August 2012 - The Dental Place

August 28, 2012

Cosmetic dentistry seeks to provide patients with a range of treatments designed to reconstruct a person’s smile, perhaps through the use of dental implants, or enhance an existing smile through treatments such as teeth whitening.

Cosmetic dentists offer a range of treatments to their clientele. Although each dentist will offer slightly different treatments, almost invariably they share a common goal: to provide the patient with the best dental care possible, at a price they can afford.

Unfortunately, due to the technologies involved, certain cosmetic dentistry procedures can be a bit pricey and so many people who want specific treatments and results may exclude themselves due to a financial restriction.

Dental insurance may, in some instances, provide coverage for some or all of the treatments a patient requires. This is, however, dependant on the type of coverage afforded by the insurance provider. Not all procedures will be covered through a dental insurance policy, and there may be restrictions placed on certain treatments.

Cosmetic dentists recognize the need for patients to be satisfied with their smile, and so seek to make treatment as affordable as possible by offering patients the option of paying for their dental care through forms of credit agreements, such as those offered by Care Credit and CitiHealth, which offer low or interest-free repayment plans for a range of cosmetic dentistry treatments.

Of course, there are other options for patients seeking to finance their dental transformation; some will turn to a bank in order to arrange a personal bank loan, while others will perhaps use a credit card. While both methods are perfectly acceptable, the interest charged on either is often much higher than that offered through a dedicated dental care financier.

Whatever the treatment a patient requires in order to restore their confidence in their smile, financial barriers needn’t be an exclusion to seeking out the right treatment and achieving the desired results; and a discussion with our skilled and dedicated team to discuss the range of options available can go a long way to developing a financial strategy for a winning smile.

Contact The Dental Place in Grand Prairie TX at 972-264-5795 for more information and to schedule your consultation.

August 17, 2012

Dental implants are a permanent solution to restoring lost teeth, and have become a common treatment performed by implant dentists in recent years. However, the treatment can be traced back hundreds of years, where tooth replacements were performed as long ago as the Ancient Egyptian era.

There is historical evidence to suggest that the Ancient Egyptians would fashion replacement teeth out of seashells that were then placed into the gums. The minerals found in seashells, would in some instances, bond with the jawbone. Throughout history, civilizations have found ways to replace lost teeth, including scavenging the remains of cadavers and placing those teeth into their own mouths.

However, the accepted modern practice of dental implants didn’t come about until 1952 when a Swedish orthopedic surgeon, Dr Per-Ingvar Brånemark, discovered that titanium placed in a rabbit’s femur had bonded successfully with the animal’s bone tissue to such an extent he was unable to remove the metal. Further research concluded that titanium could, in fact, be used to structurally join with living bone tissue; he called the process ‘osseointegration’.

Dental implants are a permanent solution to restoring lost teeth, and have become a common treatment performed by implant dentists in recent years.

It was in 1965 that saw the emergence of the first proper dental implants; a small titanium rod that an implant dentist would place into the gum tissue of the patient and capped with a prosthetic covering. After many successful years of research, Brånemark published his findings and in 1978, dental implants became a commercialized commodity that would be available to everyone as a method of restoring lost teeth.

The process of dental implantation involves a dental surgeon placing a small titanium rod into the patient’s gum tissue, and following a period of osseointegration, affixes a prosthetic dental crown made from porcelain on top of the titanium rod to produce a natural looking dental replacement that behaves in much the same way as a regular healthy tooth.

Such is the popularity nowadays of dental implants that more than seven million procedures have been successfully implemented.

If you are in need of a tooth replacement solution in the Arlington TX area, contact The Dental Place to learn how we can help.

August 6, 2012

For anyone with a smile that looks tired and jaded, tooth whitening is a possible solution. However, a common question always seeks to be answered: is it really possible to have a brighter smile with teeth whitening?

Ask any cosmetic dentist and the answer will be yes, teeth whitening can brighten your smile and restore a tired, discolored smile back to its natural brilliance. Depending on the severity of the staining, a range of tooth whitening solutions exist to deliver the results you want.

For minor staining, for example, that exists on the tooth’s enamel, specially formulated toothpastes may be sufficient to treat staining and brighten teeth. However, toothpastes’ effect is gradual, and it may take several weeks before the desired results are achieved.

Tooth whitening kits are a popular choice, and these can be bought over-the-counter in most drugstores or through a cosmetic dentist. Drug store kits are often a generic nature, with a one-size-fits-all tooth tray and a ready-mixed bleaching solution that may or may not produce the desired result.

By comparison, teeth-whitening kits supplied by a cosmetic dentist will be much more customised, with a proper-fitting tooth tray and a bleaching solution that has been formulated by the dentist to achieve the desired results both at home, or in the dentist’s office.

Available only from a cosmetic dentist, the Opalescence teeth whitening system, for example, is one that is designed to be performed both at-home, on the move, and in the dental office.

Opalescence teeth whitening system is a gel-based treatment that is administered via a customised bleaching tray and is available in a range of strengths to treat even the most stubborn staining, with fast, effective results.

For those who want to whiten their teeth on the move, Opalescence can be supplied in prefilled disposable packs in a range of flavours to taste. On-the-go treatment is fast, with a typical treatment of around one hour, once a day yielding noticeable results in just one week.

And, for those who seek a quick fix, in-office Opalescence treatment uses a unique chemical formula that isn’t reliant on heat or light to activate its special properties, and provides noticeable results in around one hour. And with potassium nitrate and fluoride as part of its composition, not only will it whiten teeth, but also strengthen them as well.

For more information and to learn how you can benefit from teeth whitening, contact our Grand Prairie dental office at 972-264-5795 and schedule your professional consultation today.