Diamons

Patient Education

Photography by Dr. Padval

Check Your Dental I.Q.

Read each question and choose the best answer. Scoring below. 1. The best toothbrush bristle is: (a) Medium (b) Hard (c) soft (d) electric 2. Teeth grinding and gnashing (bruxism) can lead to: (a) a pain in the neck (b) Sore teeth (c) Headaches (d) all of the above 3. The dentist’s word for cavities: (a) holey teeth (b) caries (c) cartels (d) fillings 4. Straightening of the teeth is called: (a) orthodontics (b) pediatrics (c) geometry (d) endodontics 5. It’s been proven that [...]

By |2024-09-03T10:00:27-07:00November 12, 2024|Patient Education|

More Power to You!

Have you ever heard the old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?” You probably have, and the reason is because it’s true. When it comes to deciding on dental care, however, it can sometimes be difficult to choose which ounce is right for you. Your mouth is unique—and so are your needs. Deciding between another filling or a new crown, for instance, means weighing several variables: cost, your appearance, and minimizing the risk of future tooth loss. And cost, the [...]

By |2024-09-03T10:00:04-07:00November 5, 2024|Patient Education|

Anxiety—No Laughing Matter

We’d like to offer one comforting and wonderful fact about today’s dentistry: its virtually painless. Technology, new procedures, and some very sophisticated approaches to anesthesia have all contributed to painless treatment, from cleaning to cavity preparations to root canals. But what if you didn't grow up with modem dentistry, and remember it differently? If you have had difficult dental experiences, you may be among the 150 million Americans who white-knuckle their way through treatment, or avoid the dentist altogether. The fact is, about 80% of the [...]

By |2024-09-03T09:59:20-07:00October 15, 2024|Patient Education|

How Are You Sleeping?

We have informational brochures in our office concerning snoring and sleep apnea. If you suffer from these problems or are losing sleep because of someone who does, answering these simple questions may help you identify your symptoms. A Sleep Quiz I have been told that I snore. I have been told that I snore loudly, every night and in all sleep positions. I have been jolted awake gasping for breath during the night. I fall asleep at inappropriate times like when driving a car [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:53:01-07:00September 17, 2024|Patient Education|

About Nitrous Oxide

The search for a substance that would let a patient slip into merciful oblivion during surgery has been one of mankind's goals for centuries. In North America, we can thank a dentist, Horace Wells of Connecticut, for the development of nitrous oxide as a form of dental anesthesia. During the early 1840s, Dr. Wells was looking for ways to make his patients more comfortable during procedures. While watching a demonstration of a popular intoxicant, a drug called "laughing gas," Dr. Wells saw the possibility [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:50:16-07:00September 3, 2024|Patient Education|

How Old Is Your Smile?

The concept of dental age is surprising to people when they first ear it. Dental age is independent of chronological age. From a biological stand point, we are youthful until we reach maturity around thirty, we are adults from thirty to sixty years, and elder from sixty on. From a dental stand point, we are youthful at any age as long as we have close to a full compliment of teeth or its equivalent and the supporting tissues are in good health. An adult [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:49:13-07:00August 20, 2024|Patient Education|

What is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a potentially dangerous disorder with fairly benign symptoms—loud snoring at night, and morning headaches or daytime bouts of sleepiness. The cause? Intermittent periods throughout sleep when an individual actually stops breathing. Breathing cessation, or apnea, lasts from seconds to nearly a minute. When breathing resumes—the brain senses lack of oxygen and wakes you up—snoring is loud, sometimes explosive. In the morning, the build-up of carbon dioxide in the blood causes headaches. And the lack of deep, relaxing sleep has you drowsy, [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:48:41-07:00August 13, 2024|Patient Education|

Facing Chemotherapy?

Tell Your Dentist Anyone facing cancer therapy already knows—chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer is a serious response to a serious condition. What they may not know is that a dental appointment scheduled at least two weeks before treatment begins can reduce the risk of complication and help preserve salivary glands. The reason is this: with radiation treatment and chemotherapy, changes in saliva occur that can encourage decay and dry mouth, diminish taste, and thicken soft tissues—to name a few. All these side effects [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:44:40-07:00June 25, 2024|Patient Education|

Alcohol and Your Teeth

Dentally speaking, is drinking alcohol a good thing or a bad thing for your teeth and gums? As with everything alcohol related, there are positives and negatives. On one hand, a mixer-free shot of vodka is probably less hazardous than caramel candies, which coat the teeth with a sticky goo that practically begs for cavities. On the other hand, every kind of alcohol—most notoriously drinks with sugary mixes—are chock-full of their own types of sugar. Sugar is the main source of energy for plaque [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:44:17-07:00June 18, 2024|Patient Education|

Sunshine For Healthy Teeth and Bones

We don’t hear a lot about vitamin D. It’s crucial for healthy teeth and bones because it helps you absorb calcium. And the easiest way to get your minimum daily requirement is—take a walk in the sun! Vitamin D is called the “sunshine vitamin” because natural sunlight converts a chemical in your skin into a usable form of vitamin D. Experts at the Mayo Clinic write that, for most people, as little as 10 to 15 minutes of natural sunshine three times a week [...]

By |2024-09-02T14:42:10-07:00May 14, 2024|Patient Education|