Archive for the ‘cosmetic-dentistry’ Category

Once upon a time there was the tooth I

Posted by Dental News Team On February - 14 - 2011

Toothache 1/5

zahnodyssee_i1This week we would like to show you how it all began, just like one of those cartoon documentaries on evolution – except that we’re doing the evolution of the tooth!

You know how some stories are long and need to be told in parts. Well, this is going to be a five-part series, which we personally think is long enough!

Here is a short preview of all of this week’s episodes

  1. Getting my fillings replaced was a good idea, so why do I still have a toothache!
  2. One root canal after the other, but the toothache won’t go away?!
  3. Maybe you don’t have a toothache, but your face kind of hurts, is this a case of trigeminal neuralgia?!
  4. Teeth gone, toothache and desperation still around!
  5. The journey’s over, now you’ve made it to this article!

Getting my fillings replaced was a good idea, so why do I still have a toothache!

The sun is shining.
You’re finally making money on your own, you have long since left your parents’ house, and you may even have a family of your own. You have everything anybody could ever want – there’s a nice car in the driveway in front of your house, your four children are happily playing in the garden. You and your partner have achieved all your goals, you got your college degree, and then embarked on a great career – you’ve spent 15 years abroad and speak 4 languages.

We are parents, lovers, adventures and friends in one, the only thing we always forget about is our teeth, until one fine day we decide to replace our old amalgamate fillings by something newer, whiter and more natural, composite fillings (white fillings). For a small sum, say 50-150€ we get our spanking new white fillings.

Clouds on the horizon
You’re already on your way home when you start feeling pain after getting your fillings – one or more of your teeth start to ache! And when you bite down on something you get some kind of unpleasant „feeling“. Some of us are lucky, and it takes days, weeks, months, or even years until you start having problems with your teeth. Many of us only have problems for a short while but years later they come back in full force, and you have a bumpy ride ahead.

Toothache – what now – what happened?
Plastics fillings consist of little building blocks, called monomers – kind of like legos. Once the dentist points the strange lamp at the fillings, these  monomers turn to polymers. The light puts the legos together – and the plastic hardens, a process called polymerisation.

But the plastic can only harden thoroughly if moisture is kept away from the tooth, and this can only be done using a cofferdam. Moreover, the plastic should be applied in thin layers and allowed to harden immediately, otherwise the bottom layers will stay soft. Done properly, this may take up to an hour!

These fillings should not be used on chewing surfaces either, as the polymers are unstable and monomers can start breaking out of the structure.

Depending on how the procedure was performed (moist, without layering, deep fillings) loose monomers may be present from the very beginning, and start to break away eventually. These monomers are also “poison” to the dental nerve, which gets damaged and gives you a toothache. This may happen right away, or it might take days, weeks, or months, depending on the depth of the filling, how well the filling was made and the quality of the materials used. Your judgement may also be influenced by your sensitivity to pain.

Stay tuned for: Once upon a time there was the tooth II

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Crown material, crown costs, crown pain

Posted by Dental News Team On September - 20 - 2010

Crown materials, crown costs, crown pain-a common topic!Does the material play a role in pricing?
No!
Are there differences in materials regarding longevity?
No!

 Do crowns cause allergies?
No!

Cost of a dental crown

The price area of the material is minor, as well as the consumption; only few grams are needed per crown. Consequently, differences between prices up to 100 € are not explicable. Everybody who is asking more money is trying to take advantage of you! Differences between prices play a role when it comes to aesthetic. It makes a difference if the technician is making 10 crowns or just one crown per hour!

Crown materials
A crown´s lifetime doesn´t depend on the material, but the fringe-tightness and thus the precise work of the dentist. Every material used in the dental industry has a shelf period, which is much longer than a human life. More on this in the video tangent cut, step cut and crown. Each material used in Europe is inspected precisely, otherwise they must not be manufactured.

Crown pain

The crown is isolated from the tooth stump by a thin cement shift. Usually the ceramic is oral. Only immunocompetent cells cause allergic reactions! Neither in the tooth stump nor in the cementfissure are immunocompetent cells, so no allergic reaction is possible! Bleeding gums, a cauterisation in the mouth, or recession of the gums are not an indication of an allergy, but usually an indication of leaking crown edges, or consequent periodontitis.

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Costs of veneers

Posted by Dental News Team On July - 6 - 2010

The costs of „Ceramic caps“ vary!

A veneer is a thin layer of restorative material – composite or porcelain, placed over a tooth surface to improve the appearance of one or more teeth, or to cover damaged teeth. You can get veneers from 500€/piece to 1500€/piece.
-AA 

The costs have nothing to do with the ceramic caps, but with the effort done before- wax-up, individual shapes checked with the technician, glue procedure,…you´ll get more information about veneers and what to take care of, in the video bonding!
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Basically the terms veneer, lumineer or non prep veneer don´t necessarily mean to prep the teeth. This myth is advertised over and over again-they want to cause ancient fear of the dental drill!
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Be careful if your dentist wants to beautify your dentition without drilling! Here you get the information about when and how to grind down your veneers.
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Moreover you see pictures of veneers before and after in the video veneer on checkdent.com.

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White teeth – a worthy aim, or just another hype?

Posted by pedro67 On March - 15 - 2010

Our appearance is influenced by many different factors, one of the biggest being our teeth!

Health, beauty and feeling good are becoming ever more important in the industrialized countries. One interesting aspect is that ideals diverge in the northern and southern countries of Europe, in the South (for example Spain, Italy, Greece, etc.) having gaps in your teeth is very common if you live in the countryside.

A mouth full of healthy teeth tends to be the exception rather than the rule, it is more common to be gap-toothed. And although city-dwellers tend to have less gaps, they do not pay much attention to the appearance of the teeth they do have.

Gold teeth, bad crowns, ugly amalgamate fillings and/or and or badly made plastic fillings are the norm!

In the more northern countries of Europe (Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, …) you will rarely find such poor work. If you do, then the person probably could not afford better work. There is a definite trend towards „White“.

The concept of „aesthetic dentistry“ came to us from the USA. White is not enough – everything has to look natural and teeth are not totally white!


Ironically, Galip Gürel – a Turk – is the chairperson of the Association for “Aesthetic Dentistry”. There is a trend towards teeth that look more natural. Teeth like those of the former Austrian Chancellor Dr. Klima are a sign that incompetent dentists and dental technicians were at work.

A crown need not be visible, much less a plastic filling in the front (picture above)! These are works of art, which not all dental technicians can master, and crowns such as this can cost €1500-2000.

A €500 crown stays visible, but should not cause any inflammation and/or recession of the gumsa groove cut and threads should be the standard nowadays, no matter the look!

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Good dentist, bad dentist

Posted by Dental News Team On February - 22 - 2010

Wouldn’t you like to know whether your dentist is good or bad?

We assume you do, which is why this week we are going to tell you all about what to consider when looking for a dentist and how to find a good one.

As usual, we will provide you with an overview of this week’s main topic!

  1. Good dentist – the cost estimate
  2. Dentists and their teams
  3. Hygiene in the dentist’s office
  4. Explaining procedures
  5. Trouble-shooting

Good dentist – the cost estimate
First of all, does your dentist even bother giving you a cost estimate?
No? Then s/he has no idea what s/he is doing!

If yes, how is the estimate structures?
Did you get a thorough check-up before you got the estimate? You should know what has to be done in your case and what will only be performed to fill the dentist’s pockets. What are we going on about? Well, in order for the dentist to provide you with a good cost estimate, s/he needs to have a good idea of the current status of your teeth and mouth.

If s/he does not bother performing a check-up, then it is likely s/he will only do things that cost a lot, namely implants and crowns.

You can always tell good estimates from bad ones, because good estimates always provide detailed information, which is collected during a check-up (assuming, of course, that your mouth really needs an overhaul, not just one bridge or implant if your teeth and mouth are otherwise healthy, otherwise, what would be the point of collecting data!).

A good cost estimate includes:

  • An anamnesis (medical history) / Patient’s request
  • Findings
  • Diagnosis
  • Recommendations for therapy / Alternatives
  • Description of procedures as needed

This information lets the dentist know what you wish to be done, the condition of your teeth (periodontal status, photos, models of your teeth, …), anything and everything you’ll need to set up a treatment plan.

The cost estimate should consider all kinds of work, even work which is less lucrative to the dentist. This includes fillings, root canal treatment, operations such as removing wisdom teeth, etc.

But this is the kind of work which should usually be done first, before doing more complicated procedures – you should make sure the ground is in good shape before you start building houses on it (crowns, implants etc.).

Summing up, a simple cost estimate can and should tell you quite a lot!

  • If your dentist offers you any treatment without performing a thorough check-up first, then chances are that s/he is only going to do things which cost the most money!
  • If the cost estimate starts out with an extensive check-up, then you’re on the right path!
  • If a cost estimate begins with the least expensive types of treatment (renewed root treatment, removing wisdom teeth, periodontal work, …) with dentures (crowns, bridges) last on the list, then stick with that dentist!

More on this topic tomorrow, and by the end of the week you should be able to tell a good dentist from all others!

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