Everyone should take good care of their health, and this includes the teeth and mouth as well. Most American adults care greatly about the quality of their teeth, and discolored, crooked, or missing teeth can often be embarrassing or unpleasant. Fortunately, a dentist can help a patient with nearly any tooth problem that they may have, and dental care can take a wide variety of forms. Dentists can work on the cosmetics of a patient’s teeth, or a dentist may offer Invisalign providers or similar brands for crooked or crowded teeth. Or a routine cleaning may be done. An adult is urged to have a regular dentist for themselves and any kids they may have, and a person can search online to find dentist offices near them.
Get a Dentist
An adult can find a new dentist office for themselves or their child when they move to a new area, for example. Performing an online search can be helpful, and a person can include their city, town, or state into the search. An example may be “Lake Ridge VA dentists” or “best dentists San Diego CA” to find local offices. A customer may eliminate offices on the list that seem too far away, and the person can then visit closer offices. Once on the premises, the customer can meet the dentists in person and evaluate their credentials, and determine which dentist is best for them, at the right price. A parent can do this for their child as well, and the child’s own input is important, too. A child should be relaxed and cooperative at a dentist’s office and around the adult staff. After all, a frightened or uncooperative child will be difficult to treat.
Once a person has a regular dentist for themselves or their child, what can be expected there? Sometimes, only a routine checkup and cleaning is needed, and this can be done for kids and adults alike. Other times, a patient might need dental implants put in for missing teeth, such as a dental bridge or even dentures. This is common, and a patient should expect good results. Scientific literature, for example, has found that dental implants in the United States today have a success rate close to 98%, and many Americans already have them. Some three million Americans today have dental implants, and around 500,000 people get implants put into their mouths every year. Other times, a patient may get metal fillings put in for cavities.
Some dental implants are bridges; that is, a replacement tooth that is anchored to the two real teeth on either side. The implant itself is the false tooth, attached to covers that slip over the real teeth on either side of the tooth gap, thus a bridge. This is a common procedure and can easily fill in a tooth gap with a natural look. On a larger scale, a patient may get dentures, which can replace several missing teeth in a row. Sometimes, every tooth in a person’s mouth may be dentures. Getting dentures is common among the elderly, who can visit a dentist to have their teeth measured for denture creation.
Other times, patients have tooth infections or other issues that call for surgery. A root canal, for example, may be done to remove the fleshy pulp inside a tooth if there is an infection present. The doctor numbs the affected tooth and surgically removes the pulp, leaving the tooth in place. This doesn’t hurt, as many people expect it to, but the tooth will no longer feel heat or cold and may be slightly more fragile. Tooth extraction, by contrast, may be done if the entire tooth is heavily infected or damaged, or if it is about to fall out of the gums anyway. Other times, tooth extraction may be done to remove a wisdom tooth that is growing in. The adult human mouth holds only 28 teeth, and emerging wisdom teeth threaten to cause harmful crowding of teeth in the mouth.
Cosmetics matter, too. Unsightly teeth can hamper a person’s social performance, such as at the workplace, and can be a source of humiliation. Retainers can align teeth, and tooth whitening can be done to improve the teeth’s color. This is a popular procedure.
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