oralhealth

How do you safeguard your dental patients against the transmission of infection?

Our dental office has a modern sterilization room with four sterilizers and two ultrasonic cleaners. We test the sterilizers weekly for their ability to kill microorganisms on the instruments. We sterilize almost all of our instruments in stainless steel cassettes, which we do not open until we treat you. This form of sterilization minimizes our handling of instruments.

How often should I have dental x-rays?

You should have bitewing x-rays (checkup films for back teeth) every two years. Normally, we can spot decay before too much damage has occurred. In those patients with a high rate of decay, we take x-rays every year. About once every 10 years we take a full series of x-rays, which lets us examine the roots of all of the teeth.

Can my teeth be whitened by over-the-counter products?

All of the over-the-counter whitening products have some ability to whiten the teeth, for they all contain some form of peroxide to remove stain. The shortcoming is in their application. For example, Crest White Strips are only wide enough to apply the peroxide to the six front teeth. If you want to lighten more than those teeth, Crest White Strips is not the product to use.

Initially, we tell patients to try an over-the-counter whitening product. If it is unsatisfactory, we take impressions and make a custom tray to hold a stronger peroxide against the teeth. Patients use these trays at home for one hour each day.

Dr William Dorfman, the dentist who starred in Extreme Makeover, gave a talk at a local dental meeting several years ago. He owned the company that makes the Zoom bleaching light. He performed bleaching in his office and then sent patients home with bleach trays to finish the job. If the in-office bleaching was so effective, the patients would not have had to go home with bleach trays. We feel it is more cost-efficient for the patient to bleach the teeth using only the trays and to skip the in-office bleaching expense.

Is there anything I can do for bad breath?

If the odor is from the bacteria in your mouth, frequent dental cleanings will decrease the number of bacteria around your teeth. At home, you can also use a tongue cleaner and rinse with mouthwash that contains zinc. If the odor is from the mucous from a post-nasal drip, you have to see your physician for a remedy.