Dr. Kavita Kamraj B.

You may not look forward to a dental examination, but you can't avoid it. A dental checkup every six months is crucial to your dental health and to maintain that beautiful smile. Skipping a dental checkup may save you time and a little discomfort now, but can cost you much more pain, time and money in the long run.

Here are 6 reasons to maintain a regular dental check up schedule:

1. Fight cavities: A clean up is a big part of a dental examination. No matter how well you brush and floss, there will always be spots that you miss out on. With time, plaque and tartar can build up in these spots leading to cavities if not addressed in time. The worst part about cavities is that you can feel them only once the tooth has been damaged. Thus, if you skip your dental examination, you may need a filling instead of a simple cleaning.
2. Prevent gum disease: Plaque and tartar affect not only your teeth, but your gums as well leading to diseases like gingivitis and periodontitis. These are marked by shrinking of the gums that makes teeth sockets loose and eventually lead to tooth loss. Gum disease treatment can be very painful and expensive hence it is best to get plaque and tartar cleaned regularly before they begin to cause a problem.
3. A brighter smile: Your daily cup of coffee or tea can stain your teeth with time. Wine and cigarettes also contribute towards making your teeth look dull. A professional dental cleaning can help remove these stains and give you a brighter smile.
4. Find hidden problems: X rays are also an important part of a dental examination. An X-ray can detect problems that lie under the surface like misaligned teeth, bone decay, tumors and cysts. These problems rarely show any symptoms in their early stages and hence without an X-ray you would have to wait for it to advance to a more painful stage before seeking treatment.
5. Boost overall health: Regular dental checkups can also lower your risk for heart disease and stroke. In addition to checking your mouth, a dentist will also check neck, jaw and lymph nodes during a regular check up for swelling and other abnormalities. This can help in the early detection and treatment of a number of diseases.
6. Detect oral cancer: Oral cancer is easily treatable if diagnosed in its early stages. However, the only way to diagnose this correctly is by visiting the dentist. A test for oral cancer is pain free and takes hardly any time.

So, think about it. Visiting the dentist may make you a little uncomfortable but in the long run is well worth. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

One of the main reasons of a severe headache is a prolonged toothache. Toothaches are extremely painful and can prevent you from enjoying your food. It becomes difficult to speak if the toothache is unbearable.

Causes of Toothache:

1. Tooth decay

2. Tooth fracture resulting from an accident.

3. A painful infection at the root of your teeth or your gums. This is known as tooth abscess.

4. Chewing gum continuously and grinding the teeth.

How does toothache cause headache?

Sometimes, a tooth becomes very inflamed and since the nerve endings are connected to the brain, this in turn makes the pain travel to different parts of your head. Generally, people with bad cavities or caries have major headaches and migraines.

The inside of a tooth consists of a pulp. This pulp can get infected. If this tooth happens to lie in the upper jaw, then the pain is transferred to the head which can cause a severe headache.

Headaches can also be caused by TMJD (Temporomandibular joint dysfunction). This usually occurs spreading from the face, jawline and neck right up to the head. In extreme cases, the jaws might be locked up and it makes clicking or grinding noises. Misalignment of the teeth can be a cause by TMJD which in turn affects the head greatly.

Treatments:

If you are detected with TMJD, your jaws need to be healed, so that the pain doesn't spread to your head. Hence, dental help is needed. Sometimes, surgery is also required to get rid of TMJD.

If the headache persists due to toothache, it is advisable to take a painkiller as prescribed by your dentist.

Use an ice pack or a towel dipped in cold icy water, and hold it against the area of toothache. Do not put ice directly on your tooth as it might increase the pain ten folds due to tooth sensitivity.

You can also apply numbing gel so that your tooth stops hurting. This in turn, will make your headache reduce.

Toothache is also caused by small amounts of food which get stuck inside your teeth or between your gums, so it is necessary to clean your teeth thoroughly and floss it regularly to avoid toothache.

Avoid chocolates and sweets. If you still get a cavity, you should visit your dentist immediately.

Dental abscess also causes headache. In this situation a root canal treatment is recommended. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Enamel loss is nothing but tooth-enamel erosion, and this is quite a pathetic kind of oral condition. If the eroded enamel does not get restored, then your oral condition will get deteriorated to a great extent. 
Teeth enamel plays the most important role in protecting teeth and if this layer gets eroded, then your teeth will get heavily damaged. Your teeth will not only get eroded, but the real dental color will also get changed. 

Why enamel erosion occurs? 

1.  Drinking excessive hot or cold: your enamel is very much sensitive to hot or cold food items as a result of which email loss is invited. 
2.  Having fruit drinks: Citric acid in the fruit drinks is the element that can cause enamel erosion.
3.  Sugary diet: Excessive sugary diet is the very prominent cause of this kind of dental condition, and thus you should take more and more of non-sugary foods
4.  Environmental factors: There are many environmental factors that are responsible for enamel loss, and they are corrosion, stress, tear, wear, friction and others.
5. Medications: Few medications are there that can cause enamel erosion and these medicines are antihistamines, aspirin and many more.
6. Gastrointestinal troubles: These kinds of troubles are prone to the frequent erosion of tooth enamel and thus these problems need to be resolved as soon as possible.  

What are the leading treatments for restoring enamel loss?

1. Using fluoride toothpaste and mouthwash: There are many talented dentists who are strongly recommending the usage of both fluoride mouthwash and toothpaste so that tooth decay can be easily prevented. These products are now commercially available over-the-counter. 
2.  Routine dental check-up: Daily dental check-up is needed so that oral condition can be checked so that the causes and signs of enamel loss can be detected, and then only perfect treatments can be easily applied. 
3. Taking vitamin-D supplements: There are many drugs and supplements that are enriched with vitamin-D, and they can be taken on a regular basis so that decayed enamel can be easily restored in a safe manner. Coconut oil can be taken in addition to these supplements for getting greater oral benefits. 
4. Cosmetic restoration options: There are many enamel-restoration options that can be cosmetically performed. Some of the popular options are crowning, filling, and others. On the other hand, leading a healthy lifestyle is also very important in this regard.

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

The tooth may seem like a hard, white structure, but it has a complex supply of blood and nerve vessels that give it the essential nutrition. From outside in, the tooth has 3 layers the enamel which is the hard white substance, the dentin which is next, and then the pulp under it where there is a fine supply of blood vessels and nerves. When the pulp is affected in any manner, trauma or infection, then tooth pain ensues and requires treatment.
While extraction was the norm earlier, now all efforts are made to preserve a tooth. RCT preserves the natural tooth by removing the infected nerve and blood vessels, cleaning up the canal, and sealing the canals from inside so that further infection does not happen.

Why RCT?

Preserved chewing function, normal biting force and sensation, preserved natural appearance, and reduced strain on other teeth, thereby maintaining oral harmony. As complex as it may sound, it is usually done in 3 to 4 appointments, giving the tooth enough time to heal in between. The patient is iven antibiotics so that any infection is cleared out.

So, when should root canal treatment (RCT) be done?

1. Infection: The most common indication of RCT would be infection. When decay crosses the enamel and dentin, which can be treated completely with simple restorations, and reaches the pulp, pain ensues. In fact, pain is the first symptom that decay has reached the pulp. Though in very superficial infections, it can be treated with pulp capping, in most cases, RCT is done to clear out the infection and preserve the tooth.
2. Faulty dental procedures: If there has been a dental procedure done on the tooth earlier and it has failed, could be a crown or repeated fillings for decay, then RCT is the next logical decision.
3. Cracked tooth: If there is a cracked tooth, especially vertical crack along the length of the tooth, then the chances that infection will reach the pulp through the crack are high. These teeth are usually root canal treated to preserve the natural dentition.
4. Trauma or accidents: With the impact of the trauma, there might be no obvious damage to the tooth but it could lead to death of the vital pulp. These show up as discolored teeth over time. These require RCT and a crown placement.
5. Teeth in the line of cancers or cysts: Before surgery or radiation is done, it is usually safe to root canal treat the tooth in the line of treatment (or sometimes remove them) before surgery or radiation is done.

Root canal treatment helps both by keeping the original tooth intact and by removing the danger that arises out of infection or trauma. In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Tooth lost to either decay or gum disease leaves a dent in many areas - facial appearance, chewing, facial structure support, etc.  Fixed dentures were a good substitute, however, with one major disadvantage.  They required removal of natural tooth structure from adjacent healthy teeth.  The next big search was to find ways to avoid this, and the result is the dental implant.

The tooth has a visible part called the crown and an invisible part called the root which is hidden in the jaw bone.  While the fixed denture replaces only the crown, the implant replaces both the crown and the root.

How implants are done: Once a tooth is lost and the bone is healed to the desired extent, a biocompatible titanium post that is screwed into the bone. This material has the unique property of osseointegration - it fuses to the bone, which is almost like a natural tooth in its socket.  This complete fusion may take about 2 to 6 months depending on overall health. After it gets absorbed well into the bone, a crown that matches the adjacent teeth is fixed on it.  Implants can also be used for replacing multiple teeth or for overdentures.

There are certain reasons why implants work so well, listed below are some:

• The material: Titanium is biocompatible and does not cause any adverse reaction in the body.  It fuses to the bone completely and is not just put in place to fill the gap. That ensures that the support provided for the new crown or bridge is as good as the original tooth with a root embedded in the jaw bone
• Post-implant care:  Required, but not to the extent required by dentures.  There is very minimal difference between caring for an implant and caring for an implant
• Function: As the implant is completely fused and embedded in the bone, it functions as good as a natural tooth in terms of chewing efficiency and pressure that can be applied on it. This is not the case with dentures
• Gum health: Bridges have an adverse effect on the gums with a constant mild pressure exerted on them.  Implants do not do that and therefore are more friendly on the gums
• Bone health: While bridges affect the alveolar bone health by allowing them to continue to degenerate, implants occupy the space in the bone and do not allow further degeneration. This is probably the most important advantage of implants.
• Aesthetics: Needless to say, the look of a well-done implant far surpasses that of the dentures.

Check with your dentist if you are an ideal candidate for implant, and if yes, it surely is worth the investment.

Often regarded as less painful and much milder than more serious diseases like periodontal disease, Gingivitis involves the inflammation, redness, irritation and swelling of your gums. People who suffer from Gingivitis are normally unaware of it because of its mild nature, but it might turn out to be serious in some cases and can lead to periodontitis and tooth loss. 

Signs and symptoms
Since Gingivitis is seldom harmful, people who suffer from it are, in most cases, hardly aware of having it. Nevertheless, here are a few signs and symptoms which may indicate that you have Gingivitis:
1. Tender, puffy gums
2. Gums easily bleed whenever you brush or floss your teeth
3. Swollen gums
4. Change in color from a healthy pink to a dusky red
5. Receding gums
6. Bad breath

Causes
Gingivitis is most commonly caused by bad oral hygiene and maintenance. Bad oral hygiene usually supports the formation of plaque and tartar. Because plaque forms and re-forms quickly, it requires daily removal. If you don't give your teeth the attention it needs, plaque can further result in the formation of tartar, which is a heavier and denser substance than plaque and acts as a protective barrier for bacteria. It is even more difficult to remove it and you may require dental cleaning.

Treatment
The main aim of treatment is to reverse the symptoms of Gingivitis and to prevent further development of the disease into more serious dental issues and diseases.
Professional treatment of Gingivitis includes:
1. Initial evaluation and assessment
2. Thorough cleaning with the help of professional dental tools and instruments
3. Instructions on effective flossing and brushing techniques at home
4. Regular cleaning and professional checkups
5. Fixing of crowns and other dental restorations to help prevent the growth of plaque and tartar

If you wish to discuss about any specific dental problem, you can consult a specilized dentist and ask a free question.