Lake Pointe Dental Care

Now and then, everyone and everything needs a little help to look its best. Your teeth are no exception — they rarely stay as white as you might like them to be. But with some assistance from our office, you can have the bright, healthy smile you’ve always wanted.

Teeth whitening is an effective and affordable cosmetic dental procedure that can produce dramatic results right away. With in-office whitening, for example, your teeth can be up to eight shades brighter after just one treatment! Take-home whitening treatments, with custom-made trays fitted in our office, provide similar results in a longer time frame. Either way, you’ll see the kind of improvement that will really make you smile.

Don’t confuse this specialized treatment with over-the-counter products or shopping-mall services. These may work — or they may do damage! Having an oral exam in our office is the first step, to ensure that tooth discoloration isn’t due to any underlying dental problem. From then on, your treatment is professionally supervised to make certain that you get the lightening you want, safely.

For years, straightening teeth required a mouthful of metal braces; however, today there are clear alternatives that may work just as well. This 21st century approach requires sets of clear aligners that are replaced every 2 to 3 weeks over the course of the typical 6 to 18 month treatment. And to ensure you obtain the best results, we use computer-generated aligners as they are more efficient and are the best way for you to obtain your new smile goals.

Cosmetic and restorative dentists have many techniques that enable them to showcase their artistic talents. Two of these, porcelain crowns and veneers, are probably most common and are responsible for producing a Hollywood smile. While they have their similarities, they also have their differences. What is needed to enhance your smile will depend upon the condition of your teeth. In either case, the magic of porcelain is that in the right hands—between a gifted dentist and talented laboratory technician—you can achieve a look and strength so close to a natural tooth that only you and I will be able to tell the difference. And this good news only gets better as the latest science behind the newer ceramic materials looks even more promising!

In addition to more than 40 different types of traditional or standard dental implants, there are now mini and even micro-mini implants; thus you can easily see the importance of understanding your options when talking about your specific needs. From single and multi-tooth replacements to different combinations of fixed and removable bridgework and over-dentures, the type of implant that best resolves your particular tooth replacement challenges will be selected. In fact, if you have loose dentures, implant-supported over-dentures are now considered the standard of care for patients who have lost all their teeth in one or both jaws.

Once your beautifully designed new smile is complete, it is important that you maintain it properly so that you achieve the maximum lifespan of 20+ years from your porcelain veneers. Luckily, this task is relatively simple and easy to incorporate into your daily oral hygiene routine.

Since your veneers are made from porcelain and so closely mimic natural teeth, don’t be afraid of damaging them with normal brushing or flossing. However, if you are a bruxer (someone who clinches or grinds his/her teeth), you will need to let our office know. A mouthguard can be fabricated to wear while sleeping to protect your veneers.

Maintaining your smile should be part of your daily routine; however, if you have relaxed a bit too much and let your guard down, let June’s National Smile Month stimulate you into getting back on track. Your first course of action is to checkout your toothbrush. If it is worn, replace it. Next, you will need to buy and use dental floss. No more excuses, you need to floss your teeth just once a day for good oral health. If you are not sure your brushing and flossing skills are the best, don’t be embarrassed—ask our office for a demo—nobody really knows how to brush properly until they are shown. Once you are confident your brushing and flossing skills mimic what you’ve learned, you can then focus on cosmetics. For example, would a professional bleaching give you the smile you have always dreamed of having? Or, maybe now is the time to discuss porcelain veneers or tooth-colored restorations with our office? Lastly, you should ask us about a mouthguard for protecting your teeth while sleeping and when playing sports. Now you are set to enjoy showing off your smile and not just for National Smile Month—but also for the entire year.

Teeth whitening may be the most popular cosmetic dental procedure available today — and perhaps the most economical, too. While it’s possible to use over-the-counter products to lighten your teeth, these solutions aren’t as powerful as those provided at our office. Plus, you won’t receive the benefits of professional treatment and supervision. What should you expect from our specialized teeth-whitening procedure?

First, you’ll receive a thorough oral exam, to make sure that any discoloration of your teeth isn’t due to a dental problem that needs another kind of treatment. Next you’ll have a choice of two whitening methods: In-office whitening or take-home trays.

In-office treatment uses the most highly-concentrated whitening solutions, and offers the most dramatic results. Your teeth may be lightened from two to eight shades after a single one-hour treatment! While you’re being treated, we carefully protect and monitor sensitive areas of the teeth, gums and mouth.

In take-home whitening, we first make a cast of your teeth, which is then used to custom-fabricate a set of flexible mouth trays. You fill the trays with whitening gels we provide, and wear them at home for about an hour at a time. You’ll get nearly the same results, but the process may take a few weeks. Interested?

The first and most important step in addressing stained teeth is identifying the cause or causes for the discoloration so that you can hopefully prevent additional staining in the future. To get started, we need to determine if the stains or discoloration are extrinsic (external) or intrinsic (internal). Extrinsic stains affect teeth from the outside while intrinsic stains are part of the tooth structure itself. Once we have identified the type and causes of the staining, appropriate treatment options can be recommend. These may include polishing or simple dietary and lifestyle changes such as eliminating tobacco or consuming certain foods. Intrinsic stains may require tooth bleaching, veneers, or even crowns.

With 77% of Dear Doctor magazine’s polled readers responding that part of their wedding plans included (or will include) a visit to their dentist prior to their wedding day, you clearly understand the importance of having a beautiful wedding-day smile. And even though there are numerous techniques for accomplishing your long-term goals, it is imperative that you make your appointment early to ensure you have ample time to define, implement, and complete the treatment you want. .

Cosmetic dentistry today offers a wide variety of options for improving or restoring your smile. However, knowing or even understanding your options can be intimidating. For example, what is the difference between bonding (an acrylic material) and veneers (typically porcelain)? And what on Earth is gum contouring…and why could it be critical to smile enhancement? Understanding some of the most common techniques used in designing a smile—such as enamel shaping, whitening, crowns, bridgework, and implants—can be a tremendous tool when communicating what you want to our office.