Family Dentistry

Before you get the answer, you should know the history. This is a recommendation that changed back in 2014.  Prior to 2014, it was not recommended to use fluoride toothpaste in children under the age of 2.  Because small children don’t know how to spit out toothpaste, the fear was that they would ingest the fluoride, which would possibly lead to fluorosis.  Fluorosis is a discoloration in the teeth due to too much fluoride being deposited in the tooth crystals as teeth form.  They recommended brushing with water, or one of the training toothpastes that have no fluoride. Then from 2 to 6 years old, a pea sized application of fluoride toothpaste was recommended, and children should spit out excess paste as soon as they are capable.  

But in 2014, clinical research prompted changes to these recommendations.  Yes fluorosis was still a concern, but so was the higher rates of decay when fluoride was not used.  The research found that using a small smear of fluoride toothpaste, about the size of a grain of rice, would be enough to help prevent decay, yet not so much that it would result in fluorosis in most cases, even when swallowed.  Then from the ages of 3 to 6, a pea sized application of fluoride toothpaste should be used because children at that age are more capable of spitting out the extra paste.  

So, the answer is, you should use a rice sized smear of fluoride toothpaste from the time the first tooth erupts until age three, and then from three to six, a pea sized application is recommended.

Our goal is to always do what is best for you.  As a general dental office, we do perform most of the dental treatment needs our patients require. Every day, we do dental exams, cleanings, fillings, crowns, bridges dentures, implant dentistry, cosmetic dentistry, and a whole array of other treatments. We are also your source for information and answers to the questions you may have.

All that said, there are times where we feel your treatment will be better served by seeing a specialist. Dental specialists receive the same dental school education as every other dentist, but they continue on in their specialty program to get advanced training and experience far above the training a general dentist gets. Specialists will often have the most advanced technology in their field, and because it is all they do, they always keep up the with advances in treatment in their field. Essentially, whenever we feel a specialist can do a better job than us, we feel they should do it from the start. We don’t like to start something and then decide it should be finished by a specialist, although sometimes that happens as we are trying to treat emergencies or other unforeseen complications.  We understand that patients don’t always want to get treatment by another office, but I always say “ if you need heart surgery, do you want a cardiologist doing it, or your general family doctor?”  We always want what’s best for you.

So give us a call and set up an appointment so we can see what you need. We will then discuss your needs and come up with a plan together.

The use of dental X-rays has been a vital component of the diagnostic capabilities in dentistry since they were first invented.   While the first x-ray systems required a lot of radiation to produce relatively poor quality images, modern digital (computer based) x-ray sensors require only a fraction of the radiation that was needed by early X-rays and produce very detailed images that can be manipulated on the computer.  We use these low dose X-rays in our office to produce the best and safest radiographic images possible. To answer the question as to how often you should get X-rays, there are several factors to consider.  First off, there is a general guideline of recommended intervals that has been presented by the American Dental Association.  Second, there is a frequency limitation established by insurance companies.  I will start with the insurance limitations and say that insurance companies each have their own guidelines for the frequency that they will cover X-rays, and we always try to adhere to these limitations so out of pocket costs are minimized; however, the insurance limitations may not be appropriate for every patient’s needs.  Insurance companies are businesses and they help pay for dental treatment, but they don’t always pay for the treatment that best fits your case.  Therefore, it is important to consider what is best instead of what is covered. The ADA’s recommendations are a set of guidelines to use to determine how often X-rays should be taken on adolescents as well as adults.  We use these guidelines to help determine when, which, and how many X-rays should be taken. 

Routine screening X-rays are useful tools to help us catch problems at the earliest stages. It is important for us to utilize them even when there is no obvious problems or pain that a patient may feel. Because every patient’s needs and history is different, we evaluate each patient to determine what is right for them.  When there is a history of decay, or recent active decay, we may opt to take X-rays more often so we can catch problems in their early stages.  On the other hand, for those with little or no decay, we may take X-rays less often. It is still important, however, to take X-rays so that not only tooth decay can be found at its earliest stages, but also to detect signs of periodontal disease, abscesses in teeth and bone, cysts, cancerous tumors, or many other abnormalities that are better caught at early stages. 

Like most things in life, X-rays are not a one size fits all tool, and we will customize our recommendations to meet your needs.  We are always happy to see you to discuss this and help you keep your healthy and happy smile

Having a missing tooth can be very stressful when considering esthetics, the treatment one needs to undergo to replace the tooth, or teeth, and the costs associated.  Since every patient has their own individual needs as well as financial constraints, it is not always up to us to decide what is “best” for you. We will always present all of the available options and weigh the pros and cons as far as optimal dental treatment goes.  Along with that, we will present the fees associated with all of these options.  Finally, we will present you with options for third party finance companies to help spread the costs over a longer period of time where costs are a concern.  We will try to find a way to allow you to get the best treatment, the treatment that you deserve, but also understand if the “best” treatment just isn’t feasible at this time.  We will then work to help you decide on one of the alternate options