02 9411 5678CROWNS AND BRIDGES
Crowns are a dental restorative the cover the entire viable tooth or dental implant but not the root of the tooth that is inside the gum. Crowns are usually installed to:
- Provide an aesthetically pleasing, fully functional tooth.
- Protect a tooth weakened from decay.
- Hold together a severely damaged tooth.
- Cover a tooth after Root Canal treatment.
- Cover a dental implant, to look and function as a normal tooth.
- Support a dental bridge.
- There are several time of crown.
All-Resin: A cheaper option, but liable to wear down over time, and prone to crack under pressure.
Metal Teeth: Made of Alloys often including gold, metal teeth are strong and long lasting, though they do not look convincingly like real teeth.
Porcelain crowns: A long term solution that looks and functions like a normal, healthy tooth. The outer layer of porcelain, which is fused to a metal cap underneath, can be convincingly matched to the colour and shape of the surrounding teeth. These crowns are more expensive than most alternatives, but with the general maintenance required of all teeth they can last a lifetime.
It usually required two appointments to crown teeth. On the first visit the tooth requiring the crown will need to be assessed and prepared for replacement. An impression will be made of the mouth in order to facilitate the best manufacture of the permanent crown. A temporary crown is provided till the permanent crown is fitted at the second appointment. Care must be taken with the temporary crown, as it is not a durable as the final product.
PREVENTIVE DENTISTRY
Preventive Dentistry is the routine maintenance of teeth and gums that prevents problems from occurring. In addition to twice daily personal cleaning and flossing individuals require annual dental exams and cleanings. Preventive dentistry not only prevents problems with teeth and gums, it helps significantly with overall health, with poor dental hygiene linked to such disorders as heart disease and diabetes.
Preventive dentistry is for everybody, and regular dental exams should be scheduled at least one per year.
Preventive dentistry can prevent the vast majority of dental problems.
ROOT CANAL TREATMENT
If decay reaches the nerve inside your tooth then bacteria can infect that nerve, causing intense pain. Alternatively, a filling deep enough to be near the nerve will also cause severe pain. Both of these situations will require root canal treatment.
Each tooth in your mouth contains the pulp and nerves that provide nutrients and feeling for the tooth. If these become inflected they die, seriously risking the loss of the tooth and damage to the surrounding jawbone. Failure to treat an infected tooth risks further infection of the surrounding jaw and teeth. Further infection requires more teeth to be treated or removed entirely.
Once a root canal treatment is carried out the tooth is crowned, protecting further infection, replacing the lost material and preventing fracture and loss of the treated tooth.
After root canal treatment a crowned tooth will last a lifetime, provided that it is given the regular care that all teeth require. Despite the missing pulp the tooth can be adequately nourished by the surrounding gum.
WISDOM TOOTH EXTRACTION
Wisdom teeth develop behind the molar teeth in most adults as some point between the ages of 17 and 25. The adult mouth rarely has enough room to accommodate these extra teeth, meaning the new teeth can lead to crowding (which pushes otherwise healthy teeth out of alignment), impacted teeth (that do not properly emerge from the gum), damaged teeth that would otherwise be healthy, or serious gum infections. Removal of these wisdom teeth is often necessary to preserve the health and alignment of the rest of the mouth.
Wisdom teeth are often removed in sets. When one tooth requires removal the complementary tooth, that is the tooth it (potentially) contacts on the opposing jaw, will also require removal. Failure to do this will result in unremoved tooth continuing to emerge till it makes contact with the opposing gum, inevitably causing problems. Having two teeth removed on the same side of the mouth allows a patient to still chew food on the other side of the mouth.
Wisdom tooth extraction can be performed under local anaesthetic or with the patient fully sedated. Patients will feel drowsy after surgery and will require a family member or friend to drive them home.
AFTER WISDOM TOOTH SURGERY WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND:
PAINKILLERS. We will advise patients on what to take.
MOUTHWASH. Either warm salty water or commercial Mouthwashes, twice daily.
COLD-PACKS. When applied on the cheek cold-packs reduce pain and bleeding.
Allow the wound to heal naturally by not spitting up the blood that needs to solidify in the area where your tooth was removed.
DO NOT SMOKE for at least 48 hours after your wisdom tooth extraction.