Archives for April 2024

SmileDirectClub Abandons Its Patients

Posted on by .

A smile direct club illustration with an x through it.
In case you haven’t heard, SmileDirectClub has closed its doors. Leaving patients not quite through with their treatments completely on their own. Here is what happened. Many people didn’t realize that SmileDirectClub had a habit of squelching complaints and negative reviews. They did that by requiring clients who wanted a refund to sign a non-disclosure agreement and remove anything negative they posted about the company. People complied in order to get their money back. Then, this past June a court ordered them to cease that practice, which also released those under the agreement. Suddenly, negative reviews were everywhere and the truth about the company was making itself known. In September they filed for bankruptcy. By December, unable to find a buyer, they closed their business.

They sent a notice out to their remaining clients that they would no longer be helping them, even if they were not done with their treatments. They would not be sending them any more aligners. However, if they still owed money to SmileDirect, they were told they were expected to continue payments. Nice, huh?

This isn’t the only company like this out there. I am sure that many of the clients from SmileDirect are scrambling trying to find a similar company that can help them finish out their treatments. However, there is a danger in that. All of these online companies are working without you being under the care of a dentist. Sure, they say they have a dentist looking at your images, etc., but that is not adequate or safe.

There is no way to tell if a patient has gum disease from an image, unless it is seriously advanced. You do not want to try to move your teeth while you have gum disease because you risk serious problems, including the teeth becoming loose.

There is also the fact that the human body does not always cooperate. This means your treatments have to be adjusted to keep you on track and your teeth roots healthy.

Invisalign is a fantastic treatment when done under the care of a qualified dentist. If you’ve been dumped by SmileDirect, look for an Invisalign dentist and they will be able to help you get your treatment back on track.

There is a hidden benefit to those aligners, as well. They can double as teeth whitening trays. This means your dentist can provide you with some teeth whitening gel to wear with your aligners allowing you to straighten and whiten your teeth at the same time, giving you a mini smile makeover.

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

Preventing Facial Collapse with Dentures

Posted on by .

I have an impending disaster. I’ve recently been diagnosed with a severe calcium deficiency. My dentist is suggesting that I remove all of my teeth because they will just give me problems from here on out. My concern about that, aside from the whole not having teeth thing, is facial collapse. I am willing to go to the dentist every month if need be to try and save my teeth. However, if it really won’t be possible to save them, is there any way to avoid facial collapse?

Stacey

Dear Stacey,

Before you allow your dentist to remove any of your teeth, I am going to highly suggest that you get a second opinion. Dentists have different levels of desire to work to save teeth. Some dentists will do everything possible to save teeth. Others prefer to just remove and replace teeth. I feel confident that you will be able to find a dentist who is willing to help you save as many teeth as possible.

I also have some doubts about what your dentist told you. Having a calcium deficiency in adulthood should have no impact on your teeth. Your teeth are fully developed as an adult. What a calcium deficiency can do is lead to cramps, nerve pain, and osteoporosis. It will not deteriorate your teeth.

Dealing with Facial Collapse

Before and After Facial Collapse

Before and after facial collapse.

Let’s say, however, by some fluke every dentist just wants to remove all of your teeth or something else happens to destroy your oral health. Facial collapse happens when you wear completely removable dentures. Your body, sensing that you no longer have any roots of your teeth, will resorb the minerals in your body in order to use them elsewhere in your body. The reason it is called facial collapse is because that resorption shrinks the jawbone. Eventually you would not have enough of your jawbone to use in your body.

The way to prevent this is by having dental implants placed and then anchor your dentures to them. These are often called implant overdentures. The implants serve as prosthetic tooth roots, signaling to your body that you still need the minerals in your jawbone to support them.

I truly do not think you are going to need this. Get that second opinion. You’ll probably find you will be better served with a different dentist.

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

Veneers for a Collapsed Bite? Nope

Posted on by .

I have a really hard time with my smile. First, when my mouth is relaxed you can’t even see my teeth. Even when I smile it has to be pretty forced in order for you to actually see my teeth. My jaw aches a lot. I do wear a night guard because I grind my teeth. You can see my smile a little better when I do. My dentist is suggesting porcelain veneers to fix this issue. That is quite a big expense. Before I invest in that, can you tell me if porcelain veneers are my best option?

Alana

Dear Alana,

A chart showing the connection between muscles, jaw joints, and teeth

I am very glad you wrote before going forward with any treatment. Bear in mind that I haven’t examined you, but what you have described sounds like you have a collapsed bite, along with some TMJ issues that have resulted from it. Porcelain veneers alone is not the right treatment for this. You would need to open up your bite. This is done with dental crowns. However, before you do this, don’t just go to your dentist and say, “let’s do this with dental crowns instead.”

This is one of the most advanced procedures a dentist can do and if it is not done carefully and methodically, it can leave you in massive pain for the rest of your life. Right now you have TMJ symptoms. If this is done incorrectly, you’ll have severe TMJ disorder.

In a situation such as yours, it would need to be done provisionally, working reversibly. Whatever dentist you have do this needs to start by getting the provisional crowns successful first. For you, success should look like the following:

  • You are completely out of pain
  • Your teeth meet together properly
  • Your upper teeth should show normally
  • There should be no difficulties speaking
  • You should love how they look

This may seem like an impossible order. However, there are dentists with the right training to do this. Look for someone who has been to one of the following post-doctoral training institutions:

  • The Las Vegas Institute for Advanced Dental Studies
  • Dawson Academy
  • The Pankey Institute

I cannot stress how important it will be that you find the right dentist for this. Do not feel guilty about using a different dentist for this than your general care. That is a common, and necessary, practice.

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