One of our most important goals at Roslyn 38 Exceptional Dentistry is to help our patients keep their teeth for life. The easiest way to reduce the risk of decay, serious infections or disease is with a good preventative dentistry system.

Preventative dentistry is a combined effort. Regular check-ups and proper dental hygiene at home mean that you and your dentist work together to maintain the health of your teeth. Our expert practitioners will assist you in developing good habits to maximise these efforts and avoid future complex and costly treatment.

Prevention is better than a cure

Preventative dentistry aims to avoid more complex treatment by providing the appropriate maintenance and oral hygiene. All of our dentists at Roslyn 38 emphasise the benefits of prevention for several reasons:

• prevention is easier (and cheaper!) than treatment;
• poor oral health impacts your overall health, with links to cardiac disease;
• gum disease leads to tooth loss.

Save money

Patients who attend regularly for check-ups have the lowest overall dental bills. This is because small areas of decay or gum disease are treated before they lead to root canals, abscesses or teeth requiring extraction.

Don't put off having regular check-ups

If more than six months have passed since you last saw a dentist, contact us to make an appointment today. A routine examination can help detect any potential problems before they become more serious and time consuming to fix.

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At Roslyn 38 Exceptional Dentistry we understand the impact that smiling with confidence can have. We have a number of cosmetic services available to improve your smile and boost your confidence.

Bleaching the teeth is a simple and effective way to brighten your smile. The process involves taking impressions of the upper and lower teeth to make bleaching trays. We then provide you with bleach syringes for you to apply to your trays and use at home. Bleaching material comes in a variety of strengths:

• 10% is used for those with sensitive teeth
• 16-18% for standard at home use
• 35% for in office bleaching. This higher strength bleach requires application under supervision. You may sit in our rooms, read, watch TV or even a movie for an hour while the bleach takes effect.

It is important to note that fillings, crowns and veneers will not bleach. If you have fillings on the front teeth, these may need to be replaced for a new shade to match the newly bleached teeth. Often, prior to fixed restorative work such as crown or veneers, you may wish to bleach the remaining teeth to get the best cosmetic result.

Veneers are thin shells which are directly or non-directly placed on the tooth surface to improve the colour, shape and/or position. Veneers can sometimes be called “instant orthodontics” as they can improve your smile if there are minor position variations.

Veneers can be placed directly in the chair (composite resin) or made by a ceramist (porcelain).

Composite:

Composite veneers are tooth coloured filling material which is bonded to the front surface of the tooth to alter the shape, colour and contour of the teeth. A small amount of tooth is removed in order to make space for the filling material. These are placed in a single visit and are a more economical alternative to porcelain veneers or crowns, while still gaining a cosmetic result. These composite veneers do require regular maintenance as the material can tend to chip and wear over time, as well as pick up stains.

Porcelain:

Porcelain veneers are a conservative way to restore chipped or fractured teeth, spaces between teeth, discoloured or mildly crowded teeth.

A minimal amount of tooth structure is removed from the front surface of the tooth and a porcelain veneer is shade matched and bonded to the tooth. This is a two visit procedure as the veneers are fashioned in the dental laboratory.

The technician is able to produce a highly aesthetic result in porcelain that mimics the natural characteristics of teeth. The porcelain veneer has a longer lifespan than the composite veneer.

A crown is a restoration that is fabricated in the dental laboratory and sits over the entire prepared tooth to alter its shape, angulation and contour. Some tooth structure is removed from all surfaces to make space for the crown.

Advances in ceramics have allowed crowns to be fabricated entirely out of ceramic as opposed to having a metal substructure and the results are highly aesthetic, mimicking the natural characteristics of teeth.

Crowns do require regular maintenance and it is important to ensure meticulous oral hygiene around the crown as tooth decay is the primary cause of crown failure.

A gum lift (or crown lengthening) is a procedure where the gum tissue (and sometimes bone) is removed to improve the clinical height of teeth, or to lessen the appearance of a 'gummy' smile. Your dentist will discuss with you if this is required in the overall treatment planning or smile design, and refer you to the relevant specialist.

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Periodontal disease (or gum disease) is chronic inflammation of the gums and supporting structure of the teeth – the periodontal ligament and bone. There are two types of gum disease; gingivitis and periodontitis.

Gingivitis

Gingivitis is the most common type of periodontal disease, and is found in a large percentage of the population. It is chronic inflammation of the gums which happens when brushing and flossing is inadequate and there is accumulation of plaque, food debris and calculus along the gum line. This leads to:

• red swollen gums
• bad breath
• bleeding when brushing and flossing.

At this stage the inflammation is reversible with good oral hygiene. Brush the teeth with a soft toothbrush twice daily using small circles at 45 degrees along the gum line. Floss once a day. The inflammation should resolve within two weeks with good oral hygiene and the bleeding will stop.

Periodontitis

If left untreated gingivitis can progress to periodontitis. This is when the inflammation has spread to include the ligaments and bone supporting the tooth. The gums and bone are lost and more of the root is exposed.

You may notice:

• red swollen gums
• bad breath
• bleeding when brushing and flossing
• gums that have receded away from the teeth, making them look longer
• loose teeth
• gum abscesses.

At this stage we are unable to reverse the damage. This means that the gums and bone will not grow back to their original level, but we can attempt to halt to progression with a comprehensive course of deep cleaning and improved home hygiene practices.

The risk factors for periodontal disease include:

• family history – you are more at risk if your parents experienced periodontal disease
• plaque/calculus – by removing plaque and calculus and by teaching you to minimise the build-up we can reduce this as a risk factor
• smoking – cigarette smoking is a known risk factor
• diabetes.

If your bone damage is significant and the periodontal pockets deepen we may recommend a referral to a specialist called a periodontist. We are lucky to have a number of periodontists in Geelong.

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Endodontics is more commonly referred to as root canal treatment.

This is required when the pulpal tissue (nerve) has become diseased or infected. The treatment involves the removal of the dead tissue, shaping and filing the inside of the root canal system, filling the space and placing a protective filling or crown to return the tooth to a pain free and functional state.

A diseased or infected pulp (nerve) can occur due to deep decay, trauma, leakage around an existing filling or a crack in the tooth allowing bacteria to access the pulp chamber.

If you become aware of a tooth with:

• prolonged hot or cold sensitivity
• pain waking you at night
• sore to bite on, or
• throbbing or dull pain requiring painkillers

then you may require root canal treatment. We will endeavor to see you on the same day if you call with a tooth ache.

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Dentures are removable devices that restore the spaces where teeth are missing. Dentures are made to fit the shape of the mouth and are held in place by small metal clasps that sit around the teeth adjacent to the space. Dentures can be complete (if all the teeth are missing) or partial (if only some teeth are missing) and can be made out of plastic or metal.

The plastic dentures are generally a little bulkier but are used:

• when all the teeth are being replaced
• as a temporary denture
• in cases where only one or two teeth are being replaced.

The metal dentures fit the contour of the tissue and teeth more closely and are made once the tissues are stable. As metal is a stronger material, the dentures are thinner in cross-section. This will make them less intrusive. Metal dentures are generally supported by teeth (tooth-borne), which limit any movement.

The process of making a denture happens over a number of appointments to ensure the best possible result and fit. It is important to be aware that it can be some time to adjust to speaking and eating with dentures. In some situations dentures can be placed over implants. This helps to anchor the denture into place and is beneficial for patients missing all their lower teeth as it limits the lower denture moving around during eating.

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A dental implant is a "root" device, usually made of titanium, used to support restorations that resemble a tooth or group of teeth to replace a missing tooth or teeth.

Virtually all dental implants placed today are root-form endosseous implants, ie. they appear similar to an actual tooth root and are placed within the bone. Dental implants will fuse with bone. Once fusion has occurred a crown will be placed.

Dental implants can be used to support a number of dental prostheses including crowns, implant-supported bridges or dentures.

Please call to make an appointment to see one of our friendly dentists to assess your suitability for implant treatment, including all the advantages and disadvantages specific to your needs.

A crown is a restoration that is fabricated in the dental laboratory and sits over the entire prepared tooth to alter its shape, angulation and contour. Some tooth structure is removed from all surfaces to make space for the crown.

Advances in ceramics have allowed crowns to be fabricated entirely out of ceramic as opposed to having a metal substructure and the results are highly aesthetic, mimicking the natural characteristics of teeth.

Crowns do require regular maintenance and it is important to ensure meticulous oral hygiene around the crown as tooth decay is the primary cause of crown failure.

A bridge is a fixed dental restoration used to replace a missing tooth by joining an artificial tooth permanently to adjacent teeth or dental implants.

A bridge is fabricated by reducing the teeth on either side of the missing tooth or teeth by a preparation pattern determined by the location of the teeth and by the material from which the bridge is fabricated. In other words, the abutment teeth are reduced in size to accommodate the material to be used to restore the size and shape of the original teeth in a correct alignment and contact with the opposing teeth.

The materials used for the bridges include gold, porcelain fused to metal, or in the correct situation porcelain alone. The amount and type of reduction done to the abutment teeth varies slightly with the different materials used. The recipient of such a bridge must be careful to clean well under this prosthesis.

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