Dr. Kuball recognized the following employees for their years of service:  Pam Houk 25 years, Jill Auger 20 years, Amy Monson 10 years, Dr. Gretchen Von Rueden 10 years.  These staff members were honored during an evening out during the Star of the North Dental Convention.  Thanks for all that you do at Parkview Dental!

 

We miss our co-worker and dear friend!   Rita, a hygienist with Parkview Dental for 15 years, has followed her dreams and moved north to her lake home near Alexandria.  Thank you Rita for your years of service at Parkview and the great patient care your patients received.  We wish you the best…

If your child develops a cavity in a baby tooth the decay will slowly (and sometimes rapidly) get bigger and deeper. Tooth decay can cause a toothache or even an abscessed tooth if the tooth is not restored. If the tooth is really close to falling out, we have the option of just leaving it alone. If it looks like it may be a while until it would normally fall out, we need to do something. Remember baby teeth are there for a reason. They give the child something to chew with and (importantly) they often save space for the permanent teeth. Why don’t you just pull it? Well, sometimes that is the best option, but if a back baby tooth is lost too early, without proper treatment, additional crowding problems could occur.   These problems are often more difficult and extensive to correct. So you usually will need additional work like a space maintainer. That’s one reason why it’s often easier to fix a baby tooth than just remove it.

Here is a chart of approximate ages of erupting and shedding of teeth:

Are you one of the millions of adults who are unhappy, self conscious or even embarrassed of your smile? Get a natural, beautiful smile in just six months! Six Month Smiles is a revolutionary orthodontic system that provides a fast and economical way for adults to begin smiling with confidence. Regardless of age or gender, EVERYONE should be able to smile with confidence.

If you are an adult (15 years and older) with crooked or spaced teeth and you’re not looking for major alteration to your bite, this is a fantastic option for you! The aim of Six Month Smiles is to correct the concerns that make you unhappy with your smile. This does not change to the way your back teeth bite together.

-Six months is the average treatment time. Most patients finish right around six months, but treatment times range from 4-9 months.

-Braces and wires are barely noticeable. They blend very well with the color of your teeth. These are not metal braces.

-Six Month Smiles involves light forces to gently move your teeth into their new position. The process is comfortable. The short treatment times are not achieved by using high forces on the teeth.

-As with all orthodontic treatment, a retainer is necessary to maintain the straighter position of the teeth. If you don’t want to wear a removable retainer a removable retainer you can have a bonded retainer placed behind your teeth. There are a variety of options that you can choose from according to your personal preference and situation.

Take the first steps toward improving your smile and confidence. Ask for a FREE Six Months Smiles Consultation!

For more information: www.SixMonthSmiles.com

Medically, snoring can be the precursor of obstructive sleep apnea that has been linked to heart failure, high blood pressure and stroke. In its own right, snoring has been linked to Type II Diabetes. Sleep apnea usually interrupts loud snoring with a period of silence in which no air passes into the lungs. Eventually the lack of oxygen and the increase carbon dioxide will awaken you forcing the airway to open with a loud gasp. The body reacts by disrupting deep sleep enough to start breathing again, but deprives the sufferer of getting a good night’s sleep. Impeded breathing during sleep can cause a higher rate of headaches, adversely affect the sleep quality of the snorer’s bed partner and diminish the overall quality of life.

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine now recommends oral appliances such as the Myerson EMA appliance as a front line of treatment for snoring and sleep apnea and in cases where CPAP has not been tolerated. The Myerson EMA appliance has several advantages:

-The appliance fits entirely inside the mouth and is free of metal straps. The straps are latex free.

-Myerson EMS does not use electricity, tubing, masks or make any noise that would bother a sleep partner

-The EMA appliance allows for the wearer to change sleep positions easily and you can talk while you are wearing it.

Click here to learn more:  http://www.dentalartslab.com/myerson_ema_appliance

Dental X-ray examinations provide valuable information that helps your dentist evaluate your oral health. With the help of radiographs (the term for pictures taken with X-rays), your dentist can look at what is happening beneath the surface of your teeth and gums. If you have questions about your dental X-ray exam, talk with your dentist. If you are a new patient, the dentist may recommend radiographs to determine the present status of your oral health and to help identify changes that may occur later. A new set of X-rays may be needed to help your dentist detect any new cavities, determine the status of your gum health or evaluate the growth and development of your teeth. If a previous dentist has any radiographs of you, your new dentist may ask you for copies of them. Because many diseases of the teeth and surrounding tissues cannot be seen when your dentist examines your mouth, an X-ray examination can help reveal:

• small areas of decay between the teeth or below existing restorations (fillings);
• infections in the bone;
• periodontal (gum) disease;
• abscesses or cysts;
• developmental abnormalities;
• some types of tumors.

Finding and treating dental problems at an early stage can save time, money and unnecessary discomfort. Radiographs can help your dentist detect problems in your mouth that otherwise would not be seen. Because of these reasons here at Parkview Dental we recommend the bite wing x-rays be taken yearly and a set of full mouth x-rays every three to five years as needed.

For further reading on this topic: ADA.org

• Your teeth are clean and free of debris
• Your gums are pink and do not hurt or bleed when you brush or floss
• Bad breath is not a constant problem

If your gums do hurt or bleed while brushing or flossing, or you are experiencing persistent bad breath, see your dentist. Any of these conditions may indicate a problem. Daily preventive care, including proper brushing thoroughly two times a day, morning and night and flossing once in a 24 hour period. This will help stop problems before they develop and is much less painful, expensive, and worrisome than treating conditions that have been allowed to progress. A professional cleaning once every six months for most people is a must to help with getting bacteria our of all the “nooks and crannies”.

For interactive brushing and flossing video please see: www.dentalcare.com

The longer bad fillings stay in your mouth, the more likely you will need crowns and root canals to restore the teeth. If the existing fillings are not too big and there is enough healthy tooth structure, then the fillings can be replaced with new ones. Leaving old dental fillings in place can also harm your gums, since they can trap the plaque which causes gum disease. Examination and x-rays are used to evaluate dental fillings. You will not be able to tell on your own when your fillings start to fail. Everything wears out and your dental fillings are no exception.

For further reading: http://www.colgate.com