Cosmetic Dentistry: What Can It Do?

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When you hear the words cosmetic dentistry, what comes to mind? Perhaps the most popular cosmetic dental procedure today—teeth whitening? Or maybe you think of porcelain veneers? Yes, the words cosmetic dentistry bring to mind a bright white smile, but have you ever wondered exactly what other types of procedures are considered cosmetic? As well as teeth whitening and veneers, cosmetic procedures also include tooth bonding, contouring, and gum reshaping. Dr. Nicolas Cain believes that an attractive smile offers not only physical benefits, but psychological ones, as well.  A beautiful smile goes a long way in increasing your self-confidence, which affects all other aspects of your life.

Cosmetic Procedures and What They Entail

There are many reasons to choose a cosmetic dental procedure. Perhaps your teeth have dulled, are stained, or have become a grayish color. Maybe you your teeth are chipped, or appear too small, or are bordered by excessive, uneven gum tissue (a gummy smile). If your smile isn’t as beautiful or symmetrical as you would like it to be, then you may be a candidate for a cosmetic dental procedure.

Professional Teeth Whitening: Teeth whitening has become a fast, affordable, and effective way to improve your smile. It can be performed in-office via laser light-activated deep bleaching, which only requires a single visit and can be completed in just over an hour. Dr. Cain also offers a take-home whitening kit that includes a custom-designed mouth tray and peroxide gel. The home kit can be used for occasional touch-ups after your professional teeth whitening procedure.

Tooth Bonding & Contouring: Tooth bonding consists of a composite resin material that can be used to repair chips in your teeth. After setting the resin, Dr. Cain will cure and sculpt it to match your tooth’s shape, then polish it to gleam like your natural tooth’s structure. Tooth contouring, often performed in conjunction with bonding, involves reshaping a tooth with a jagged or uneven edge to more attractively fit the curve of your smile.

Gum Contouring: The soft pink tissue that borders the bottoms of your teeth, called your gums, can affect straight and even your teeth look. Using a soft tissue laser, which helps prevent bleeding and swelling, Dr. Cain can reshape your uneven gum line to return the symmetry to your smile. Some gum discomfort may be experienced for 24-48 hours after the procedure, but should subside on its own. However, if discomfort persists after a couple of days, then call our office as soon as possible.

ABOUT YOUR MILLER DENTIST:

If you want to improve your smile, Dr. Cain can help you decide which cosmetic procedure is appropriate for you.  As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, cosmetic, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Cosmetic Dentistry, Patient Education

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Lose One to Save 100

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Well, technically, lose one to save 31. Adults grow one set of permanent teeth that usually amounts to 32 (including the four wisdom teeth). Once the permanent teeth have erupted, they are the last teeth that will grow out of your dental ridge. Though adult teeth should be permanent, tooth extractions are often a necessity to preserve the rest of a patient’s oral health.

When Tooth Extraction Is Necessary

Think of teeth as a white picket fence protecting your house from an outside world of harmful creatures. The fence achieves maximum protection if it reveals no empty spaces and possesses strong individual pickets. As individual pickets wither, the protection it achieves minimizes. Pickets can wither from fire, termites, or weathering and can easily infect the surrounding pickets. To address this issue, a withering picket can be removed and then replaced with a new one. Similarly, when a tooth is too weathered (worn or broken) or decayed, then it may require a tooth extraction and replacement to preserve the rest of your teeth’s integrity.

Extreme Cases of Tooth Decay

Tooth decay is the erosion of your tooth due to a bacterial infection. Poor dental hygiene can allow the acids produced by bacteria to erode your tooth’s protective layer of enamel until the outer layer can no longer repel infectious bacteria. Once they reach your tooth, the bacteria can spread and consume your tooth structure, leaving cavities (holes) in their wake. Dental fillings can treat most instances of mild to moderate tooth decay, and root canal treatment can often save a severely infected tooth. However, in extreme cases, tooth decay can render a tooth too weak and infected to save, and it may require an extraction.

Extreme Dental Injuries

Usually the result of an accident, dental injuries may include avulsed (knocked out), displaced (forced loose, but still attached), chipped, or fractured teeth. Some tooth fractures can expose the tooth’s vulnerable layers (dentin and pulp) that are normally protected by highly-resilient enamel. Besides exposing the tooth to infection, a tooth crack that reaches the root might not be fixable, and may call for a tooth extraction to prevent injury to surrounding tissues and jawbone.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Dental Emergency, Patient Education, Tooth Extraction

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Is it Time for You to Consider a Dental Bridge?

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Tooth loss is only as obvious as the tooth was visible. For instance, losing a molar at the back of your mouth isn’t as visibly noticeable as a missing incisor in the front. Nevertheless, inconspicuous doesn’t mean insignificant; regardless of where your lost tooth used to be, replacing it is important. A dental bridge is a common dental prosthesis designed to replace a single lost tooth, or a few of them in a row, to restore your smile’s beauty and good health. If your smile is incomplete due to a missing tooth, then speak with Dr. Cain as soon as possible about restoring it with a custom dental bridge.

Why Tooth Loss is a Big Deal

The gap in your smile might be the most immediate consequence of tooth loss, but it isn’t the most influential when it comes to the rest of your oral health. Each tooth relies on those around it for support when exposed to the pressure of your bite. A complete set can evenly distribute the pressure amongst themselves, minimizing impact to reduce the risk of damage. If you lose even one tooth, the rest will have to take up the slack, and the teeth closest to the empty space might drift towards it as a result.

How to Support a Dental Bridge

A traditional dental bridge consists of an appropriate number of replacement teeth situated between two dental crowns. The crowns are bonded to the teeth adjacent to the gap, creating a fixed solution to restore your bite’s harmony. In many cases, Dr. Cain will recommend supporting the bridge on one or more dental implants (depending on how many teeth you’ve lost). An implant is a biocompatible titanium root device that is surgically inserted into the jawbone, and can support your prosthetic teeth like roots support your natural teeth.

If a Bridge isn’t Appropriate

Although popular, dental bridges aren’t always the right response to tooth loss. If you’ve lost several teeth that aren’t adjacent to each other, then you may require a partial denture to fill in the dispersed gaps in your smile. Like a complete denture, which consists of an entire row of replacement teeth, a partial denture fits along the curve of your dental ridge. Unlike a full denture, however, partials only possess teeth where needed, and enjoy the additional support of inconspicuous clasps.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Patient Education, Restorative Dentistry, Tooth Loss

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In Case of Emergency

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Just because it’s a dental emergency doesn’t mean you should panic. On the contrary, keeping a cool head and acting calmly, but quickly, can help you save your smile in the face of an emergency. If your tooth suffers damage, or you develop a sudden, severe toothache and aren’t sure why, then you should visit Dr. Cain for an emergency dental visit immediately. Until you make it to our office, however, you can find temporarily relief and increase your chances of preserving your smile with some advice from your Miller dentist.

Keep Calm and Save Your Smile

  • If your tooth is chipped, it might not generate discomfort, depending on how big of a pieced chipped off. Other than altering the tooth’s appearance, some cases might not equal an emergency, especially if only the enamel chips off. Nevertheless, ignoring a chipped tooth can allow the damage to grow worse, and it should be treated as soon as possible.
  • If your tooth breaks or fractures from a sudden impact, you’ll probably know right away. If it happens without you realizing it, then sudden severe tooth pain can warn you. Rinse your mouth thoroughly with warm water to clean away bacteria and debris, then call or visit our office as soon as possible.
  • If your tooth is completely knocked out, you might still have a chance of saving it. Try placing the tooth back in its socket after thoroughly rinsing the tooth and your mouth. If it doesn’t fit, don’t force it, but rather place it in a small container of milk and bring it with you to your emergency visit.

What Constitutes a Dental Emergency?

Not every toothache constitutes an immediate emergency, but if not treated, your tooth can eventually face a serious threat. For instance, a mild cavity can make your tooth only slightly sensitive, but if ignored, the cavity, or hole in your tooth, can grow and threaten the tooth’s existence. Even if you can stand the discomfort, schedule a consultation with Dr. Cain as soon as possible if one or more of your teeth become sensitive to pressure, sweet foods and beverages, or hot and cold temperatures.

About Your Miller, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Dental Emergency, Patient Education

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Make the Most of Your Toothbrush

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Your toothbrush should be your most-used, and most-trusted, weapon against cavities, gum disease, and offensively bad breath. Yet, if you use the wrong brush, or if you don’t use the right one correctly, then you have a significantly smaller chance of winning your fight against dental diseases. Even though you’ve (hopefully) practiced the routine for all of your life, you can increase the effectiveness of your teeth brushing with a few tips from your Miller, IN dentist.

Know What You’re Brushing

You can’t normally see them, but your mouth is home to over 600 identifiable kinds of bacteria, and countless more that have yet to be classified. Of those that we have studied, a few stand out as particularly detrimental to your oral health. Some microbes, like Streptococcus mutans, metabolize sugar and starches into acid that depletes your teeth of minerals, weakening the protective enamel that surrounds them in the process. Other germs, particularly Porphyromonas gingivalis, target your gum tissue, leading to rampant inflammation and gum disease. When oral bacteria gather, they produce a sticky biofilm (dental plaque) to protect them as they cling to your teeth and other oral tissues.

Safe & Effective Teeth Brushing

Brushing and flossing your teeth every day is the best way to control plaque buildup and inhibit oral bacteria’s effects on your dental health. To help ensure that your toothbrush does its job each and every time, Dr. Nicholas Cain suggests;

  • Using a brush with soft bristles to avoid scraping away your tooth enamel
  • Brushing every surface of every tooth, which should take about two minutes each session
  • Holding the brush at a 45-degree angle to clean bacteria and food debris from along your gum line
  • Cleaning your tongue with a tongue-scraper to remove the bacteria that like to gather on its surface
  • Brushing your teeth at least twice every day, and flossing at least once, preferably before bedtime
  • Brushing your cheeks, as well as your tongue and teeth
  • Changing your toothbrush every 3-4 months, or as soon as the bristles become frayed

About Your Miller, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Dental Hygiene, General Dentistry, Patient Education

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Gum Disease Doesn’t Just Go Away

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The lasting effects of gum disease can be disastrous, yet many people don’t consider the dental ailment a serious condition. At least, they may not take it as seriously as they should. Unfortunately, this laissez-faire attitude may contribute greatly to gum disease’s statistics. For instance, the fact that over 80% of America’s adult population has the disease to some extent, or that it’s the number one cause of adult tooth loss. While ignoring the disease until it went away would be ideal, it isn’t going to happen. Neglect will only allow the infection to run rampant, threatening the integrity of your mouth’s foundation.

The Birth of Gum Disease

If you were taught as a child to brush and floss your teeth at least twice a day, then you may have heard the term, dental plaque. Most people recognize that plaque is the sticky substance that adheres to your teeth sometimes, but not many people realize that this biofilm contains over 600 different kinds of bacteria. Not all of these germs are hazardous, but when plaque gathers at your gum line, the microbes release toxins that irritate your gums. Other germs manipulate your immune system to survive, resulting in unchecked and potentially dangerous inflammation. Red, swollen, and sometimes bleeding gums often introduce the beginning stage of gum disease, called gingivitis.

The Advancement of Gum Disease

Gingivitis doesn’t usually cause physical discomfort, and consequently, many people disregard or fail to notice the telltale signs of gum inflammation. When left untreated, the irritation and inflammation will continue to destroy your soft periodontal tissue. As the most severe form of gum disease, advanced periodontitis continues past your gums to begin its work on your jawbone, weakening your teeth’s foundation and support further and eventually leading to permanent tooth loss.

The Prevention and Treatment of Gum Disease

The best method of preventing gum disease is to maintain a strict oral hygiene regimen. Be sure to brush your teeth at least twice a day and to floss at least once to prevent the excessive buildup of bacterial plaque. If Dr. Cain notices the signs of gum disease during your six-month dental checkup, then he may recommend a deep periodontal cleaning. Also called a scaling and root planing, the procedure involves removing bacteria from underneath the gum line and smoothing your teeth roots’ surfaces to discourage future bacteria buildup. In extreme cases, a periodontist (gum specialist) may be required to restore irreversibly damaged gum tissues.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Gum Disease, Patient Education

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A Seal of Approval for Your Children’s Teeth

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Though it’s your job to ensure your children learn how to care for their teeth, it’s your dentist’s job to ensure that your family’s dental hygiene efforts are working. As the most common chronic disease among children and adults in the United States, cavities are a frequent concern at the dentist’s office, mainly preventing them from forming. Through the use of fluoride treatments and dental sealants, Dr. Nicholas Cain can enhance your children’s ability to ward off cavities and protect the future of their smiles.

Preventing Cavities

Cavities, tooth decay, and dental caries are various names for a bacterial infection in your tooth structure. The infection occurs when your tooth’s enamel develops holes from excessive acid erosion, or the tooth is cracked and its inner tissues exposed. Preventing cavity development relies on controlling the bacteria that convert sugar and carbs into acid. Brushing and flossing at least twice every day helps eliminate plaque (the biofilm that protects bacteria) and reduce your child’s risk of bacterial infections.

What is a Dental Sealant?

The chewing surfaces of your children’s teeth, mainly the molars, can harbor bacteria in the hard-to-reach areas between the raised cusps. A dental sealant is a thin plastic coating that’s painted onto a tooth’s surface, acting as an additional layer of protection on top of the tooth’s natural enamel. Sealants are applied as a liquid and conform to the grooves of the teeth’s chewing surfaces, protecting them from accumulating bacteria and cavities.

Help Your Children Stay Cavity-Free

Dr. Cain can determine if your child requires fluoride or dental treatments during a routine dental checkup and cleaning, which you and your child should attend at least once every six months. Besides regular dental visits, be sure to teach your children to carefully brush every surface of every tooth, and to floss at least once every day, preferably before bedtime. Dr. Cain and our dedicated team of professionals can help you and your children develop more fun and effective ways to improve dental hygiene at home, as well as recommend treatments to improve your preventive dental care.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent general, preventive, and family dentistry services to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Dental Hygiene, Preventive Dentistry

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Smile Like a Star with Porcelain Veneers

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The point of cosmetic dentistry is to improve your smile’s look, and in the quest for smile perfection, porcelain veneers have gained an impressive amount of fame. While not every celebrity has professionally enhanced their smile’s appearance, many have, and Dr. Nicholas Cain offers the same cosmetic procedures the stars have received, including porcelain veneers.

What is a Veneer?

By definition, a veneer is a thin, decorative covering made from different materials, depending on its purpose. Dental veneers are crafted from lifelike dental porcelain, which is semi-translucent, like tooth enamel, and layered to reflect light like your tooth’s natural covering. Each porcelain veneer is custom-designed to mimic a specific tooth’s size, shape, and color, then bonded to the front of that tooth to conceal cosmetic blemishes that might require more complex procedures to treat.

Smile Makeovers with Porcelain Veneers

The beauty of dental veneers, besides their lifelike appearance, is the fact that your teeth don’t require much preparation to receive the thin porcelain shells. Before bonding them to your teeth, Dr. Cain will remove a small amount of surface enamel to accommodate the veneers. 3D images of your mouth and teeth will be sent to a trusted dental lab to create your veneers precisely to your specific measurements. Minimal preparation and maximum cosmetic appeal make veneers the preferred choice of treatment for a number of different situations, including;

  • Cracked teeth
  • Severely stained teeth
  • Slightly crooked or misshapen teeth
  • Multiple teeth with a variety of different imperfections

Are Veneers the Right Choice?

Though widely diverse, porcelain veneers aren’t always the right choice of treatment. For instance, if your teeth are just stained, then professional teeth whitening can brighten their appearance without having to sculpt your teeth at all. If your cosmetic blemishes are the result of an underlying infection, like a cavity, then you may require a dental filling or root canal therapy (depending on the cavity’s severity). To determine whether or not veneers are the right solution for you, Dr. Cain will perform a comprehensive examination, as well as a personal consultation to discuss your exact expectations and goals.

About Your Gary, IN Cosmetic Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent cosmetic, preventive, and restorative dentistry to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Cosmetic Dentistry, porcelain veneers

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Questions About Cosmetic Tooth Bonding

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As small as they are, your teeth can be marred by even the smallest stain or chipped edged. Because of their limited landscape, fixing the appearance of imperfect teeth is a sensitive and precise process, one that’s different for everybody depending on their specific needs. Tooth bonding, which consists of rejuvenating a blemished tooth using tooth-colored composite resin, can help improve your smile’s appearance without taking away from your tooth’s natural structure.

What is composite resin?

Composite resin is a white mixture of plastic and glass-like particles that can be tinted to match the exact shade of your tooth. As a cosmetic measure, the resin can be bonded to your tooth’s structure, then sculpted to the desired shape and polished for a lifelike shine. Composite resin, or tooth bonding, is often recommended in a number of different situations, including;

  • Chipped teeth
  • Cracked tooth enamel (craze lines)
  • Stubborn surface stains
  • Uneven spaces (black triangles) between teeth

Is tooth bonding better than porcelain veneers?

Some cosmetic issues may require more complex treatment than bonding, such as some severe tooth stains or oddly shaped, slightly crooked teeth. If dental bonding won’t suffice to correct your smile, then Dr. Cain might recommend placing one or more porcelain veneers over your teeth. Made from innovative dental porcelain, wafer-thin veneers cover the front surfaces of your teeth to offer a more lifelike restoration. Since Dr. Cain has to prepare your teeth to receive veneers by sculpting away a small amount of enamel, the procedure can’t be reversed. After a thorough examination, Dr. Cain will consult with you to determine which cosmetic treatment is best suited to your specific needs.

Can composite resin restore teeth, too?

Though often used for cosmetic purposes, composite resin’s unique features also make it an effective (and more visually appealing) alternative to metal dental fillings. Resin blends in with your tooth, creating a discreet filling that doesn’t clash with your smile’s natural color. Since resin can be bonded to your tooth’s surface, it creates a strong seal against bacteria to reduce the risk of future tooth infection.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent cosmetic, preventive, and restorative dentistry to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Cosmetic Dentistry, dental bonding

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Avoid Excessive Teeth Whitening

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Sometimes, you just can’t avoid teeth stains, especially the ones you already see developing. They can be caused by the food and beverages you consume, certain medications you take, or a host of other reasons, many of which don’t necessarily mean your teeth are in serious trouble. With professional and over-the-counter teeth whitening products, you can erase most surface stains and dramatically improve your smile’s appearance. However, as Dr. Nicholas Cain warns, too much of a good thing could prove more harmful than beneficial to your teeth.

Persistence Isn’t Always Good

The main appeal of over-the-counter whitening products, like whitening strips and brightening agents, is their convenience. Theoretically, you could brighten your smile’s visage whenever stains appear without having to visit your dentist. If stains don’t respond, then the convenience might tempt you to just keep trying, and repeated exposure to the chemical agents can destroy your tooth enamel, which protects your teeth from infectious bacteria. Before trying an OTC whitening solution, speak with Dr. Cain about recommended usage to make sure you don’t overdo it.

The Choices We Offer

Our dedication to providing highly-effective and convenient dental care, our teeth-whitening options combine the expediency of OTC whiteners with the strength of professional dentistry. Our popular take-home teeth whitening kit contains a set of custom-designed whitening trays that allow you to evenly apply the whitening gel to your teeth’s surfaces. Treatment usually lasts about 10-14 days, after which your smile can be up to 10 shades brighter than before. If you’re in a hurry, Dr. Cain may recommend in-office treatment, which offers the same magnificent results in just one hour-long visit to our office.

Preserve Your Bright Smile the Healthy Way

An added benefit of professional whitening is the direction we provide in how to maximize your results. We also help you understand the nature of your teeth stains, and the steps you can take to prevent them from forming in the future. For instance, the order in which you eat certain foods, especially those loaded with sugar, acid, and/or strongly-pigmented chromogens (color molecules) can determine your risk for noticeable staining. Improved hygiene and therapeutic mouthrinse can also improve your chances of protecting your smile’s pearly-white gleam.

About Your Gary, IN Dentist:

As a native of northwest Indiana, Nicholas Cain, DDS, is dedicated to providing excellent cosmetic, preventive, and restorative dentistry to the community that raised him. To schedule your family’s next dental appointment, call Healthy Smiles today at 219-938-2637.

filed under: Cosmetic Dentistry, teeth whitening

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