○ Cerec Same Day Crowns
○ 3D CBCT Imaging
○ Dental Implants
○ Digital X-Rays
○ Panoramic X-Rays
○ Rotary Handpiece for Endodontic Treatment

• Whether it’s one tooth or many, it’s extractions are a notable procedure to have completed. Tissue takes at least a full month to heal, and bone continues to heal for 4-6 months following an extraction.
• Minimize talking and chewing.
• Stay elevated, making sure not to rest on the area of extraction.
• Ice 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off.
• Nutrition is important. Eat/drink what you can—soft and temperature-neutral—and
nutritional drinks, like Ensure, are great options.
• Tobacco use: Minimize or cease tobacco use completely. Nicotine in the bloodstream
hinders healing and many patients report more pain along with prolonged healing.
• Use warm saltwater rinses—no alcohol-based mouth rinses.
• Do not agitate or dig into the extraction site for risk of disrupting the clot and causing dry
socket.
• Dry socket is when the bone is exposed and is very painful. Patients need to visit the
office in this case for wound dressing.
• Over-the-counter pain medication: Take Ibuprofen and Tylenol alternated if you’re able
to take both per medical doctor guidelines (if you’re not sure, contact your physician).
• Upper teeth have higher risk of sinus communication.
• Minimize activities that might contribute to sinus perforation for two to three weeks,
including blowing your nose, popping your ears, drinking through a straw, sneezing, etc.
• You may feel sinus congestion following the extraction. This can be normal and will
dissipate with healing. Decongestants can be taken if needed.
• Bony spicules may be noticed in the days/weeks/months following the extraction as the
body is still healing and remodeling. Sometimes patients can remove them themselves.
If not, call the office and we can help—they can be painful.

• Patience is important when you first start using the appliance.
• You will produce extra saliva, but this usually returns to normal within a week or two.
• It will feel strange right away when you can’t fully close your teeth. This will also become
normal with time like wearing glasses, shoes, jewelry, or anything new.

• Please make sure dentures are taken out at night. Why? We want the tissue to breathe and heal. We don’t want fungus growing.
• Clean the denture and place it in water/case overnight.
• Upon waking, clean the mouth, rinse/clean the denture before placing it in the mouth.
• During healing, interim dentures can be tough to appreciate. They’ll be awkward, they will be hard to talk with, and they will be hard to eat with. This is a new prosthesis that takes time/practice/patience.
• Sore spots: They likely will occur. We want you to call and make time to see us ASAP. We want to see the spots so we can help you. We don’t encourage you to take out dentures and call days/weeks later because it’s harder for us to do a great job.
• Right away, dentures will likely be clumsy and fall. Then, they’ll firm up a bit for a few days/weeks. Next, they’ll get loose again. This is why we do what we call “relines” throughout the healing process. We will have you come in several times during healing to add a material to make your denture(s) fit and feel more comfortable.

We want to get to know you for future appointments but also for your current wants and needs. We will complete paperwork, x-rays, photos, a clinical exam, perio charting, and necessary scans. The new patient portion of the appointment generally lasts one full hour. Sometimes we will schedule you for an additional hour if we have an opening for cleaning. This means you would be at our office for one to two hours.

During your initial comprehensive exam at our office, periodontal charting will be completed. Periodontal charting is used to determine the bone and tissue health surrounding your teeth. Please be aware that periodontal disease often isn’t painful, and people are completely unaware they have it, which is why we screen for it.

While we wish we could agree to this, we simply cannot avoid it due to legalities. We must abide by a standard of care for all our patients, and attorneys will not allow us the luxury of ignoring a portion of your dental health and well-being, even if you agree to it. If we did so, we would be considered negligent in the eyes of the law. Please understand that all portions of our exam are well intended and in your best dental interests.

The type and frequency of dental cleanings recommended are backed by science and research. While we know insurance companies have frequencies they like to pay, science encourages all people to have cleanings completed every three months due to bacterial load and increased risks like decay and periodontal disease. If you’re a periodontal patient, it’s especially important that you get your teeth cleaned every three to four months so that the disease-causing bacteria aren’t allowed to reach numbers that would more negatively affect your periodontal health. People with periodontal disease don’t always have poor hygiene, they simply have the type of bacteria that contributes to bone loss, pocketing, and overall disease progression. Once pockets are formed, individuals cannot simply clean these pockets on their own whether using a manual
toothbrush or a waterpik. Trained dental hygienists need to flush these pockets and use their hand instruments to access these areas, helping to minimize disease progression.

Again, the standard of care and legalities come into play. We need certain X-rays to see and diagnose what the human eye cannot. We always do our best to explain the x-rays and what we find along with intraoral photos so our patients can be well-informed. 3D cone- beams, 2D panoramic, and/or full-mouth x-rays are taken every 3-5 years to monitor all areas of the dentition. Yearly, we take bitewing X-rays to specifically monitor high decay areas on and between teeth that can’t be seen with the human eye. Much like periodontal charting and treatment, this isn’t an area we can just allow patients to sign away. Legally, we are responsible for overall dental health and well-being, and if we allow patients to dictate diagnostic treatment, we could be missing a diagnosis that is detrimental to patient health. Patients that refuse x-rays at the required intervals unfortunately cannot be seen as patients.

Not all teeth are the same. Some teeth have one or two canals while other teeth have multiple roots and canals, and some teeth have anatomy and infection that make them even more challenging to treat. Endodontists are specialists who went through years of additional training to deal with these more involved teeth. They have fancy microscopes and instruments, should they be needed, to do the best job for your infected tooth. If you’re referred to the endodontist, please know we want you to have the best care possible while respecting your time and needs, and that this is the best treatment option for you.

• Orthodontics – straighten and align teeth.
• Periodontists – specialize in the gum tissue and bone surrounding teeth.
• Pedodontists/Pediatric Dentists – children’s dental care.
• Prosthodontists – restore missing teeth & gums.
• Endodontists – treat internal tooth problems relating to the nerve.
• Oral Surgeons – perform more advanced dental surgical procedures including
head/neck surgeries, biopsies, TMJ surgery, wisdom teeth removal, complex
implant cases, etc.

We work with ALL insurances. Whether we are in-network or out-of-network, offering these insurance providers usually has to do with whether we can afford to be in-network with them while providing the best care to our patients. Dental insurance companies have fee schedules with negotiated rates below our set fees. Our fees are set to cover the cost of our overhead including general overhead from our building to the lights and heat, equipment/technology, supplies, salaries, licensing, taxes/fees, education, etc. If reimbursements are too low, we cannot be in-network with certain providers because we feel we cannot provide the time and quality of care to patients while being fair to our coworkers. The lower the reimbursements we receive, the more people we have to see and the less time and commitment we can make to each patient being seen. Taking time with each patient is paramount for us!

Dental needs do not get better with time and statistically cascade when not addressed. While we encourage regular maintenance care from childhood, we understand some people find themselves in an overwhelming position in adulthood. Insurance is designed to keep up with maintenance, but not for someone who needs large comprehensive care. While we know it can be a financial strain, it’s always encouraged for patients to get the work that needs to be completed done as soon as possible before it advances. Then, use your insurance as intended: To maintain your dental health through regular hygiene visits and the occasional unforeseen need. Anything above and beyond this requires the patient’s diligence and commitment in both home care and financial planning.

If you get a statement that you’re surprised by, please understand, this is never our office’s intent. If you have questions or concerns, please know it’s our best intention to work on behalf of patients when it comes to insurance companies and your benefit plan.