Your Family’s Oral Health In Good Hands
At Queen Village Family Dentistry, we provide a full range of dental services for you and your entire family. We welcome patients of all ages from the youngest children to the young at heart. You can expect:
Regular Check-Ups
Stay Ahead Of Any Problems
During a standard appointment, our dental hygienist uses scalers and/or ultrasonic instruments to remove the build-up of soft (plaque) and hard (tartar, calculus) bacteria from your teeth and soft tissue of your mouth. The hygienist or Dr. Jeff Cabot will:
- Screen for cancer and other diseases
- Check for cavities
- Take x-rays
- Educate you on your oral health status
- Assess the integrity of existing dental restorations
- Evaluate supporting bone structure
- Evaluate aesthetic options
- Clean your teeth
- Apply fluoride (for children and at-risk adults)
Patient Education On Preventative Care
Learn How Best To Care For Your Own Health
Infections in your mouth, teeth, gums or jaw – even low-grade infections – can have a profound impact not just on your smile, but also on the overall health of your body. Clinical studies show a direct link between poor oral hygiene (and the resulting oral infections) and systemic diseases such as cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke), bacterial pneumonia, low birth weight, diabetes complications and osteoporosis.
At Queen Village Family Dentistry, we believe a few simple home care practices, paired with regular dental visits will go a long way toward maintaining optimal oral health and a healthy body.
Inadequate home care is the primary cause of gingivitis (inflamed gums), periodontitis (bacterial infection), and bad breath. You can minimize the accumulation of infection-causing bacteria on your teeth, gums and tongue through regular brushing, flossing and tongue cleaning.
There have been many advances in dental techniques in recent decades. Let Dr. Cabot show you the current brushing and flossing methods to make sure you are getting the most out of your home dental care.
We recommend Sonicare, the number 1 dentist-recommended, powered home-care toothbrush. Sonicare utilizes the same sonic technology of the dentists’ office to create a dynamic cleaning action. With proper use, Sonicare can remove more plaque and tartar than brushing with a regular toothbrush thereby reducing the chance of infection.
Cleaning
Stay Fresh
When a dentist or dental hygienist cleans your teeth they remove soft (plaque) and hard (tartar, calculus, or stains) deposits from your teeth. Plaque and tartar harbor bacteria. The primary purpose of having your teeth cleaned is to remove infection-causing bacteria thus preventing or delaying the progression of gingivitis and periodontitis (collectively known as periodontal diseases).
As with routine dental examinations, the frequency of professional teeth cleaning will depend on the health of your teeth, gums and bone. Healthy children and adults should have their teeth cleaned at least once every 6 months. If you are at risk of periodontal diseases because of tobacco use, rate of accumulation of deposits, personal oral hygiene practices, or medical conditions such as pregnancy, diabetes or heart disease, your teeth may need to be cleaned more often. Dr. Cabot can help you determine how regularly you should have your teeth cleaned.
Fluorides
Improve Your Dental Health
Fluoride helps prevent tooth decay by promoting tooth remineralization, strengthening teeth and inhibiting oral bacteria. Since the introduction of fluoride into public water supplies nearly 70 years ago, and later toothpaste, the incidence of cavities has declined dramatically by strengthening children’s developing permanent teeth.
Fluoride therapy, professionally applied fluoride, is an additional and effective treatment used routinely for children but also for some patients at high-risk for cavities, patients undergoing head and neck radiation, patients with decreased salivary flow, hypersensitivity or periodontal disease.
Professional fluoride treatments, combined with daily home therapy, can often times improve dental health. Treatment options vary according to a patient’s susceptibility to decay, level of tooth sensitivity, periodontal condition and number of restorations. Ask Dr. Cabot if fluoride treatments are right for you or your family.
Sealants
Protection From Future Decay
A sealant is a thin layer of plastic material that is applied to the chewing surfaces of the back teeth (premolars and molars) to protect them from decay. Sealants are recommended for young patients to protect their growing teeth.
When the back teeth are developing, pits and fissures form in the chewing surfaces of the enamel. They are very difficult to keep clean, because the bristles of a toothbrush cannot reach into them. Most cavities form in pit and fissure areas, and back teeth are extremely susceptible to this form of decay. By placing a thin covering over the pits and fissures, sealants keep out plaque and food, thus decreasing the risk of decay.
Applying sealants is a fairly simple process. It takes only a few minutes to clean and seal each tooth. After a thorough cleaning, the chewing surfaces are conditioned to help the sealant adhere to the tooth. The sealant is then ‘painted’ onto the tooth enamel, where it bonds directly to the tooth and hardens. A special curing light is used to help the sealant harden.
Dental sealants are particularly effective for protecting children’s teeth. The first permanent molars emerge when a child is about 6. A dental sealant treatment performed shortly after these first permanent teeth emerge protects the teeth from developing cavities. Sealants should also be applied at age 12, when the second permanent molars emerge.
Ask Dr. Cabot more about sealants can prevent your children from getting cavities.
Fillings
Restore Damaged Teeth
A filling is a way to restore a tooth damaged by decay back to its normal function and shape. If you have a tooth that requires a filling, Dr. Cabot will first remove the decayed tooth material, clean the affected area, and then fill the cleaned out cavity with a filling material. A filling also helps prevent further decay by closing off any cracks or spaces where bacteria can enter.
There are a variety of filling materials available including gold, silver, plastic and porcelain. Here at Queen Village Family Dentistry, we most often use tooth-colored or white fillings. White fillings bond directly to the healthy tooth structure and require less preparation at the decay site thereby conserving more of your natural tooth. Each filling material has its pros and cons. Dr. Cabot will work with you to determine which material is best for you, depending on the extent of repair, where in your mouth the filling is needed, and cost.
