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My Blog
Posts for: January, 2021
Even though coronavirus lockdowns have prevented TV hosts from taping live shows, they're still giving us something to watch via virtual interviews. In the process, we're given occasional glimpses into their home life. During a Tonight Show interview with Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife, R & B performer Ciara, Jimmy Fallon's daughter Winnie interrupted with breaking news: She had just lost a tooth.
It was an exciting and endearing moment, as well as good television. But with 70 million American kids under 18, each with about 20 primary teeth to lose, it's not an uncommon experience. Nevertheless, it's still good to be prepared if your six-year-old is on the verge of losing that first tooth.
Primary teeth may be smaller than their successors, but they're not inconsequential. Besides providing young children with the means to chew solid food and develop speech skills, primary teeth also serve as placeholders for the corresponding permanent teeth as they develop deep in the gums. That's why it's optimal for baby teeth to remain intact until they're ready to come out.
When that time comes, the tooth's roots will begin to dissolve and the tooth will gradually loosen in the socket. Looseness, though, doesn't automatically signal a baby tooth's imminent end. But come out it will, so be patient.
Then again, if your child, dreaming of a few coins from the tooth fairy, is antsy to move things along, you might feel tempted to use some old folk method for dispatching the tooth—like attaching the tooth to a door handle with string and slamming the door, or maybe using a pair of pliers (yikes!). One young fellow in an online video tied his tooth to a football with a string and let it fly with a forward pass.
Here's some advice from your dentist: Don't. Trying to pull a tooth whose root hasn't sufficiently dissolved could damage your child's gum tissues and increase the risk of infection. It could also cause needless pain.
Left alone, the tooth will normally fall out on its own. If you think, though, that it's truly on the verge (meaning it moves quite freely in the socket), you can pinch the tooth between your thumb and middle finger with a clean tissue and give it a gentle tug. If it's ready, it should pop out. If it doesn't, leave it be for another day or two before trying again.
Your child losing a tooth is an exciting moment, even if it isn't being broadcast on national television. It will be more enjoyable for everyone if you let that moment come naturally.
If you would like more information on the importance and care of primary teeth, please contact us or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine article “Importance of Baby Teeth.”
Don’t let tooth loss affect your appearance. Dental implants can help.
Tooth loss is no joke. Losing several teeth can severely impact your ability to chew certain foods and affect your ability to speak. Over time, problems such as nutritional deficiencies, damaged natural teeth and digestive problems can set in. This is why it’s important to turn to our Eastpointe, MI, dentist Dr. Peter Jost as soon as possible to replace missing teeth. These days, millions of adults are rebuilding their smiles with dental implants. This is because this popular tooth replacement offers some unique and amazing benefits:
Replace All of Your Missing Teeth
Whether you need to replace a single tooth or an entire row of teeth, dental implants can help. Implants are artificial tooth roots made from titanium, one of the most durable materials ever made. These implants are then placed into the jawbone by our Eastpointe, MI, family dentist, where they can support everything from a dental crown to your current set of dentures.
Get a Tooth That’s Just Like the Real Thing
We know just how important it is to have an artificial tooth that is as close to your natural teeth as possible, and you won’t find anything better than implants. Implants truly mimic the functionality and look of a real tooth. No one will be able to tell the difference and you’ll be able to comfortably and confidently speak and chew without worrying about your implant. After all, implants are made from the most durable and long-lasting materials, so they are actually stronger than natural teeth in many ways.
Have Your Smile Forever
As long as you practice good oral hygiene your dental implant is designed to last a lifetime. They boast a very high success rate and when they fuse together with bone and tissue, they offer a permanent artificial tooth that you could have the rest of your life. While it can take months to get your new restoration, many of our patients are so glad they did. They now have a strong, confident smile that they can show off for the rest of their lives.
Do you have questions about dental implants? Want to find out if this tooth replacement is right for you? If so, the dental team here at Eastpointe and St. Clair Shores, MI, can easily help you determine the best way to restore your smile. Call us today at (586) 771-1460 to schedule a consultation.
The New Year: Time to put away those holiday decorations, collect tax records and—if you're a pro hockey player—get chummy with your dentist. That's right! After a disrupted 2020 season due to COVID-19, the NHL is on track to start again sometime in January. Before you know it, players will be hitting the biscuit (puck), while trying to avoid getting their chicklets (teeth) knocked out.
It's true that hockey has a roughhousing kind of reputation, which tends to lead to, among other things, chipped, fractured or knocked-out teeth. But to be fair, hockey isn't the only sport with a risk for orofacial injuries. It's not even top on the list: Of all contact sports, basketball has the highest incidence of mouth and facial trauma.
With over a half-million amateur and professional players, hockey still has its share of teeth, gum and jaw injuries. Fortunately, there's an effective way to reduce sports-related oral trauma—an athletic mouthguard.
Although there are different styles, most mouthguards are made of a soft plastic that helps cushion teeth against hard contact. You can sort most mouthguards into two categories: “boil and bite” and custom.
You can buy mouthguards in the first category online or in retail sporting goods stores, and they're relatively inexpensive. They're called “boil and bite” because they're first immersed in hot or boiling water to soften them. While the guard is still soft, the wearer places it in their mouth and bites down to create somewhat of an individual fit. On the downside, though, “boil and bite” mouthguards tend to be bulky with a fit that isn't as exact as it could be. This can make for uncomfortable wearing, which could tempt players not to wear them as often as they should. Also, because the materials are softer, they move with jaw movement and your teeth can move with them. Over time, teeth could loosen.
A custom-made mouthguard, on the other hand, is created by a dentist. We begin the process with a detailed mouth impression, which we then use to fashion the mouthguard. Custom mouthguards are more streamlined and fit better than their “boil and bite” counterparts. Because of this better fit, players may be more apt to wear them. They are more expensive, but compared to the cost of dental injury treatment, a custom mouthguard is a wise investment. For the best and most comfortable teeth, gum and mouth protection, you can't go wrong getting a custom mouthguard for the hockey players (as well as football and basketball players) in your family.
If you would like more information about athletic mouthguards, please contact us or schedule a consultation. To learn more, read the Dear Doctor magazine article “Athletic Mouthguards: One of the Most Important Parts of Any Uniform.”
If you're thinking about getting dental implants, you may be curious about how long it might take. The answer depends on the health of your supporting bone.
Bone is an integral part of implant functionality as bone cells gradually grow and adhere to the newly placed implant to give it its characteristic strength. The implant also requires an adequate amount of bone to accurately position it for the best appearance outcome.
If the bone is sufficient and healthy, we can proceed with the surgical placement of the implant. The most common practice following surgery is to allow a few weeks for the bone integration described previously to take place before finally attaching the crown. With an alternative known as a “tooth in one day” procedure, we install a crown right after surgery, which gives you a full smile when you leave.
There's one caveat to this latter method, though—because the implant still requires bone integration, this immediate crown is temporary. It's designed to receive no pressure from biting or chewing, which could damage the still integrating implant. We'll install the permanent crown after the implant and bone have had time to fully mesh.
So, if your supporting bone is sound, the complete implant process may only take a few weeks. But what if it's not—what if you've lost bone and don't have enough to support an implant? In that case, the length of process time depends on the severity of the bone loss and if we're able to overcome it. In some cases, we can't, which means we'll need to consider a different restoration.
But it's often possible to regenerate lost bone by grafting bone material at the implant site. If the bone loss is moderate, it may take 2 to 4 months of regrowth after grafting before we can perform implant surgery. If it's more significant or there's disease damage to the socket, it may take longer, usually 4 to 6 months. It largely depends on the rate of bone regeneration.
In a nutshell, then, the health of your jaw's supporting bone has a lot to do with whether the implant process will take a few weeks or a few months. Regardless of the time, though, you'll gain the same result—new, functional teeth and a more attractive smile.
If you would like more information on dental implant restorations, please contact us or schedule an appointment for a consultation. You can also learn more about this topic by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Implant Timelines for Replacing Missing Teeth.”
