Dentists in Silver Spring: Top Recommendations for a Cleaner Mouth, PART 1

One of my favorite expressions used by dentists in Silver Spring is this: "You don't have to brush all of your teeth, just the ones you want to keep!" If you consider the statistics for gum disease (80% of all Americans suffer from some form or stage of it) it becomes apparent that there is a massive divide between what we know about oral health care and what we do about it. We all know we should be brushing our teeth twice a day, if not more frequently. We all know we should be flossing every single day. We all know that we should book an appointment with dentists in Silver Spring twice a year to have our teeth thoroughly inspected and professionally cleaned. But if we all adhered to these guidelines, would the statistics of gum disease be as dire as they are? No, of course not!


Here's your second chance to turn your oral health around and give it the attention it deserves. Everyone wants the social benefits of a beautiful smile, complete with white flawless teeth and pink, healthy-looking gums, say dentists in Silver Spring. In this three-part article series, we will discuss the top recommendations for maintaining a cleaner and ergo, healthier mouth.

Dentists in Silver Spring: Let's Begin With Brushing…

You may think you know all you need to know about brushing your teeth, but according to dentists in Silver Spring (and what they see in the average patient) there is much we all still need to learn! We've brushed our teeth for as long as we can remember. But the right habits aren't always nurtured and when this happens, incorrect, even detrimental habits become normal for us. This is why so many patients don't think they're doing anything wrong, even when they skip brushes, say dentists in Silver Spring.

First and foremost, everyone should brush their teeth at least twice a day. You should do this as soon as you wake up, when your mouth is dry, lined with old saliva (charming) and alive with bacteria. The last thing you want to do is start eating breakfast with all these micro-organisms in your mouth, say dentists in Silver Spring, because the first stop on their journey through your alimentary canal is your stomach. You must also brush your teeth at night time to make sure you go to bed with a squeaky-clean mouth. This is the bare minimum and is what most patients do. But keeping your teeth for a lifetime involves more than just the bare minimum, say dentists in Silver Spring…

Here are some important tips you should incorporate into your brushing routine:

1. Brush THREE times a day! Scrub those pearly whites as soon as you wake up, before you go to bed at night and during the day sometime; perhaps after lunch so that you get back to work minty fresh and sans unattractive tuna breath (and spinach teeth.)

2. Brush for two minutes at a time. A quick go-over will not reduce bacterial numbers sufficiently to keep the formation of plaque and tartar at bay, explain dentists in Silver Spring. When you wash your dishes, you don't just clean the one corner of the plate, you wash its entire surface area! So why not give each tooth in your mouth the attention it deserves? Dentists in Silver Spring frequently see patients whose front teeth are relatively clean, but whose back teeth have clearly been neglected. The rule of thumb here is to brush for two minutes at a time, dedicating 30 seconds to each quadrant of the mouth. Brush the tops of the crowns and both sides.

3. Don't keep your toothbrush in a closed plastic container. These storage units trap moisture and encourage bacterial growth, say dentists in Silver Spring. Bacteria love humid environments, so store your toothbrush in a closed, but aired cabinet, preferably placed upright in a cup.

4. Replace your toothbrush every three to four months, or when the bristles become frayed, say dentists in Silver Spring.

One last thing: don't brush too hard or you'll start scrubbing away your dental enamel, warn dentists in Silver Spring. Opt for a soft to medium toothbrush and use fluoride toothpaste. You'll keep your pearly whites in great condition if you do!

Dentists in Silver Spring: Stay Tuned

There's much, much more to a rigorous home oral hygiene routine than just brushing, so stay tuned for part 2 and 3 to find out what else you could be doing to keep your smile bright, beautiful and healthy!

10 Reasons Silver Spring Dentists Recommend Dental Implants Over Removable Dentures

There are so many different factors that can cause one or more of your teeth to become irreparably damaged or decayed that in all likelihood you will, at some stage during your life, need to think about tooth replacement, explain Silver Spring dentists. When you do face the prospect of tooth loss as a result of a long battle with periodontal (gum) disease dental implants should always be your technology of choice. Here are the top 10 reasons Silver Spring dentists recommend dental implants over removable dentures, or false teeth.

Ten Reasons to Replace Missing Teeth with Dental Implants:

1. Dental implants are fixed and non-removable, so a patient’s teeth cannot shift around during eating and conversation, say Silver Spring dentists.

2. Dental implants are cleaned just like natural teeth; with regular brushing and flossing. No need for any fancy and expensive cleaning products and technologies, say Silver Spring dentists.

3. Dental implants are surgically placed in the jaw, where, over the course of a few months, they fuse with the surrounding bone tissue. This enables them to support a strong and natural bite force, explain Silver Spring dentists. Unlike removable dentures, therefore, dental implants allow patients to eat all the foods they love and to enjoy the health benefits of a balanced diet.

4. Dental implants support ceramic crowns or prosthetic bridges that are expertly custom fabricated by Silver Spring dentists to look just like a natural tooth or set of teeth.

5. Removable dentures rely on their bulkiness to prevent them from slipping around. This additional mass pushes on the lips from inside the mouth, causing them to look thin, stretched and aged, say Silver Spring dentists. Dental implants are, just like natural teeth, supported entirely by the jaw bone and so do not affect a patient’s smile aesthetics, other than to make them look beautiful of course!

6. Dental implants feel like natural teeth and don’t cause any self-consciousness, pain or discomfort. Dentures require patients to buy all sorts of products, such as anesthetic gels, to numb the pain and discomfort caused by these hard plastic teeth replacement devices, say Silver Spring dentists.

7. Unlike removable dentures, dental implants do not trigger the gag reflex or cause taste impediment. The bridges supported by dental implants don’t harbor food and bacteria, which can lead to halitosis, say Silver Spring dentists.

8. Dental implants make eating easy, enabling patients to really enjoy their meals, whether they’re eating with friends and family or on their own, explain Silver Spring dentists.

9. Dental implants promote the long-term health of the underlying bone tissue. By replacing the important source of stimulation that was previously supplied by the tooth roots, these ingenious dental devices help to prevent atrophy of the hard tissue and the subsequent remodeling of the jaw, explain Silver Spring dentists. This not only preserves the natural and more youthful contours of a patient’s face, but it also prevents further dental problems and tooth loss.

10. Dental implants last decades if placed by a qualified and experienced implant dentist and if cared for properly by the patient. In fact, they can last as long as 20, 30 years and longer! Removable dentures, on the other hand, frequently require refitting every few years or so and will continue to do so for as long as a patient wears them.

Silver Spring Dentists: The History of Dental Implants, PART 2

Welcome back to our two-part article series on the history of dental implants. In our previous post, Silver Spring dentists discussed how the concepts of replacing missing teeth with a foreign material, such as bone, ivory, seashell or gold, is one that dates back to some of our earliest civilizations. One of the primary differences between these rudimentary dental implants and the modern technology that is globally recognized to be the very best for the replacement of single and multiple missing teeth is that the former was mostly cosmetic in purpose.

A problem that frustrated these ancient civilizations and continued to baffle medical doctors and dentists until 1950 was that none of the materials or metals used or experimented with would provide a fixed and non-removable replacement tooth. With each new material experimented with, the jaw would simply reject the foreign artificial tooth, explain Silver Spring dentists. So, prior to the conception of modern dental implants, you could have a false tooth made for you, but like dentures, it would not be fixed or permanent.

That is, until a very important discovery in 1951…

Professor Per-Ingvar Brånemark and the Discovery of ‘Osseointegration’

Experiment after experiment was carried out by the dentists of the time in the hope that they would discover a material or metal that was capable of fusing with the underlying bone in the human jaw. If they could just discover what this mystery material was, Silver Spring dentists could go on to fashion replacement teeth that would actually remain permanently rooted in the jaw, just like natural teeth. After decades of toil, Silver Spring dentists weren’t any closer to finding a non-removable solution to missing teeth…

It was in 1951 that an accidental discovery led to the conception of dental implantology, say Silver Spring dentists. Swedish orthopedic surgeon Per-Ingvar Brånemark was experimenting with titanium metal and rabbit bone in a totally unrelated study. After a few months, he noticed quite by accident that the bone tissue had biologically fused with the titanium metal and that the resultant bond was very strong! This not only made dental implants a possibility, explain Silver Spring dentists, but it also opened up the field of orthopedic surgery dedicated to repairing and replacing bones and joints in the body.

Silver Spring Dentists: Modern Dental Implant Science

Subsequent to this breakthrough, albeit accidental discovery, Silver Spring dentists went on to refine the hardware, technology and surgical methods required for replacing missing teeth using titanium-supported ceramic tooth crowns and bridges. Nowadays, there is no limit to the number of teeth Silver Spring dentists can replace using dental implants. Removable dentures, or false teeth, used to be the technology offered to edentulous (toothless) and near-edentulous patients. With the sophistication of dental implant protocols (the surgical methods governing their placement), Silver Spring dentists are able to provide these people with a full set of fixed and non-removable teeth that are - in functionality, aesthetics and comfort – virtually indistinguishable from natural teeth.

A Final Note from Silver Spring Dentists

Dental implants have come a long way, as have we as a civilization, say Silver Spring dentists. Whether you have lost one of your teeth to accidental trauma or all of them to periodontal (gum) disease, there are comprehensive and long term solutions available.

The History of Silver Spring Dental Implants, PART 1

Silver Spring dental implants are internationally recognized to be the most sophisticated and comprehensive solution to single and multiple missing teeth. No other dental technology can rival the short and long term health, functional and aesthetic benefits and advantages offered by these ingenious devices. So, what are Silver Spring dental implants? How do they work? And what is the story behind their conception and design? In this two part article series, the dentist in Silver Spring MD shall answer all these questions and more on our journey through the history of dental implants.  

Before We Begin: What Are Silver Spring Dental Implants? 
 

 

Dental implants, explains the dentist in Silver Spring MD, are essentially tiny artificial tooth roots that are manufactured from titanium metal. The choice of this metal is a very interesting one and represents a landmark discovery in the history of Silver Spring dental implants. But we’ll discuss this later. Titanium metal is exceptionally strong and lightweight, explains the dentist in Silver Spring MD. This is why it is the material of choice in the fabrication of space shuttles and professional tennis racquets! It’s also stable and non-toxic (unlike metals such as lead) making it entirely safe to use in the mouth.

The Silver Spring dental implants titanium screw or fixture (the artificial root) is surgically inserted into the jaw by a qualified and trained dentist. Once it has healed and integrated with the supporting bone tissue, it is used to hold either a ceramic tooth crown, in the case of a single missing tooth, or a dental bridge in the case of multiple missing teeth. Silver Spring dental implants can even be used to support a full prosthetic bridge, which enables edentulous (not having a single original adult tooth left) and near-edentulous patients to receive a brand new set of fixed and non-removable teeth.

Silver Spring Dental Implants and Their Ancient Counterparts 
 

Tooth loss has posed some serious problems for us ever since the dawn of mankind, says the dentist in Silver Spring MD. In the absence of dental healthcare and hygiene, tooth decay was just a fact of life and people would frequently lose most, if not all their teeth by the time they hit 40! Silver Spring dental implants are now a highly sophisticated and precise technology, but the concept behind replacing missing teeth is as old as civilization itself. The Ancient Egyptians, or at least the members of the upper classes, made rudimentary dental implants out of rare commodities, including gold, ivory and precious stones. The Ancient Mayans fashioned crude Silver Spring dental implants out of shell and bone. A female Mayan skull bone dating back to 600AD was discovered in Honduras in the 1930s and it still had shell fragments sticking out of some of the tooth sockets!

Depending upon the craftsmanship that went into their fabrication, these early Silver Spring dental implants must have been functional to at least a certain extent. But their chief purpose was as a cosmetic replacement for missing teeth, says the dentist in Silver Spring MD. The more expensive the materials they were made from, the better the status of the wearer. Although ironically, Silver Spring dental implants crafted from cheaper materials, such as shell and bone, were probably closer in resemblance to natural teeth than expensive gold and gemstones.  

Silver Spring Dental Implants: Stay Tuned 
 

To read more about the history of Silver Spring dental implants and the accidental discovery that lead to the conception of two fundamental fields in medicine, stay tuned for the final installment of this two-part article series.