoplakia completely resolved within 6 weeks of quitting in 97.5% of patients who used smokeless tobacco products.

Some statistics from the American Cancer Society present some other sobering reasons to quit smoking. They state that:

  • About 90% of people with cancer of the mouth, lips, tongue, and throat use tobacco, and the risk of developing these cancers increases with the amount smoked or chewed and the duration of the habit. Smokers are six times more likely than nonsmokers to develop these cancers.
  • About 37% of patients who persist in smoking after apparent cure of their cancer will develop second cancers of the mouth, lips, tongue, and throat, compared with only 6% of those who stop smoking.

How Can I Quit Tobacco?

To stop using tobacco, your dentist or doctor may be able to help you calm nicotine cravings with medications, such as nicotine gum and patches. Some of these products can be purchased over the counter; others require a prescription. Other medications require a prescription.

Smoking cessation classes and support groups are often used in tandem with drug therapy. These programs are offered through local hospitals in your community and sometimes through your employer or health insurance company. Ask your doctor or dentist for information on similar programs they may be familiar with.

Herbal remedies, as well as hypnosis and acupuncture, are other treatments that may help you kick the habit.

11 Ways to Keep Your Teeth Healthy

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Take care of your teeth

Achieving healthy teeth takes a lifetime of care. Even if you’ve been told that you have nice teeth, it’s crucial to take the right steps every day to take care of them and prevent problems. This involves getting the right oral care products, as well as being mindful of your daily habits.

1. Don’t go to bed without brushing your teeth

It’s no secret that the general recommendation is to brush at least twice a day. Still, many of us continue to neglect brushing our teeth at night. But brushing before bed gets rid of the germs and plaque that accumulate throughout the day.

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2. Brush properly

The way you brush is equally important — in fact, doing a poor job of brushing your teeth is almost as bad as not brushing at all. Take your time, moving the toothbrush in gentle, circular motions to remove plaque. Un removed plaque can harden, leading to calculus buildup and gingivitis (early gum disease).

3. Don’t neglect your tongue

Plaque can also build up on your tongue. Not only can this lead to bad mouth odor, but it can lead to other oral health problems. Gently brush your tongue every time you brush your teeth.

4. Use a fluoride toothpaste

When it comes to toothpaste, there are more important elements to look for than whitening power and flavours. No matter which version you choose, make sure it contains fluoride.

While fluoride has come under scrutiny by those worried about how it impacts other areas of health, this substance remains a mainstay in oral health. This is because fluoride is a leading defence against tooth decay. It works by fighting germs that can lead to decay, as well as providing a protective barrier for your teeth.

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5. Treat flossing as important as brushing

Many who brush regularly neglect to floss. “Flossing is not just for getting those little pieces of Chinese food or broccoli that may be getting stuck in between your teeth,” says Jonathan Schwartz, DDS. “It’s really a way to stimulate the gums, reduce plaque, and help lower inflammation in the area.”

Flossing once a day is usually enough to reap these benefits.

Here’s a selection of dental floss to try.

6. Don’t let flossing difficulties stop you

Flossing can be difficult, especially for young children and older adults with arthritis. Rather than give up, look for tools that can help you floss your teeth. Ready-to-use dental flossers from the drugstore can make a difference.

7. Consider mouthwash

Advertisements make mouthwash seem necessary for good oral health, but many people skip them because they don’t know how they work. Schwartz says mouthwash helps in three ways: It reduces the amount of acid in the mouth, cleans hard-to-brush areas in and around the gums, and re-mineralizes the teeth. “Mouthwashes are useful as an adjunct tool to help bring things into balance,” he explains. “I think in children and older people, where the ability to brush and floss may not be ideal, a mouthwash is particularly helpful.”

Ask your dentist for specific mouthwash recommendations. Certain brands are best for children, and those with sensitive teeth. Prescription mouthwash is also available.

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8. Drink more water

Water continues to be the best beverage for your overall health — including oral health. Also, as a rule of thumb, Schwartz recommends drinking water after every meal. This can help wash out some of the negative effects of sticky and acidic foods and beverages in between brushes.

9. Eat crunchy fruits and vegetables

Ready-to-eat foods are convenient, but perhaps not so much when it comes to your teeth. Eating fresh, crunchy produce not only contains more healthy fiber, but it’s also the best choice for your teeth. “I tell parents to get their kids on harder-to-eat and chew foods at a younger age,” says Schwartz. “So try to avoid the overly mushy processed stuff, stop cutting things into tiny pieces, and get those jaws working!”

10. Limit sugary and acidic foods

Ultimately, sugar converts into acid in the mouth, which can then erode the enamel of your teeth. These acids are what lead to cavities. Acidic fruits, teas, and coffee can also wear down tooth enamel. While you don’t necessarily have to avoid such foods altogether, it doesn’t hurt to be mindful.

11. See your dentist at least twice a year

Your own everyday habits are crucial to your overall oral health. Still, even the most dutiful brushers and flosses need to see a dentist regularly. At minimum, you should see your dentist for cleanings and checkups twice a year. Not only can a dentist remove calculus and look for cavities, but they will also be able to spot potential issues and offer treatment solutions. Some dental insurance companies even cover more frequent dental checkups. If this is the case for you, take advantage of it. Doing so is especially helpful if you have a history of dental issues, such as gingivitis or frequent cavities.

Importance of Brushing With Tooth Paste

Brushing with toothpaste is important for several reasons. 

  • First and foremost, a toothpaste and a correct brushing action work to remove plaque, a sticky, harmful film of bacteria that grows on your teeth that cause cavities, gum disease, and eventual tooth loss if not controlled. 
  • Second, toothpaste contains fluoride, which makes the entire tooth structure more resistant to decay and promotes remineralization, which aids in repairing early decay before the damage can even be seen. 
  • Third, special ingredients in toothpaste help to clean and polish the teeth and remove stains over time. Fourth, toothpaste help freshen breath and leave your mouth with a clean feeling.

What type of toothpaste should I use?

 As long as your toothpaste contains fluoride, the brand you buy really does not matter, neither does whether or not it is in the paste, gel or even powder form or containing a certain flavor. All fluoride toothpaste work effectively to fight plaque and cavities and clean and polish tooth enamel. Your toothpaste brand should bear the ADA (American Dental Association) seal of approval on the container, which means that adequate evidence of safety and efficacy have been demonstrated in controlled, clinical trials.

If your teeth are hypersensitive to hot or cold, consider trying a toothpaste designed for sensitive teeth. These “desensitizing” toothpaste, which contains strontium chloride or potassium nitrate, protect exposed dentin by blocking the tubes in the teeth that are connected to nerves. Desensitizing pastes must be used for at least one month before any therapeutic effects are felt.

Toothpaste containing baking soda and/or hydrogen peroxide (which are both good cleansing agents) give the teeth and mouth a clean, fresh, pleasant feeling that can offer an incentive to brush more, but fluoride is the true active ingredient at work protecting your teeth. Some prefer a tartar-control toothpaste containing pyrophosphates to prevent the build-up of soft calculus (tartar) deposits on their teeth. New pastes offer advanced whitening formulas aimed at safely removing stains to make teeth brighter and shinier, although they can’t nearly match the effectiveness of a professional bleaching formula administered or prescribed by a dentist.

How much should I use?

Contrary to what toothpaste commercials show, the amount of paste or gel needed on your brush for effective cleaning does not have to be a heaping amount. Simply squeeze a pea-sized dab of paste on the top half of your brush. If you brush correctly, holding the toothbrush at a 45-degree angle and brush inside, outside and between your teeth, the paste should foam enough to cover all of your teeth. Children under age 6, however, should be given a very small, baby pea-sized dab of toothpaste on their brush.

Is brushing with toothpaste enough to fight cavities and gum disease?

No. Although brushing thoroughly after each meal helps, flossing your teeth every day to remove plaque and food particles between teeth and at the gumline is just as important. Studies show that plaque will regrow on teeth that are completely clean within three to four hours of brushing.

8 Tips to Improve Dental Hygiene

A healthy mouth absolutely provides us nutrition for the physical body, but more importantly, it also improves our social interaction and encourages self-esteem. 

Our mouth serves as a “window” to the rest of the body, providing signals of general health diseases. For example, pale or bleeding gums can be a sign of blood disorders or low bone level in the lower jaw might be an early sign of osteoporosis. Poor oral health is significantly associated with major chronic diseases. 

Evidence from population-based studies significantly concludes a robust connection between poor oral health and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, kidney disease, oral cancer, adverse pregnancy outcomes, stomach ulcers, obesity and many more health diseases. 

Two main diseases which affect our Oral Health are Dental Caries (bacterial invasion of the tooth which demineralizes its surface and results in holes) and Gum Disease(bacterial invasion along the gum line causing an inflammatory response damaging the tissues and bones that support the teeth.) 

8 Tips to prevent tooth decay and gum disease: 

  1. Brush your teeth twice a day.

Don’t underestimate its importance. This is a simple step that should never be overlooked. Brushing your teeth in the morning and more importantly again at night is important to remove plaque build-up and bacteria that lead to tooth decay and periodontal disease. The Modifies Bass technique where you should hold the brush head at 45 degrees angle, partly on the gums, and gently move the brush in tiny circular motions or small horizontal strokes 20 times on each tooth shall improve your oral hygiene significantly. Note: Do not brush too vigorously as it can damage your gums and teeth. 

2. Floss daily.

Your brushing is not complete without flossing. Floss can reach the crevices too small for your brush bristles, so it’s a necessary step for a clean mouth. 

3. Oral Irrigators.

These are newer cleaning aids which pump water in a steady or pulsating manner and flushing out food and bacterial byproducts. 

4. Skip the sugar.

Sugary and starchy foods cause are action in your mouth that leads to tooth decay. Sugar reacts with the bacteria in your saliva to form an acid that erodes your tooth enamel, the outer protective layer of your teeth.

5. Swish with mouthwash.

For an added boost to your oral hygiene routine, rinse with an anti-bacterial mouthwash which is prescribed by your dentist. 

6. Use fluoride toothpaste.

Fluoride helps strengthen your tooth enamel to combat tooth decay.

7. Brush your tongue.

Don’t neglect your tongue! Your tongue harbour’s bacteria too, so use your toothbrush or a tongue scraper to give it a cleaning.

8. Pay attention to your mouth and gums.

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 Note when your gums look inflamed or if you spot blood while brushing. Don’t ignore aches and pains. Consult your dentist to make sure it’s not a symptom of something serious.

Parents play a very important role in making sure that oral hygiene practices are taught early in childhood. Restrict bottle feeding to meal times. Avoid putting your baby to sleep with a bottle. The milk or juice that pools in the mouth will bathe teeth in the sugars on which bacteria feed. Before their teeth grow in, get your baby accustomed to regular oral care by wiping their gums twice per day with a clean, soft, thin cloth, such as a handkerchief. 

After your baby’s teeth erupt, switch to a baby toothbrush moistened with water. Don’t use toothpaste until your child is old enough to spit it out. Swallowing toothpaste while their teeth are developing can cause a condition called fluorosis, which occurs from absorbing too much fluoride and causes their teeth to look mottled or grainy. Your smile is one of the first things people notice. Good Oral Health changes far more than your outward appearance. It renews your confidence. It changes the way you view yourself. What’s more? it changes the way others see you.