Yellow or stained teeth can put a dent in your smile. That may be why, according to the American Association of Orthodontists, almost 90% of dental patients ask their providers for some type of teeth whitening. Here at Virginia H. Ellis, DDS Dental Corp. in Orinda, California, we often get questions about how patients can whiten their teeth and keep them white.
If you’re missing one or more teeth — and by age 50, according to the CDC, the average American has lost 12 — it can seriously damage your oral health. From bite misalignments to worn teeth to the inability to clean properly, missing teeth can cause a host of problems, making restorative dentistry an important part of your dental health plan.
The holidays are a time when family and friends gather to celebrate and, thanks to cellphones-turned-cameras, everyone is a potential photographer. If you want your smile to light up your holiday photos, professional teeth whitening is just the ticket.
We’ve all seen the ads for at-home teeth whitening kits that promise amazing results. But, can whitening strips, pens, and gels deliver equal or better results than a professional whitening? Most of the time, the answer is no.
If your teeth are weak, cavity-prone, or both, you have a number of options to strengthen them and give yourself a bright, healthy smile. One of the more overlooked options is dental veneers, which are wafer-thin porcelain shells that the dentist bonds to the fronts of your teeth.
When gum disease gets serious, so do the treatments. The problem is that the damage occurs below the gum line, out of the reach of brushing and flossing. Typically, this means some aggressive scaling and root planing at the dentist’s office, and even full-on dental surgery that can cause an uncomfortable recovery.
If you unconsciously grind, gnash, or clench your teeth, you might have a condition called bruxism. While it may not seem serious, bruxism can trigger a variety of uncomfortable symptoms, including:
You have two jaw joints, one on each side of your head. Called the temporomandibular joints (TMJs), they’re hinged joints that connect your jaw with your skull and allow you to open and close your mouth to eat and speak. TMJ is also the name given to pain, stiffness, and other issues related to the joints.
When brushing and flossing, many people tend to think that the health of their teeth equals their oral health. However, the truth is your gums are just as important to your oral health, if not more so. Your gums are part of a larger tissue system called the periodontium, and this system not only holds your teeth in place, but it also provides cushioning to prevent tooth damage when you chew or suffer physical trauma.
Earaches, neck pain, and a jaw that pops, clicks, or gets stuck are all signs of a temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder. At Virginia H. Ellis, DDS Dental Corp. in Orinda, California, Dr. Ellis specializes in diagnosing and treating TMJ problems. In this blog, she explains what TMJ disorders are along with some of the treatment options.
