Author: Caliber Dental

Seniors at Higher Risk for Dental Cavities

You may think that as an adult you don’t have to worry about cavities anymore — but dental cavities aren’t just child’s play!

As we entered the new millennium, it was discovered that seniors were actually getting more dental cavities than children. Today, children and seniors are still the two highest at-risk groups for tooth decay.

Aging puts us at greater risk for dental problems — the wearing away of tooth enamel, receding gums and loss of jawbone are signs that our mouths are aging along with our bodies.

Your grandparents could probably tell you that, in their youth, most senior citizens had missing teeth. Many lost their teeth to dental disease, and a tooth extraction was a common treatment for dental problems.

With current dental technology, we’re relying less on old-fashioned dentistry and more on modern dental procedures to restore our smiles. That’s great news to seniors, who are keeping their teeth longer. Now for the bad news — anyone with natural teeth can get dental cavities. And the longer we have our teeth, the more we expose them to the elements that can cause tooth decay.

The Risk Factors

Unfortunately, geriatric teeth are less able to handle the normal wear and tear of those in younger generations. There are several reasons why seniors may be prone to more dental cavities:

Lack of Fluoride — Most of our nation’s seniors didn’t have the benefits of community water fluoridation while growing up. And with the popularity of bottled water today, seniors may still not be getting the fluoride they need. Fluoride strengthens teeth and helps prevent tooth decay.

Arthritis — Those who suffer from arthritis, or other medical conditions, may have a hard time gripping a toothbrush or floss, making it difficult to practice daily oral hygiene.

Gum Disease — Over 95% of seniors have receding gums, exposing the roots of teeth and making them vulnerable to the same dental diseases that affect the tooth’s crown. Root decay is becoming much more common among seniors.

Dry Mouth — Dry mouth is often a side effect of medications or health problems often associated with seniors. Saliva is needed to wash away food particles and neutralize the acid that promotes tooth decay. When our mouths are dry, our teeth become more susceptible to cavities.

Diet — Aging may cause our diet to change. Seniors often lean towards softer foods, which don’t always have the nutrients you need for healthy teeth. A diet heavy in carbohydrates and sugar also contributes to dental cavities.

Assisted Living — Although assisted living centers are designed to help our loved ones get the care they need, oral hygiene may fall by the wayside. Unfortunately, a lack of individual attention may keep seniors from maintaining their smiles.

Finances — When on a fixed income, oral health care may not be a priority. Some seniors can’t afford to pay for dental products or professional dental care.

Look Grandma — No Dental Cavities!

There are several ways seniors can improve their chances of staying dental cavity-free. A diet low in sugar and high in calcium promotes tooth health. If you aren’t getting enough fluoride, try using fluoride toothpastes, mouth rinses or tablets. Drinking water, sucking on sugar-free candy or chewing sugarless gum promotes saliva production and reduces dry mouth.

For seniors with dexterity problems, wrap tape or an elastic bandage around the toothbrush. If a wider grip is needed, you can even try taping a tennis ball, sponge or rubber bicycle grip to the handle. An electric toothbrush may also be helpful for those who cannot maneuver a manual toothbrush easily. And daily flossing should not be forgotten, either — floss holders and waxed floss may make it easier for seniors to continue their oral hygiene routine.

Because of the special dental needs of seniors, regular dental visits are necessary to maintain their oral health. Dentists use this time to check for the dental problems that affect older patients, including gum disease, root decay and oral cancer. If a senior you know is living in a nursing home, arrange for them to receive oral care and continue with their dental appointments. If transporting them to the dental office is impossible, try finding a dentist who can arrange in-house care at their facility.

Now that you have the chance to keep your teeth for a lifetime, you should take advantage of it. Taking the right steps to maintain your smile will help you remain cavity-free, so you can truly experience what your golden years have to offer!


Smart Snack: Brought To You By Apples

Getting kids to eat fruit, veggies and yogurt instead of candy, chips and ice cream might feel like pulling teeth. However, it’s worth the extra effort to educate and condition them to eat “smart” snacks that keep their teeth – and entire body – healthy.

Whether you’re transitioning older kids to a healthier, balanced diet or just getting started with a little one, here are some tips for creating lifelong, healthy snacking habits:

• Lead by example – Kids often mimic what you do, so it’s important that you eat smart snacks, too. And be sure to practice good oral hygiene in front of your kids. If you brush and floss after meals and snacks, your kids will too.
• Provide “creative” snacks — Show your kids that healthy snacks can be nutritious, good for your teeth AND fun. Prepare tasty combinations, such as apple slices with peanut butter, meat and cheese rollups, or yogurt sprinkled with granola and bananas.
• Involve your kids – When you make a grocery list, ask your kids to brainstorm about what kinds of food they’d like to eat. This is a good opportunity to guide them regarding what’s good or bad for their teeth. Then go grocery shopping together and teach your kids how to read the Nutrition Facts label so that they can check the sugar content.
• Prepare nutritious meals – Snacking smart is a great start, and good for the teeth, but so is eating well-balanced breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Make sure to add fruits and vegetables to every meal so that your kids incorporate them into their long-term eating lifestyle.

As your family dentist, we can help you come up with even more ideas for healthy snacks. Come in for a visit and we’ll happily work on a plan together.


Sleep Apnea

Did you know millions of people suffer from snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA)? It is estimated that at least 75% of the population suffer from these problems. Obstructive sleep apnea not only causes fatigue and severe daytime drowsiness, but many other problems such as poor memory, clouded intellect, personality changes, irritability, decreased sex drive, impotence, morning headaches and many health problems. Obstructive sleep apnea contributes to cardiovascular disease, as well as conditions such as hypertension, stroke, heart attacks and heart disease.
Many studies show that those with OSA have a 15% higher rate for health problems as well as a 15% higher mortality rate. Those with OSA are three times more likely to be in a car accident.
Snoring and Obstructive sleep apnea not only affects health and quality of life, but also severely affects a spouse or significant other’s life. Many studies show that spouses slept an additional 62 minutes and their quality of life increased significantly after their partner was treated.
What causes snoring and OSA? During normal sleep we breathe air in through our mouth and nose into our airway. If the muscles of the tongue and palate fall back into the airway, they can constrict the airway or completely close it off. When constricted the air causes the muscles to vibrate, thus causing snoring. When the airway is completely closed off, this causes an apnea event to occur (stop breathing) which causes your brain to awake you to start breathing again. Thus someone’s quality of sleep is greatly affected by these continuous awakenings or arousals throughout the night.
The first and most effective treatment for OSA is a CPAP machine. Unfortunately many people cannot tolerate wearing their CPAP and end up doing nothing to help their condition. Oral appliance therapy is an alternative to CPAP. An oral appliance is a small plastic device that fits over the teeth, just like an orthodontic retainer or mouth guard. The appliance is worn in the mouth during sleep to prevent the soft tissue of the throat from collapsing and obstructing the airway. Oral appliances work by slightly advancing the lower jaw which in turn moves the base of the tongue forward and opens the airway to allow improved breathing and reduced snoring and apneas during sleep.

History Bites

Dating back to the Neolithic Period, humans once believed the stabbing pain of a toothache was caused by a “tooth worm” that either appeared spontaneously or bored its way into the tooth. If the tooth pain was severe, it meant the worm was wriggling; if the aching stopped, the worm was resting.

Cultures across the world held stubbornly to this myth. In fact, folklore of the tooth worm persisted from at least 5000 BC to the beginning of the 18th Century. Here are two of our favorite prescribed remedies for the infamous tooth worm:

Ancient Greece

Perhaps foreshadowing future greatness, Greeks of the Archaic Period (8th to 6th centuries BC) made a fairly astute association but missed the connection. They used donkey milk as a mouthwash to strengthen the gums and teeth. However, the ancient Greeks then took a step in the wrong direction and applied a frog to the cheek or head on the side of the toothache to absorb the pain. Ultimately taking a turn for the worse, they would also spit into the frog’s mouth, hoping to transfer the pain to the unfortunate amphibian.

The Middle Ages

A millennium later, ironically, people of the Middle Ages actually used honey to coat an infected tooth. Believing the tooth worm shared their sweet cravings, people smeared aching teeth with honey and waited all night in vain, tweezers in hand, ready to snatch the tooth worm. And, apparently, those with a more pungent disposition applied a raw onion to the sore side of their face. Any way you slice it, successful courtship in the Middle Ages must have been a massive achievement!

21st Century Dentistry

Fortunately, modern dentistry made colossal strides since the Middle Ages. And preventing tooth decay is now easier and more convenient than ever. Equipped with the latest technologies and treatment plans, you can rest assured you won’t find yourself with a frog on your face . . . unless that’s your thing.

Call our office today to make an appointment before the dreaded tooth worm attacks and you find yourself rummaging through a swamp in search of wishful relief.


Snoring Sounds An Alarm

Quality sleep is necessary for optimal daytime functioning. Insufficient or poor sleep quality has been linked to diabetes, hypertension, driving accidents, gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD) and even premature death.

Research shows that approximately 87 million Americans snore and over 40 million of those are chronic suffers of sleep disorders. However, approximately only 10% of sleep disorders are diagnosed. Fortunately, dentists are now being trained to recognize signs of risk for sleep disorders and how to treat such disorders.

Snoring is a red flag as it could be an early sign of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). In fact, an alarming 40% of snorers have been shown to have OSA. And, while snoring and sleep apnea can stem from a variety of causes, the results are always disruptive for the sufferer and nearly as disturbing for the apnea patient’s family members.

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine now recommends oral appliances as a primary or first line of treatment for mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea. The guidelines state that patients should always be offered the choice of an oral appliance if they have mild to moderate OSA.

Our treatments include the latest in FDA-approved oral appliance therapy (OAT), also known as mandibular advancement devices (MAD), to keep the airway unobstructed during sleep. We are highly trained in fitting and maintaining a wide variety of oral devices to reposition the mandible, retain the tongue below the airway and provide positive airway space to limit apnea episodes and their related loss of sleep.

Results of this type of therapy have been encouraging, and many patients report fewer sleep interruptions, more restful nights and greatly diminished daytime fatigue as well as improved health. In addition, family members report improved sleep when their bed partners are less likely to awaken suddenly or snore.

It may interest you to know that many health insurance plans do reimburse for OAT and its related services and therapies. Our office will be happy to work with patients to assist in any coverage benefits that may apply to their course of treatment. We will work closely with you and your physician to provide the best treatment option.

Call us today to make an appointment. You’ll find yourself sleeping fitfully in no time.


Oral Cancer Bad and Good News

Unfortunately, the incidence of oral cancers is rising quickly. While cancers of the mouth used to be seen mostly in people with high risk factors (smoking, snuff use, alcohol use, family history of cancer, aging), the biggest rise has been in people with NO apparent risk factors. One out of four people who get oral cancer fall into the “no risk” group. In addition, oral cancers are very deadly, and horribly disfiguring, with only a 50% survival rate. EARLY DETECTION IS CRITICAL! 

More than 34,000 people are diagnosed with oral cancer every year, compared with 9,700 cases of cervical cancer per year. However, unlike cervical cancer, until recently there was no early detection test for oral cancers. The good news is that now that has changed! We now have  Identafi early screening test to assist in early detection.
We’re proud and excited to be one of the few offices in the state to have invested in the latest and best cancer screening technology available, the Identafi screening device. This amazing equipment allows us to “see” down to the inner cell layers for any cancerous or pre-cancerous cell changes, vastly improving our ability for early detection. Best of all, it is absolutely painless.
Patients with no risk factors need to have this inexpensive test done once per year, and those at high risk every six months.

A Beautiful Smile Is Precious And Priceless

Did you know that the shape, shade, length and spacing of your teeth could significantly affect your smile? And our smiles can greatly affect our self-esteem and confidence?

Common conditions that impact your smile negatively include:
• Broken, cracked or worn teeth
• Discolored teeth
• Missing teeth
• Crooked teeth
• Decayed teeth
• Gaps between teeth
• “Gummy smiles”
The good news is that, thanks to modern technology and improved materials, these physical issues can be dramatically changed to create natural, long-lasting and beautiful smiles.
Each patient, along with his/her unique circumstances, must be evaluated individually. Factors such as occlusion [bite], oral habits, available space, health of the gum tissue, severity of the problem and patient expectations must be taken into consideration during the makeover planning process.
Depending on the situation, there are a variety of treatment options to achieve excellent esthetic outcomes. For whiter natural teeth, in-office or at-home bleaching [whitening] techniques are available. Repairing teeth or closing spaces may be accomplished with tooth-colored composite resin bonding, porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns.
These procedures vary in time and cost along with differences in longevity and appearance. If you’re not satisfied with your smile, or you want to learn if you’re a good candidate for any of these remarkable techniques, call our office today for a consultation.

Child’s First Visit To The Dentist

We would like to see your child as soon as the first tooth erupts (around six months of age). The most important goals of this first visit are to introduce your child to the office surroundings and to develop a trust in the dentist and our staff. We view this visit as an icebreaker. If your child is too frightened, uncomfortable or uncooperative, we may have to re-schedule several short visits. You will be charged a reasonable fee for the time. Please do not try to explain the first visit yourself. Do not use phrases like “Be brave!” or “Don’t be afraid”. Don’t offer them a bribe with special treats to get them to the office. Rather be positive and reassuring that the visit will be fun and one in which to look forward.

The appointment should be 15-30 minutes and may include necessary x-rays, a gentle, comprehensive examination of the teeth, gums, jaws, bite and oral tissues. This is both to observe any problems and to establish a baseline so we can monitor your child’s growth and development. Depending on your child’s age and cooperation, we may also clean and polish their teeth and apply a topical fluoride. Please bring to this first appointment any of your child’s medical records. We will try to discuss and answer any questions you may have at that time. Our objective is to be gentle and patient so your child develops a positive attitude towards the dental office and their own oral health. Our long-term goal is prevention and minimizing and dental problems for him/her as they mature.


What is a Mouthguard?

A mouthguard is a flexible appliance that is worn in athletic and recreational activities to protect teeth from trauma. The dental profession unanimously supports the use of mouthguards in a variety of sports activities.

Why should I wear a mouthguard?

A mouthguard can prevent serious injuries such as broken teeth, jaw fractures, cerebral hemorrhage and neck injuries by helping to avoid situations where the lower jaw gets jammed into the upper jaw. Mouthguards are effective in moving soft tissue in the oral cavity away from the teeth, preventing laceration and bruising of the lips and cheeks, especially for those who wear orthodontic appliances. They may also reduce the severity and incidence of concussions.

In what sports should I wear a mouthguard?

Anytime there is a strong chance for contact with other participants or hard surfaces, it is advisable to wear a mouthguard. Players who participate in basketball, softball, football, wrestling, soccer, lacrosse, rugby, in-line skating and martial arts, as well as recreational sports such as skateboarding and bicycling, should wear mouthguards while competing.

Why don’t kids wear mouthguards?

Parents are sometimes uninformed about the level of contact and potential for serious dental injuries involved with sports in which the child participates. Some, though not all, schools reinforce the health advantage of mouthguards for their contact sports. Cost may be another consideration, although mouthguards come in a variety of price ranges.

What are the different types of mouthguards?

Stock mouthguard: The lowest cost option is a ready-made, stock item, which offers the least protection because the fit adjustment is limited. It may interfere with speech and breathing because this mouthguard requires that the jaw be closed to hold it in place. A stock mouthguard is not considered acceptable as a facial protective device.

Mouth-formed mouthguard: There are two types of mouth-formed mouthguards. The first is a shell-liner mouthguard that is made with an acrylic material that is poured into an outer shell, where it forms a lining. When placed in an athlete’s mouth, the protector’s lining material molds to the teeth and is allowed to set. Another type is a thermoplastic, or “boil-and-bite,” mouthguard. This mouthguard is softened in hot water and then placed in the mouth and shaped around the teeth by using finger, tongue and sometimes biting pressure.

Custom-made mouthguard: The best choice is a mouthguard custom-made by your dentist. It offers the best protection, fit and comfort level because it is made from a cast to fit your teeth.

How should I care for a mouthguard?

  • Clean your mouthguard by washing it with soap and cool (not hot) water.
  • Before storing, soak your mouthguard in mouthwash.
  • Keep your mouthguard in a well-ventilated, plastic storage box when not in use. Make sure the box has several holes so the mouthguard will dry.
  • Heat is bad for a mouthguard, so don’t leave it in direct sunlight or in a closed automobile.
  • Don’t bend your mouthguard when storing.
  • Don’t handle or wear someone else’s mouthguard.
  • Call your dentist if there are any problems.

Root Canals: Planting A Lasting Image

For a severely infected tooth, there are often only two treatment options: root canal therapy or tooth removal. In most cases, a root canal is the preferable choice, because it’s the only way to save a tooth. Extractions are the treatment of last resort.

A root canal consists of the dentist making a small hole in the tooth and then removing the tiny nerves and blood vessels within the root(s). The roots are then shaped, disinfected and filled with an inert material.

While root canals are the most feared of all dental procedures – largely due to lingering stories of outdated treatment methods, which paint the wrong picture – today this procedure can be performed with minimal discomfort. Furthermore, the success rate is quite high; 90% of patients experience no further complications after the procedure.

In the rare instances where a root canal fails, there are still options available. In many cases, the root canal can be performed again. If this isn’t possible, a procedure called an apicoectomy can be performed. An apicoectomy involves the removal of the root’s tip and then placing a filling over the severed root tip. If these measures fail, the tooth may have to be removed.

However, please remember that modern root canal therapy is both safe and overwhelmingly effective. Plus new techniques continue to build upon the already high success rate.

Call our Caliber Dental office today if you experience severe tooth pain. We will examine your tooth and advise on the most appropriate course of treatment.