As you age, your teeth will gradually wear down and develop fracture lines in them. A young 20 year old should have no fracture lines in their teeth, however a 60 year old should have multiple. Heavy grinders and bruxers (i.e. people who excessively clench their jaw) will have more fracture lines in their teeth. Teeth with large fillings are more prone to fracture. As a general rule teeth that have more than 60% of their surface as filling are prone to fracture. Our general dentistry services at Dental Essence include the application of crowns that help to repair damaged teeth and prevent further damage.
The dental crown procedure involved removing the outer 1mm of tooth structure to create room for the crown to fit. Once the tooth is prepared, the tooth crown can then be made one of two ways. The traditional laboratory made crowns or the one visit Cerec Crowns using CAD CAM. The laboratory made crowns have excellent colour matching as a dental technician creates the crown, and so are almost always used for the front teeth. As the colour match is not as critical for the back teeth, the Cerec Crown are a suitable option
Crowns can be made of porcelain, full gold or porcelain fused to metal (PFM). Full gold crowns are used for patients who have a very destructive bite; they are more durable than the porcelain and PFMs. PFM crowns are not frequently used as the all porcelain zirconia and monolith block crowns are just as durable as the PFM.
The disadvantage of the PFM is that you get dark metal shade coming through the gum line of the crown which looks terrible in the front teeth. Most patients undergoing root canal treatment are advised to get crowns as they are always at risk of fracturing. There are some cases where RCT do not need a crown.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
Your teeth are made up of calcium phosphate minerals. When you consume foods, they are chewed up, and the small remaining debris can add to the plaque biofilm already present on your teeth. Plaque is a thin sticky film that builds up on your teeth every 12 hours. The biofilm contains millions of bacteria.
The bacteria in your mouth (Streptococcus Mutans and Lactobacilli in particular) consume carbohydrates from the food in your diet and form LACTIC ACID. This acid formation occurs within five minutes of you consuming foods and can last up to forty five minutes in duration. The acid slowly eats away at the teeth causing loss of minerals in the tooth surface. Over a period of time, so many minerals are lost that the tooth starts to discolour, and then final the surface breaks which causes a cavity to form. When the cavity forms it is often detected too late as the tooth decay has progressed close to the nerve. The saliva in your mouth acts as a buffer and often neutralises the acids. If there is too much acid production then you go into acid demineralisation of your teeth which over a long period of time results in cavities.
To prevent dental decay from occurring, reduce your carbohydrate intake. We encourage our patients to cut back on foods/beverages that have high sugar and acidic content such as lollies, chocolates, carbonated soft drinks and fried chips. The less carbohydrates you ingest, the less the bacteria in your mouth has to form lactic acid and as a result reduce damage to your teeth. You should also check how frequently you eat. A normal person would normally have three main meals in the day; breakfast, lunch and dinner. This would mean on average, they would have three acid attacks during the day. A frequent snacker for example will have a coffee with two sugars, then breakfast, then mid-morning biscuits, lunch, then an afternoon snack then dinner and mint after the dinner. The more frequent snacking you do, the more acid damage you are doing to your teeth.
Drinking lots of water straight after you consume foods will neutralise the acids in your mouth and help reduce cavities. Chewing gum companies have been marketing their products making claims of reducing cavities. This is partially true as they do not tell you that the amount of saliva you create from chewing gum is quite small. You are better off drinking and rinsing your mouth with water; it’s cheaper and is in greater volume. There are some dentists who will also claim that by rinsing your mouth straight after you eat foods, you are washing the lost minerals out of your mouth.
That is correct to a degree, but what is the worst of the two evils? a) Having acid eat away at your teeth for the next 45 minutes, or b) rinsing your mouth, neutralising the acids and losing some minerals? I have been advising my patients the latter; in fact I have often told patients to brush their teeth straight after they eat foods to remove the debris so the acids don’t have a chance to form.
For patients with a high risk of getting cavities I recommend they rinse their teeth with NeutraFluor 5000 or NeutraFluor 9000, available from the chemist and dentist. The Fluoride in these mouth rinses creates Fluorapatite, which is a stronger and more acid resistant form of tooth structure. The Fluorapatite is 100 times more acid resistant that normal hydroxyapatite (normal teeth). For the scientist out there, Fluorapatite dissolves when a pH of 3 is reached compared to a pH of 5 for hydroxyapatite.
Any patient who comes to our dental clinic in Essendon can talk with the dentist about how to prevent cavities. People who are in high risk of getting decay are chefs, pregnant women, and obese people as they frequently taste their foods and consume carbohydrates on a regular basis. Other people who are also at high risk of getting cavities are methamphetamine (ice and speed) users and patients with xerostomia (dry mouth). These people have a reduction in the salivary flow and do not have any saliva to neutralise the acids in the mouth and as a result have a higher rates of cavities in the mouth. Dental Essence’s general dentistry services will assist you with the prevention of tooth decay and advise on the best solution for your individual circumstances.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
We often get asked by parents who come into Dental Essence, “at what age is the best time to bring children to the dentist?” The determining factor is how well the child can tolerate strangers. Some children will scream and shout before even entering the dental rooms. In cases like this, it’s best to wait and allow them to get used to the dental settings.
With a team of child-friendly Oral Health Therapists and dentists working at our family dental clinic in Essendon, we advise that the parents get an examination whilst the child is watching so they can see what a dentist or an Oral Health therapist is and that he/she counts teeth and makes sure that they are healthy. Once the child has observed mum and dad getting their teeth looked at, then they are more open to a simple dental examination.
As a general rule, the age of 3-4 years old should be a rough guide for their first dental visit. Prior to this age it is advisable that parents have a regular brief look inside their child’s mouth.
Young children often suck their thumbs or their dummies. In a growing child, this can adversely affect the shape of the teeth and bones of the oral cavity if left untreated. The result is an open bite of the front teeth with the teeth at the top not meeting the teeth on the bottom when a child bites down.
The best treatment is early intervention. These habits need to be detected early so that the upper shape of the jaw is not affected. Once the thumb sucking has been identified we need to then place a functional appliance to correct the open bite.
Children with cross bite need to be corrected very early, to allow normal growth to occur. If the crossbite is allowed to continue, you will get restricted growth of the upper jaw (constricted maxilla) or too much growth of the lower jaw. This results in a crowded teeth, and large shape deficiencies between the jaws.
Early correction allows for natural growth of the maxilla to catch up to the mandible, where as if left untreated until adulthood we are looking at surgery assisted expansion of the maxilla to correct the cross bite.
Once the maxilla has been expanded to the appropriate size the teeth can be straightened with orthodontics braces.
Cross Bite
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
Pregnancy has several effects on the oral cavity. There is the morning sickness, increase in food intake, and an increase in blood flow to the gums. These health conditions impact on the oral cavity in different ways. Dental Essence offers family friendly dental services specifically to meet the needs of pregnant women, helping them to maintain optimal oral health.
Morning sickness is more common in the first trimester when the organs of the foetus are forming. General nausea and vomiting is present more often in the morning but can occur all day long. The nausea can turn into vomiting especially if you are trying to clean your back teeth. Vomit contains some strong acids that can damage the dentition. Straight after vomiting it is advisable to rinse your mouth out and if possible to brush your teeth to get rid of the acids and debris that is inside your mouth.
Pregnancy will most likely result in increased snacking. Most cravings and snacks will contain carbohydrates of some form. Every time you place carbohydrates into your mouth you are creating an acid attack within 5 minutes, with these attacks lasting up to 45 minutes in duration. The carbohydrates are converted into lactic acids by bacteria. As a result of the more frequent snacking, tooth minerals are lost from the acid damage, and over time a cavity can result.
The increase in blood flow to the mouth is caused by hormones. It results in more bleeding of the gums. Once the baby is born the hormone levels return back to normal and the gums bleed less.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
Ageing can affect the dental health of seniors in several ways. As you age, your teeth will become more worn down; you will have more medication that can affect your salivary flow, and you may have lost some or all of your teeth over the many years. Dental Essence is the family dental practice that provides professional dental services for seniors.
Seniors who still have their teeth will have more wear and tear from decades of chewing. Those who have had their teeth for 50 years or longer are more likely to have fracture lines, wear facets and attrition. Younger patients in their 30s should not have any fracture lines and hardly any wear facets. Crowns are the standard treatment for teeth with multiple fracture lines.
As you age, you are more likely to be on multiple medications for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes or blood thinning medications etc. These medications can often have a disastrous side effect of reducing your salivary flow in your mouth. The dry mouth from the reduction of salivary flow will lead to an increase in decay. Saliva acts as a buffering agent and neutralises the acid damage that occurs from decay process.
If you have lost all of your teeth you can replace your teeth with dentures. Some patients find that the upper denture fits quite nicely and can chew well. But the lower denture is often loose and moves around the mouth and you cannot chew foods. In cases like this you can get implant supported dentures which will allow you to chew your foods.
Teenagers are quite often involved in sports. For many contact sports it is advisable to wear a custom fitted mouthguard. Wearing a mouthguard protects the teeth by dispersing forces to all of the teeth instead of just one tooth, thus potentially resulting in fracture. The best available mouthguard is a custom fitted mouthguard made by your family dentist or dental technician. The experienced dentists at Dental Essence in Essendon can help you with a custom moulded mouthguard, offering the tailored protection that you need.
Mouthguards from the chemist do offer some protection but they are not custom fitted to your teeth and do not fit as well. That said, the chemist made mouthguards are better than no mouthguard
The best age to be having braces is in your early teenage years. In severe cases it even better to start correcting even earlier using other devices, and then correcting the crowded teeth with braces. Orthodontic braces are a food trap. They are difficult to clean and require very good oral hygiene. This oral hygiene is important as it will reduce decalcification marks left by braces if the teeth and braces are not cleaned well. At the end of braces you will have straight teeth; it’s a question of whether you will have nice white teeth or yellow stained teeth from the plaque and decalcification.
For more information on dental services for teenagers, get in touch with Dental Essence in Essendon. Call (03) 9351 0999 or contact us online today.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
Gum disease (periodontitis) is a bacterial infection of the gums and bone around teeth. It is often caused by a build-up of plaque and tartar on your teeth and around the gums. The most common signs of gum disease are gums that are red, swollen, bleeding on gentle touch and bad breath. The general dental services offered by Dental Essence include preventing and treating gum disease.
Healthy gums are not inflamed so they appear pink and firm. Brushing twice a day and flossing once a day will disrupt the plaque build-up, so that your gums can remain good and healthy. However, regular tooth brushing does not remove tartar, which is the calcific deposit that forms around the gums.
Plaque and bacteria, if left around the gums, can cause gum irritation which results in inflammation, redness and swelling of the gums. This is known as gingivitis. Gingivitis can be treated with just a normal routine clean to remove plaque and tartar above the gums. However prolonged lack of care and gum disease treatment will lead to a more advanced type of gum disease known as Periodontitis.
As periodontitis progresses, the tartar starts forming underneath the gums and starts causing bone loss around the gums and teeth. That is why it is imperative to remove the tartar that occurs underneath your gums with root planing (Professional gum cleaning underneath your gums), as a normal routine clean will not remove the infectious debris.
If gum disease is left untreated it could result in receding gums, bad breath, an unpleasant taste in the mouth, bone loss and the possibility of losing teeth. This disease is slow and painless; it is often hereditary or heightened during pregnancy and is undetectable until a tooth is mobile.
New research has linked Periodontitis with other systemic diseases such as heart disease and stroke, smoking, diabetes and immune system disorders. Regular check-ups and cleans at our dental clinic is advisable as early intervention and treatment will ensure healthy teeth and gums.
Healthy Teeth & Gums / Gingivitis
Early Periodontitis / Advanced Periodontitis
When a tooth is infected with bacteria and has reached the nerve tissue inside the tooth, intense pain often develops. Less frequently an infected tooth may not cause any pain at all until an abscess forms.
The following are common symptoms that you may experience from infected an infected tooth:
Sensitivity to hot and cold liquids, sensitivity to sweets, pressure when biting (this tends to linger on for some time), severe tooth ache, throbbing, aching that wakes you up at night and swelling around the infected area.
It is advisable that if any or all of the above symptoms occur, that you visit your dentist as soon as possible. These are the obvious signs that the nerve inside your tooth is infected or damaged.
Your dentist will make a diagnosis by checking and examining the tooth, and taking x-rays to determine if the tooth can be saved. There are some cases when a tooth cannot be root canal treated and has to be extracted. In this scenario, our general dentist will then explain to you the options that are available at Dental Essence and may give you a referral to a specialist if required.
To alleviate the pain during infection phase, a tooth extraction or Root Canal Treatment is done to save the tooth. The dentist will remove the damaged and infected pulp, clean out the canal, enlarge then shape them. Anti-bacterials are placed inside the root canals to help stop the infection and inflammation. Once the bacterial infections is gone, the root canals are filled with clean material and is restored. Several visits are needed to complete this treatment.
Root Canal Treatment are not always 100 % successful as most dental practitioners are aware, complications may arise. The treated tooth can fracture before the completion of the RCT. The files used to clean the canals can break inside the canals. Success rates of molar canals are typically 90% whereas retreatment of RCT can be as low as 70%. Once completed it is recommended that the molar teeth are crowned to protect them from breaking or fracturing. A crown increases the longevity of the tooth.
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
A composite resin is a tooth coloured plastic resin filling material used to restore chipped teeth, decayed teeth and also to replace amalgam fillings. For the scientists and chemical engineers out there, the exact composition is a Bis GMA monomers, mixed with dimethacrylates, silica filler particles and a photo initiator. The composite resin that our general dentists use at Dental Essence is AesthetiX From Dentsply. It’s a nano micro hybrid which allows for more filler particles and reduces polymerisation contraction of the composite resin.
What this means is we use the best material with the least volume contraction. When we cure a composite resin, it actually shrinks and the lower the amount of shrinkage, the better. This shrinkage is caused by the resin component. If there is a greater amount of shrinkage, more gaps can occur between the filling and the tooth. This can result in bacteria infiltration and decay formation known as microleakage.
In simple English, composite resins are the standard filling material that dentists use today. There are other alternatives to white fillings such as Amalgams (silver) or Porcelain fillings. You can discuss the alternatives with our dentists at Dental Essence and make an informed decision as to which one suits you.
1. Less tooth structure is removed compared to amalgam. Composite resin is bonded using micro mechanical retention, and requires less tooth structure to be removed. Amalgam on the other hand needs to have grooves, hooks and under cuts in order to secure the amalgam in its place.
2. Composite resin bonds to your tooth, as opposed to filling it. It bonds to the tooth structure using acid etch and bonding adhesives. This allows the material to be used for bonding and veneering, outside of the tooth.
3. Composite resin is inexpensive in comparison to Porcelain. Porcelain being more durable and colour stable can cost more.
4. The procedure takes one visit to complete, as opposed to Porcelain restorations made by a dental lab which takes two visits. A Cerec CAD-CAM porcelain restoration will take 1 visit, but the colour does not blend in perfectly. White fillings take one visit in comparison.
1. Composite resin is not as strong or durable as porcelain or amalgam. It will also exhibit some minor wear. Composite resin (bonding) veneers will chip and fracture more frequently than porcelain veneers.
2. Not as colour stable as porcelain in terms of colour stability. Composite resin material is made from plastic. For the first two years it will look great, but as time goes by as you eat, drink coffee or red wine, smoke, use tomato sauce, you will discolour the composite resin. As you eat and chew food, the surface of the composite resin is scratched and gradually stains stick to the filling. You can think of composite resin as similar to plastic Tupperware; over time your plastic Tupperware will collect stains as its surface is scratched and stains collect in the small grooves.
3. Tooth needs to be kept dry and isolated and is technique sensitive.
White Fillings: Before / After
Before any procedure we will inform you of the risks by way of written informed consent documentation. Individual results may vary.
