Archives for March 2020

Crooked Front Tooth

Posted on March 31, 2020 by writeradmin.

I have a crooked front tooth. It’s sort of back behind my other tooth. My dentist is suggesting I pull the tooth, but I was wondering if I can just use Invisalign. If not, is there another option to pulling the tooth?

Humphrey

Dear Humphrey,

Whatever you do, don’t pull the tooth, especially if it is healthy! Your smile will never look quite right with an uneven number of teeth. I’m kind of flabbergasted your dentist is suggesting that. Some good news is you have three great options for fixing this crooked front tooth.

Straightening Your Smile with Invisalign

These use clear aligners to straighten your teeth instead of the metal wires and brackets you are stuck with using traditional braces. It used to be that Invisalign could only work on the most ideal of cases. Now, the procedure can handle the more tough, advanced orthodontic procedures.

It has an additional benefit of the aligners being able to double as teeth whitening trays. This will allow you to straighten and whiten your teeth at the same time. It’s like getting a mini smile makeover.

Straightening Your Smile with Porcelain Veneers

If you are happy with your smile other than the crooked tooth, you may not be interested in this option. It is more designed for a total smile makeover.

Porcelain veneers are the procedure celebrities turn to in order to get their Hollywood smiles. Using a skilled cosmetic dentist you can change the shape, size, and color of your smile simultaneously.

If you’re wondering if porcelain veneers would be a good option for you, ask for a complimentary remote smile consult. Send us a couple of selfies, and we’ll tell you.

Straightening Your Smile with Dental Bonding

If you want to straighten your smile quickly, but don’t want to invest in porcelain veneers, you could look for a dentist who does dental bonding. Like porcelain veneers, it will require an expert cosmetic dentist. This will only work on the crooked tooth and won’t last as long as porcelain veneers, but a skilled dentist can make your tooth look straight.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Should I Wait Until COVID-19 Passes to Get a Tooth Extracted?

Posted on March 25, 2020 by writeradmin.

I’ve had a fractured tooth but was putting off getting the crown. Now there is an abscess. I heard we’re supposed to put off dental care until after the quarantine is over. Do I wait on this? I’m absolutely miserable. Now my face is starting to swell. Can I just take antibiotics? What is your recommendation?

Pam

Dear Pam,

The directive is to avoid the dentist for routine procedures, depending on the state in which you reside. However, in this case, you are not dealing with anything routine. This would be in the category of emergency dental care. I wouldn’t put off getting this dealt with. Your face is already swelling, which means it has spread past your gums. If it reaches your heart, lungs, or brain it will become life-threatening quickly.

Antibiotics and Dental Infections

As for using antibiotics as a solution without seeing the dentist, that won’t work. They are used as a temporary means of getting the infection under control, but will not rid your body of the infection completely. Instead, you’ll feel better for a while, but when the antibiotics are completed, your infection will blow back up. This is because as the infection spreads through the pulp of your tooth, the pulp dies and is no longer receiving any blood flow. Without blood flow, there is no way for the antibiotic to reach the root causes of the infection.

The only true way to remove a dental infection is for the dentist to go in there and physically removed the infected tissue. There are two ways to do this. The first is with a root canal treatment. The dentist will remove the infected pulp and usually cover the tooth with a crown because it will become brittle and need protection. The depth and location of the fracture on your tooth may determine whether or not this is a possible solution for you.

Your second option is to have the tooth extracted. However, that complicates the issue because you’ll need to replace that tooth. The ideal replacement would be a dental implant. Given the current pandemic, you’d likely have to wait on that until things calm down. You can temporarily get a dental flipper to hold it in place.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta, GA Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Problem Lateral Incisors

Posted on March 14, 2020 by writeradmin.

Both my lateral incisors have been a bit of a disaster. One of them is congenitally missing. The other is slightly deformed. I’m planning on getting this fixed. All of it. What do you recommend?

Amaya

Dear Amaya,

I’m glad you wrote. The first thing you’ll want to do is make sure the space is appropriately opened for the tooth replacement. Invisalign is the ideal treatment for this. You can straighten them invisibly and comfortably— no metal wires and brackets. Then it is time to make your smile beautiful.

Depending on the color of your teeth, you may want to whiten them. The reason for that is once your restorations are made, their color is permanent. You don’t want to have them a color you won’t completely love. If you are pleased with the color than no worries. You can skip the teeth whitening.

Once it is time to replace the tooth, I suggest a dental implant. This is the best tooth replacement around. It will be like having a healthy, natural tooth there. You will need to find a dentist who is experienced in placing dental implants. It requires post-doctoral training, so make sure you ask the dentist where they received their dental implant training. Dental school isn’t enough. If they’re offended by the question, they are not the best dentist to do it. Move on.

As for the deformed tooth. I haven’t seen the tooth, so a lot of it will depend on the shape and condition of the tooth. What I recommend for that is you see a great cosmetic dentist. Have them look at the tooth. Based on that examination they will either suggest a dental crown or a porcelain veneer. Make sure you check out their smile gallery to make sure you like the results they get. If you do, make a quick call to their office to make sure the images are from cases the dentist did himself and not just stock photos.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.