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Family dentistry

Kids Tooth Tip #2: Electric Toothbrushes Rule

So last week I posted the first of my Kids Tooth Tips, and Tip #1 was this: Help Your Child Brush His/Her Teeth Until Age 10.  The simple reason for this was that kids usually lack the hand-eye coordination and manual dexterity to do a good job all on their own.  We all wish they could do it on their own, but for all intents and purposes, they just can’t.  It’s not their fault – they just haven’t developed enough yet.  And yes, I certainly found this with my own daughter, and heck, if a dentist’s own daughter has trouble…..ANYONE’S kid can have trouble alone. Electric Toothbrushes are DA BOMB for All Ages While this article is mostly intended for kids, I’m a huge believer in electric toothbrushes for everyone.   And while most electric toothbrushes work fine, my personal recommendation is the Sonicare Electric Toothbrush, both for kids and adults.  Here’s why: […]

By | 2017-06-09T20:32:25-04:00 June 18th, 2014|Family dentistry, Taking Care of Your Teeth|0 Comments
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Do You Need a Crown on a Cracked Tooth?

We recently had a new patient see us with no tooth complaints, she just needed a check up and wanted to discuss her headaches to see if we could help.  During her exam, I noticed that several of her molars were severely worn down (which she already knew about) and had cracks visible.  We didn’t take photos at her appointment (should have!) to show her, but she seemed comfortable with my recommendation of doing crowns on those 4 teeth to catch and contain the cracks before the teeth break.  Since she decided on a second opinion for those teeth, which I fully respect, I decided this is a good opportunity to review cracks in teeth, and what (if anything) to do about them. Tooth Cracks Don’t Show Up on X-Rays One difficulty with diagnosing cracks in teeth, is that they almost never show up on x-rays.  Why, you ask?  Good question!  It’s because x-rays are traveling perpendicular to the cracks, and the cracks are so narrow, there’s not enough change in the tooth density for the x-rays to show it.  To show up on an x-ray, a crack in a tooth would have to be so wide, you could stick a fork in it, and then you’d already know there was a problem.  The x-ray shown here is from another patient we recently treated, and while you can’t see anything on the x-ray, want until you see how it looked inside the tooth (on below). […]

By | 2017-06-09T20:33:15-04:00 February 27th, 2014|Bruxism & Parafunction, Cracked tooth, Family dentistry|0 Comments
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Do Dental Cavities Always Hurt?

One of the most common questions we hear, when we first have to give a patient the bad news that they have 1 or more cavities is, "But doc, how come it doesn't hurt?" It's a common misconception that a cavity will always give you a toothache. Cavities  Don't Hurt Until It's BAD Today yielded another perfect example of this analogy.  A young lady was diagnosed as having a cavity, not because it hurt, but because I could see the previous silver amalgam dental filling had broken, and because we could see it on the x-ray, as shown. Looking just at the x-ray, you wouldn't suspect how deep the cavity really is.  In fact, studies show that cavities are usually 30% WORSE than they appear on x-rays, because the human eye can not perceive the grayscale changes at the level they really are. What Does a Cavity Look Like? If you'll follow the progression of photos below (and BTW -- this work was done by me, not someone else!), you can see where we started with what was a small old filling, then as we progressively and very carefully removed the decay while using 8-12x magnification with a dental operating microscope, to see just how deep the cavity really was.  The blue stains are from a solution that we use to help us see where the decay is (it stains the cavity-causing bacteria if there are high enough numbers).  Then you can see the finished result: a beautifully natural-looking, tooth-colored composite dental filling. If you are concerned about tooth cavities, Request an Appoint­ment Online or call us at 704–364-7069. We’ll look for­ward to meet­ing you soon!

By | 2017-06-09T20:33:32-04:00 January 11th, 2014|Cavities, Family dentistry|0 Comments
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Everyday Family Dentistry in Charlotte

As much as I like talking about some of the more “exotic” technologies that we have in our Charlotte dental office, such as Laser Dentistry, Cosmetic Dentistry, Six Month Braces, etc., our daily schedule is filled with what dentists usually call “Bread-and-Butter” dentistry.  Things like the cases shown below, and as always – these are our patients and my photos, all originals! Tooth-Colored Fillings to Fix Big Cavities on Front Teeth For this young lady, given how big these cavities are, most dentists would have recommended porcelain crowns to fix them, and there would certainly be nothing wrong with that (see my recent post on Why Dentists Tell You Different Things), but we still have a lot of work to do on her back teeth, and so budget was a concern.  Yes, we do recognize that dentistry is expensive, and I promise – we do our best to give you options that work financially as well as clinically – when possible.  Sometimes we can, sometimes not.  But anyway, we did get to use a lot of our technology for this young lady, including our Lightwalker dental laser to remove all the cavities, and the dental microscope for superb vision so I removed only what was necessary and no more.  With no further ado: […]

By | 2017-06-09T20:33:36-04:00 December 22nd, 2013|Family dentistry|0 Comments
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Why Dentists Tell You Different Things

If you've ever been to more than 1 dentist in a short period of time, for whatever reason, you've probably been a little surprised that one told you there were several problems, one didn't say a thing, and maybe the third suggested something entirely different.  This question has been discussed in several major news articles over the last couple decades, but usually with a major hidden bias or agenda that the public never gets to see, but which has a big influence on how the issue is presented.  At our Charlotte NC dentist office, this is something we encounter on a regular basis, so why not address it head-on? Dentists Are People, Too In simple terms.........dentists are like everyone else!  And like people in every other field, that means there is a huge variety from which you may choose, such as: Some are experienced but don't stay up-to-date; others push the envelope of cutting-edge techniques Some are young and driven to be the best; others don't have a clue Some love technology and buy every new gadget that comes out - others don't know how to use email Some are passionate about always learning more; others struggle to reach the minimum requirements to maintain their license. Some understand research and base their recommendations on solid science, others are quacks and couldn't read a research paper to save their life Some dentists are more "aggressive" and some more "conservative" You get the idea, right?  This is no different than in any job - some people really want to be the best, others couldn't care less, and then everyone in between   Look at your co-workers, and you can probably figure out how to apply this list to them. There Is [...]

By | 2017-06-09T20:34:50-04:00 January 21st, 2013|Dental Philosophy of Care, Family dentistry|0 Comments
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Spend Less Time and Money at the Dentist

Let's face it - NO ONE likes getting dental work done.  After nearly 15 years of being a dentist, I promise - I've heard every reason there is, but it usually comes down to 1 of  3 things: Time Fear Money So what if your dentist uses some technology that can decrease at least two of those?  How about if the 2 that this technology decreased were TIME and MONEY?  Think you would like to know more?  ......................................  Hmmmmmmm, yeah, I thought you would!  So what is this technology? The Least Invasive Yet Most Precise Tool a Dentist Can Use What is it?  It's a Dental Operating Microscope, or DOM for short.  It's exactly what it says - a microscope used by dentists, obviously to see at very high levels of magnification.  And why is this good?  For several very simple, but very good reasons, including the following: Teeth are pretty small, so it's not easy to see and work on them in the first place; Cracks in teeth and cavities can be super small, but if they penetrate deeply enough into the tooth, they can cause terrible pain; Seeing at high magnification helps a dentist find problems earlier rather than later High magnification means a dentist can remove exactly the right amount, no more and no less - it's less invasive! Bright light - the mouth is a dark place, but the bright light and clear vision help a dentist with a scope see extreme detail in every dark corner of your mouth. Teeth are Really Small and Hard to Work On Just take a look at these photos, which are in order from least magnification to the highest, and imagine your dentist fixing [...]

By | 2017-06-09T20:34:52-04:00 December 5th, 2012|Family dentistry|0 Comments
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Bonding to Fix a Broken Front Tooth

If you have chipped a front tooth, often playing sports, you know how embarrassing it can be to smile.  However, you may be worried that the tooth will need a porcelain veneer or dental crown to fix it, and you might be worried about the cost.  The good news is, for patients of our Charlotte dentist office, there is a very affordable, conservative (meaning we don't drill the tooth away), and completely natural-looking way to fix broken front teeth with composite bonding. Fixing a Broken Front Tooth with Bonding This young lady came to us as a new patient recently, wanting to know what could be done about fixing her chipped front tooth, which she'd broken playing sports some time ago.  A very attractive young lady, she was embarrassed to smile big because the chipped tooth was right in the very front. Because the broken part of the tooth wasn't small, it wouldn't be unreasonable for a dentist to suggest a very thin porcelain veneer to repair this tooth.  Her teeth have a lot of character to them - a noticeable shift from darker at the gums to lighter at the edge, some whitish spots and lines, etc. - which make it very difficult to match believably with bonding.  However, even a very conservative veneer would require removing more healthy enamel than necessary, and conservative tooth-colored bonding, or composite resin, is also strong and long-lasting, you just need a dentist skilled at matching all those details. Can You See The Filling? Matching a single front tooth is usually considered the greatest challenge in cosmetic dentistry, so many dentists will recommend fixing the 2 front teeth at the same time, because it's easier to make a [...]

By | 2017-06-09T20:34:55-04:00 November 28th, 2012|Cosmetic dentistry, Family dentistry|0 Comments
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SmilesbyPayet Dentistry moving in May & Other Updates

Here at SmilesbyPayet Dentistry, there are some very exciting changes coming to our Charlotte family dental office that we want you to know about.  In order to really stay on top of things, you can subscribe to the RSS feed or you can become a Fan on our Facebook Page Facebook.com/TheCharlotteDentist to get all the latest updates. So here goes: We're MOVING! Our new office will be located at 4601 Park Rd. at the corner of Park Rd. and Abbey Place, which is just 1 stoplight south of the intersection of Park Rd. and Woodlawn Rd., where you'll find the Park Rd. Shopping Center.  It's really easy to find - the big, white, square building on the corner opposite the Bank of America Branch; we'll be Suite 175.  This new office will have some tremendous advantages: MUCH easier to find!  Our name will be easy to read on the Monument sign right on Park Rd., and if you're using GPS, it won't be a problem at all, compared to our current Morrocroft Professional Park location. We're growing so fast, we're moving from our current 3 treatment rooms to SIX!  Due to the incredibly popularity of our 6MonthSmiles adult cosmetic braces (listen to our radio spot on WLNK), we'll be dedicating 1 of those rooms exclusively to our orthodontic patients. A truly PRIVATE consultation room.  Whenever discussing financial matters, health conditions, personal fears, whatever else that you don't want anyone else to hear, of course you want privacy, and our current office doesn't give us that luxury as we'd like.  In the new office, you'll have complete privacy. A childrens' play area!  They will be able to scribble on the walls, play Xbox, and more. Big-screen [...]

By | 2017-06-09T20:43:36-04:00 March 17th, 2010|Cosmetic dentistry, Family dentistry, Six-Month Braces|0 Comments
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Baby Boomers & Dental Care – Don’t wait until after retirement!

With more and more Baby Boomers approaching or entering retirement, an issue often not considered is their dental health. I think it is actually an important topic to discuss, even more so in today's economy. Many Baby Boomers - my parents included - have put retirement on hold, but it's still not all that far away, and with retirement usually comes the loss of dental insurance and the loss of medical/dental Flex plans that can help a lot with covering the cost of dental care. After that, it's all out-of-pocket. Ouch! So we always recommend a thorough re-evaluation of existing dental work for things that may be on the verge of going bad. Such things could be: Old silver fillings with cavities and cracks that could turn into root canals and crowns or extractions The teeth around the old silver fillings may have cracks that could lead to broken teeth Gum (periodontal) disease Ugly old crowns that could be replaced for a nicer smile in the golden years Replacing missing teeth with dental bridges or implants so you can eat the foods you want Etc etc etc...... This gentleman hadn't been to the dentist in a number of years but knew that he was approaching retirement, so he wanted to come in, get a cleaning, and find out if he needed to take care of anything while he still had dental insurance. Turns out that many of his 30+ year old silver fillings were in really bad condition, with pieces chipping off, cavities forming around the edges, teeth cracking, and gum disease to boot. While the total treatment that he needed involved some gum surgery (not needed for everyone, obviously), the primary issue that we [...]

By | 2017-06-09T20:44:59-04:00 May 20th, 2009|Cavities, Cosmetic dentistry, Family dentistry, Porcelain Crowns|0 Comments
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