What are Sealants For?

With the approach of the school year, many parents are eager to make sure their children’s teeth are in good condition. Toothaches are a common reason for children’s sleep and behavior problems, and general dentists can provide preventive care as well as repair. But one of the most common forms of preventive dentistry, the application of sealants, works for adults as well as children. At Dr. Suzanne Haeri’s South Carthay dental office, we’re pleased to offer sealants for the protection of our patients’ teeth, and we especially want adults who have a history of tooth decay to know how they can benefit.

 

Sealants are shields that are applied to the grinding surfaces of the molars and premolars. Those teeth have multiple raised bits, called cusps, with indentations between them. The indentations commonly become caked in food debris, particularly starches, making them good spots for oral bacteria to grow in. These parts of the teeth can also be difficult to brush effectively, allowing the acid by-product of oral bacteria to settle into indentations and create bigger cracks. However, sealants smooth out the teeth’s grinding surfaces and create a barrier between the enamel and the food debris. They leave the teeth textured enough to fulfill their function, but slow the rate of decay.

 

Application of sealants doesn’t require preparation from the patient. After cleaning the teeth, we’ll apply a mild etching acid to them to increase their surface area. We’ll then paint the plastic sealant on in liquid form and harden it with a blue light. The patient will resume eating normally by the next day, and afterward, the sealant can last for as long as ten years as long as they maintain regular oral hygiene.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Protect Your Teeth from Staining

If you’ve gotten whitening treatment in our office, you’ve noticed your teeth are several shades lighter. With good oral hygiene, they should stay that way for years. But tooth discoloration is a normal part of life, and everybody’s smiles fade over time. Nonetheless, there are some things you can do to protect natural teeth from stains. At the South Carthay dental office of Dr. Suzanne Haeri, we specialize in cosmetic care, and to protect our patients’ investment, we wanted to pass along some information about enamel and extrinsic stains.

 

An extrinsic stain is one which forms on the outside of the tooth. While intrinsic stains are often indicative of a health problem that may require significant intervention, extrinsic stains are usually only a cosmetic issue. For the most part, they can be blamed on tannins. These organic substances are present in some plant tissues, and are the reason why coffee, tea, and red wine are dark colored. They also build up on a person’s teeth, and cause the same stains. Dark colored soda and juice can have a similar effect, and their sugar is causing dark-colored substances to get stuck on the teeth. Other sources of tooth discoloration are smoking, soy sauce, and tomato sauce.

 

Although cutting back on staining substances can keep teeth whiter for longer, patients may not need to abandon coffee and tea entirely. Sipping these drinks through a straw can significantly reduce the teeth’s exposure to tannins. Regular brushing and flossing will also remove the sticky plaque that traps dark substances. If you do notice your teeth fading, we can provide a whitening touch-up in the form of in-office whitening or a refill for a take-home tray.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Loose Fillings

As both a general and cosmetic dental office, we at the South Carthay practice of Dr. Suzanne Haeri are pleased to offer stable, naturally-colored fillings. Unlike the silver amalgam of old, modern fillings are indistinguishable from healthy enamel and won’t trigger a patient’s allergy to metal. But although fillings can stay in place for years, the seal holding them in place does eventually break down. We hope you keep up with regular dental appointments so you can get yours repaired before they become a problem, but since fillings can come loose prematurely, we want our patients to recognize them and seek treatment.

 

After decayed enamel is drilled away, a filling is made by sealing a bit of porcelain or resin into the hole. As the seal breaks down, saliva will get trapped in the cracks, causing the filling to seem to leak. Unfortunately, the same spaces can be occupied by bacteria, where they are safe from the patient’s brushing and can resume causing decay. As the seal continues to break, the filling may come loose and start causing the patient pain and difficulty biting down. If yours has reached this point, don’t hesitate to schedule an emergency appointment. In the meantime, you may be able to reduce your discomfort by applying a topical numbing gel.

 

Once we’ve removed a loose filling, we’ll be able to drill away further decay, if necessary. From there, providing a new filling is usually a simple matter as long as the patient is satisfied with the color of the rest of the dental crown. We shape fillings with tools called burnishers to ensure they won’t get in the way of the patient closing their teeth together. Fillings require the same daily hygiene as normal teeth and they’re a bit more fragile than natural enamel, so patients will have to be especially careful to avoid chewing on ice or anything else extremely hard. But when cared for properly, fillings can last for over a decade.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Use of Mouthguards

Prevention is an important aspect of dental care, particularly when it comes to injuries. A broken tooth could be expensive and difficult to repair as well as painful, and is often accompanied by damage to the mouth’s soft tissues. This year, from July 19-23, the federal government is recognizing National Youth Sports Week, so we thought this would be a good time to remind athletes of any age of the importance of wearing a mouthguard and how to determine which ones suit their needs.

 

Dental trauma is most likely to occur during contact sports, but it is a risk even during activities such as gymnastics and skating. Governing boards generally require that participants wear a mouthguard at least over their maxillary teeth, but injuries can also occur during amateur or casual play. Mouthguards come in three varieties: ready made, boil-and-bite, and customized, each offering an increasing level of protection. Ready made ones come in different sizes and customized ones are designed for one specific user, while boil-and-bite mouthguards are adjustable. The wearer boils them to soften them, and then puts them over their teeth and molds them with their fingers while they are cooling.

 

Boil-and-bite mouthguards are particularly popular among young athletes, whose teeth are still shifting. However, some additional oversight from a dentist may be necessary when fitting them over braces. Evidence shows that use of mouthguards reduces dental injuries by forty percent. Mouthguards and their containing cases need to be kept clean in accordance with their manufacturer’s instructions, and users should be careful to avoid leaving them in the sun or anywhere else extremely hot, or else their shape might be distorted the next time they are used. But overall, mouthguards are a simple way to protect your dental investment.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Acid Reflux and Enamel

Tooth sensitivity could be caused by many things. As a child you were probably taught to associate it with caries, and that’s certainly common. But as people get older, another common cause of toothaches emerges: acid reflux. At the South Carthay office of Dr. Suzanne Haeri, we value prevention as well as general maintenance, and we want our patients to enjoy dental comfort. That’s why we want to explain a bit about how lifestyle factors play into enamel erosion and how patients can protect themselves.

 

Enamel is incredibly hard, but it can still be eroded by acid. Tooth decay occurs when enamel is dissolved by the acid bacteria secrete as they metabolize sugar, but acid can also be regurgitated from a person’s stomach. Normally, the stomach is separated from the esophagus by a sphincter, but this sphincter can get stuck open, or a person may develop a condition in which it opens when they swallow. This would allow stomach acid to escape in gaseous form. What we call “heartburn” is really the sensation of stomach acid burning the esophagus on its way up, and when it reaches the mouth, it can do the same to the teeth. Due to their position, the ones in the back of the upper jaw are the most vulnerable.

 

People who suffer chronic acid reflux should seek the help of a gastrointestinologist, but there are a few things that might reduce the frequency of attacks. They may try reducing their consumption of alcohol, chocolate, tomatoes, garlic and onions, and red meat, and avoid eating anything in large quantities before lying down. They are also at greater risk if they smoke. We can provide patients’ teeth with additional protection in the form of sealants or fluoridation treatments. Increasing saliva flow by means such as chewing sugarfree gum will also help neutralize more acid.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Dental Bonding

Do you find yourself running your lips over a small chip in one of your teeth? Are you reluctant to smile in pictures because one of the gaps between your teeth seems too large, or one of your crowns isn’t as long as the others? We hope that’s not the case; everyone deserves a smile they’re proud of. But at the South Carthay dental office of Dr. Suzanne Haeri, we provide dental bonding that can be used for cosmetic improvements as well as minor repairs. The process is quick and far less invasive than replacing a whole crown.

 

Bonding is made out of a composite resin the same color as your teeth. (If you are also unhappy with your teeth’s color, we can whiten them before making any adjustments to their shape.) We use bonding to smooth over tiny cracks, called craze lines, and to add a bit more material to a crown that is uneven or where gum tissue has receded around, but the tooth is stable. Bonding can reduce the sensitivity of an exposed tooth root and may be able to replace a patient’s old metal fillings. To place it, we’ll first cover the tooth in a mild etching acid to increase its surface area. We’ll then apply the wet bonding material and harden it with a blue light.

 

When a patient makes a reservation just to have bonding placed on a tooth, they can usually be out of the office in less than an hour. If the patient is not suffering from sensitivity, placing bonding may not even require anesthetic. Although patients have to be careful not to overtax bonding by biting down on anything too hard, they should find it easy to care for. If a patient brushes and flosses their teeth regularly, bonding can stay in place and retain its original color for over five years.

 

The dental office of Suzanne Haeri, DDS, is located at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, California, 90035. To schedule an appointment, call 310-657-2200 or visit our website at Suzanne Haeri DDS.

Tooth Sectioning

Suzanne Haeri DDS in Los Angeles, CA, takes pride in educating our patients about all things dental. We know that having a tooth pulled is far from fun, but sometimes it’s a necessary step before a bigger procedure or treatment, such as wisdom teeth removal or orthodontic treatment. A routine tooth extraction doesn’t have to be painful or scary, especially if you pick the right oral surgeon who explains the whole process beforehand. 

The fact is, some teeth are more difficult to extract than others. Teeth are unique from individual to individual. They can be multi-rooted, impacted, or just larger than average. Tooth sectioning is a common procedure for teeth that are too firmly anchored in the socket or when the root is curved and the socket cannot expand enough for the tooth to be removed. To work around this, an oral surgeon cuts the tooth into sections. Each section is removed one by one.

Since less force is required for the extraction, tooth sectioning makes the procedure less painful for the patient and easier for the oral surgeon to remove the tooth. In addition to less pain, another major benefit of tooth sectioning is a smaller wound. A smaller wound means a shorter healing time!

Not sure if you need a tooth pulled? We can lead you in the right direction. Suzanne Haeri DDS practices at 1100 S La Cienega Blvd. in Los Angeles, CA 90035. For more information or to schedule an appointment, please visit suzannehaeridds.com or call 310-657-2200.