Each tooth has elastic fibers that hold the tooth in the jaw. When orthodontic treatment rotates a tooth, these fibers tend to return the tooth to its original orientation when treatment is completed. To prevent this from happening, your dentist can detach the elastic fibers between the gums and the affected tooth. Healthy fibers will reattach themselves to the tooth in its new position. This stops these fibers from applying rotational forces.
Your dentist can perform a fiberotomy in just a few minutes.
Your dentist will:
There may be minimal discomfort after the procedure. Typically, any discomfort can be managed with mild pain relievers. Healthy people rarely experience complications, such as infections.
There is a chance that orthodontically moved teeth may rotate back a small amount. To prevent this, you should be sure to use orthodontic retainers as directed.
If your tooth is damaged by tooth decay, a filling is normally recommended to restore your tooth to its normal shape, function, and appearance. Fillings are also used to fix chipped teeth or partially broken teeth.
Along with brushing, flossing is one of the essential parts of your daily oral health routine. Flossing allows you to remove plaque from between your teeth and slightly underneath the gums, which are areas not as accessible by toothbrushes.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring element that helps strengthen tooth enamel and make it more resistant to acid exposure. Exposure to acid is a major factor in tooth decay, an infectious disease afflicting most people around the world. Continual and proper use of fluoride has been shown to provide significant benefits to the prevention of tooth decay by aiding in remineralization and preventing demineralization.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring element that helps strengthen tooth enamel and make it more resistant to acid exposure. Exposure to acid is a major factor in tooth decay, an infectious disease afflicting most people around the world. Continual and proper use of fluoride has been shown to provide significant benefits to the prevention of tooth decay by aiding in remineralization and preventing demineralization.
If you are not getting enough fluoride, your dentist can treat your teeth with fluoride varnish, gels, or foam.
A free soft tissue graft is a surgical procedure to treat an area of receded gums and, when possible, cover an exposed tooth root. A dentist may also perform this procedure to add gum tissue around a dental implant. A free soft tissue graft accesses both soft connective tissue and toughened surface layers of the gum.
A frenum (or frenulum) is a small band of connective tissue located at a few positions in the mouth. The frenum originates in the gums and connects to the lip (labial frenum) or cheek (buccal frenum). A frenectomy is a minor surgical procedure to release the frenum's attachment to remove gum tissue. This procedure may be required for a variety of reasons.
When a frenum is located too close to a tooth, the surrounding muscles can contract and apply tension to the frenum. This can contribute to receding gums. When the frenum's origin is between two teeth, it can prevent those teeth from moving into their proper positions while developing. This can complicate orthodontic treatment or when creating a denture. A frenectomy may be recommended before or after treatment begins.
Typically the required incision is small and requires only a local anesthetic. Complications and infections are rare in healthy patients. Discuss your health history and current health status with your dentist before beginning the procedure.
A full mouth series of X-ray images is a set of approximately twelve to twenty individual bitewing and periapical X-ray images. Full mouth X-rays are taken so that the teeth and bone surrounding the tooth roots are visible in their entirety from various angles. This allows your dentist to evaluate the spaces between your teeth for decay, and to check for bone loss and signs of infection or disease that may be in the bone surrounding the tooth roots.
The number of images taken depends on how many teeth you have. Because there are more images taken, a full mouth X-ray series exposes you to slightly more radiation than other types of images. This is why dentists should limit the use of full mouth X-rays. They should be ordered only when your dentist needs the diagnostic information provided by these X-rays to assess your oral health status.
The American Dental Association (ADA) has set the following general guidelines for their use: